The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1920-12-04
NO CHANCE FOR
RETRENCHMENT
Davidson Sees No Hope
of Cutting Down State
Expenses.
MORE MONEY NEEDED
Eighth Legislature Will Be
Called Upon to Appropriate
More Than Seventh.
staff correspondence.

staff Correspondence
OKLAHOMA CITY. Dec. Slow
oklahoma's Eighth legislature will
apropriate more than $20.000,000 to
care for expenditures for the next
BIENNIAL il outlined by senator X.
l.. davidson of Tulsa, president pro
tempore of the senate and who has
been governor for the past few days
because Governor Robertson and
Lieut. Gov. NJ. f. Trapp are absent
from the state.
While Senator Davidson is regard
ed az a leader Of the democratic
state administration forces, he has
established a record as being some
Z what opposed to extraordinary api
propriauon measures, and his state
ment regarding the oncoming ap-
propria.ions can therefore be- ac-
cep,ed with reasonable assurance Of
being the minimum expected by the
Robertson administration coterie.
senator Davidson explains that the
seventh legislature appropriated
more than SIs.000.0 900 for the bien-
nisl. and while that act was severe
ly criticised, yet II did not suffice
10 control the expenditures at the
state institutions, and the legisla-
ture which IL to convene in January
will have to provide deficiency ap-
propriations OF more than $1,000
600 or the principal institutions Of
the state will be shut down for a
period of more than four months.
While there is sufficient money in
the treasury to take care OF all ex-
penditures for the fiscal year end
ing June 30, 1891. II has not been
appropriated, and until that Is done
~ had wHn he in the
barn.
According to Senator Davidson's
diagnosis OF the case. 1t does not
matter what political party is in the
ascendency nor even what faction
of a party, the state institutions
must be maintained. and the idea
OF appropriating less than was done
in 1919, according to the senator.
Is beyond reason. Rather he IL In
clined to think the appropriations
for institutions will be far In excess
of that allowed two years ago. urg-
ing as q reason that for four years
the legislature has been curtailing
on expenditures for public build
ings and he now deems 1t impera-
tive that such structure should be
provided.
OF the $4,000, ,ooc appropriated
for the biennial which ends June 80,
1921, almost $14.000.000 was for the
maintenance of the state institu-
tions. The Robertson program for
the next session will reach far In
excess OF those figures. to say moth
ing Of $2,000.000 to be provided Tor
a soldiers hospital.
senator Davidson Is undoubtedly
as close to the Robertson program
as any of the hOldOver democratic
senator's, and can do more to bring
that program into reality than any
other member of the senate, being
situated in the right community and
having the proper connections for
a real legislative battle. In addi-
ton. he has always been considered
a conservative regarding appropria-
tlons and has refused to serve on
that committee. reserving the right
to oppose any appropriation he
deemed unworthy of support.
His statement to the press was
made the first day he was In charge
OF the office Of the chief executive.
Asked by The World to amplify, he
confined himself to a reminiscence
Of former appropriations. their in
adequacy to meet the acts of the
state institutional heads, and the
fact that appropriations always go
up and never go downward.
II is true that where 1t has been
possible. the institutional heads
have exhausted their appropriations
and will appear before the new leg
islature as mendicants hoping only
TO exist through the clemency OF the
Sublic as expressed by their legis-
.'ative representatives. Nor is there
any denial of the fact that this
policy has been encouraged by cer-
tain administration officials who
are campaigning for another ap-
propriation measure, and II does
create a condition hard to combat.