The Cordova daily times., 1921-04-15
WOULD ABATE LOST MOTION
 IN CONGRESS
Plans Made to Simplify Con- gressional Work and In crease Efficiency in House and Senate
BY COL. WINFIELD JONES

l peihS uiSCuSSeu Dy mousse ana senate leaders to abate lost motion in con i gressional procedure, so that time can
 be saved and the public business
 transacted more expeditiously President Harding and some of his
 cabinet members have announced
 that there is to be thorough reor-
 ganization of the business of govern
 ment in Washington and throughout
 the country. Economy, efficiency,
 and business-like methods are to be put in operation in all departments, bureaus and offices of the federal government.
 | Congressional leaders have taken a hint from this plan to aid the fed
 eral government by the Harding ad- ministration, and intend to do every
 thing possible to speed up and ex- pedite all congressional business here after. The leaders, political economy
 professors, and so-called efficiency experts (who are often misnamed), , are all tackling the problem of how to simplify congressional methods.
 The principal fault with procedure 1 in house and senate now is not so much lost motion, though there is a lot of that, but in congress trying to do too much within limited time Plans simplifying congressional work and increasing the efficiency of house and senate contemplate the 1 following:
 1. To delegate some of the con- gressional business to other existing government agencies.
 2. By, establishing new agencies to handle special business, such as 1 that which pertains to the territories and the District of Columbia. This business now absorbs the time of congress out of all proportion to it's comparative importance. For instance | congress is now required to act as sort of municipal council for Wash ington City and the District of Col umbia. If the district elected it's own local officials and had dele gate in congress to speak for it much i of the time now given to district af- fairs would be taken off the shoulders of both house and senate. It is the same with business of the various territories.
 3. By establishing an administra- tive code and by facilitating and ex- pediting all congressional procedure. Some senators and representatives believe that much business now trans acted by congress could be better handled by commissions, business such as is now handled by the inter- state commerce commission, federal waterpower commission, shipping board and other boards and commis- sions. If much business that could be handled in this way was taken away i from congress, the house and senate would have more time for really i'm portant matters. A very large amount of small public business that now burdens the congressional commit tees and takes up much time in de- bates could be readily handled and certainly more expeditiously trans acted by some other agencies than congress.
 l It cannot be denied that the pres ent system of congressional transac- tion of business is cumbersome and involved in almost as much fred tape" as some of the government bu- reaus.
 There is another proposed reform also that is beginning to be discussed and which will be talked about more and more as the business of con gress grows heavier. This is a pro- posal that constitutional amend ment be enacted which would change the method of selecting members of | congress. It is revolutionary in its scope, for it would provide that whenever a majority of congress fails to endorse a national administrative policy or refused to pass an annual 1 budget congress shall adjourn and elections be held soon thereafter for new congress- This is based on the British, French, and Italian sys- tems of parliamentary government, where when the government is not sustained by majority of the par liaments the cabinet and premier re- sign. Such a change in our constitu- tional system would necessarily have to provide for the discharge of a cabinet at the same time a congress was terminated. There are a great many arguments in favor of such system, as compared to the faults of | the present American congressional system. Whether or not such a radi- pa1 DrODOSa1 yyOu1d meet annrOVal of