The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1920-11-18
CANVASSERS TO
MEET HERE AT
SPECIAL CALL
Attorney-GeneraFs. Ruling to
Cause Two Sessions of
Board
REMOVES ANY CONFLICTS
Constitution Provides that Ini-
tiated Measures BE Effec-
tive in 80 Days


board to canFass the vote on the in
itiated measures voted on at the Nov
ember election will be called by Sec
retary of State Hall, acting on an
opinion rendered by Albert e. Sheets
,'r,, assistant attorney-general.
The statutory, time for meeting of
the canvassing board is the first Tues
day in December after general cleo
ton, which would be 80 days after
the election. The constitution as
amended, provided that the initiated
measures shall become effective 30
days after election, unless otherwise
specified in the measure.
Mr.. Sheets, in hts opinion, traces
the course Of the initiative and ref
erendum in North Dakota The first
initiative and referendum was APPROX
cd at the general election of 1913
It was provided that all legislation
put forward under the terms of the
provision shall be inforced from the
official declaration of the Vote Mr..
Sheets, continuing, says:
Legislative Action
''The legislature. at its first session
after constitutional provision above
mentioned became effective, in COM
pliance Herewith, provided for the
srvassing Of votes upon initiated
and referred measures, as we'll as
those for or against officers, and set
the time when such measures would
become effective by fixing the date
upon which the state board Of can
vassers would meet the time being
on the first Tuesday after a general
election and within 80 days after a
special election.
I'm 1919, however, by article 26 OF
an amendment to the constitution the
legislature completed the process OF
amending the initiative and refer
endum provision already mentioned
the opinion of Mr.. Sheets says.
"The new constitutional provision
with reference to tile date upon which
measures should become effective, III
viously noted, that they be in force
from the official declaration of the
vote, provided that such initiated or
referred measure shall go into effect
on the thirtieth day after the election,
unless otherwise specified in the
measure
"And to make double sure that no
act of the legislature which might
chen be in existence or passed in the
future, and no Judgment Of any court,
should alter or change the purposes,
intention or meaning of the consti-
tutional provision, the following pro-
vision was inserted succeeding the
section just quoted,
"'This section shall be self-eXecut-
ing and all of it's provisions shall be
treated as mandatory
Held Mandatory
"Thus it will be seen that under the
terms of the constitution, article 26,
of amendment, the thirtieth day after
the election is made the mandatory
date upon which the measure shall be
effective, unless such measure shall
otherwise specify. None of these in"
;tiated measures or the referred meas
iure voted OH at the last general cleo
ton, contain any provision, as to when
they shall become effective.
1T is an elemental principle OF
law, established many times by the
decisions of our own supreme court,
that statutory enactment cannot alter,
change or impair constitutional pro-
vision. and least Of all is this permls-
sible when such constitutional pro-
vision is made by it's own terms, SELF
executing and mandatory.
Since by terms Of the constitution
all of the initiated measures voted
on at the last general election be-
come effective on the thirtleth day
thereafter, it is a duty made man
datorv by the terms of the constitu-
ton. of the state board of canvassers
to meet sometim between such cleo
ton and the thirtieth day thereafter
and canvass the vote upon such in
itiated measures.
Mr., Sheets adds since it is not re-
ouired of the county auditors that
they certify an abstract Of votes to
the secretary of state until twenty
davs after the election, he suggests
the canvass be held sometime between
tie twentieth and thirtieth day. ~
Since all Of, the measures passed.
the canvass will be completed i'll
time so that they may become Ell