The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1921-01-27

weeks the law makers have been cor
corning theYselves with finding
way out. They are now beginning t
threaten retrenchment in earnes
while heads of the departments i
the state government and at tn
state educational, penal and Chart
able institutions look tearfully on.
The committee on appropriation
in the house and the finance com
mittee in the senate have not re
ported back yet on the budgets givel
them by the governor, altho they hat
hoped to report before this time. l
is said that the budgets are almos
being rewritten in their entirety.
The committee on state affairs II
the house, under the leadership o.
John W. Shook, former warden a,
the state penitentiary, has succeeded
in passing large number of bills
thru the lower house cutting off con.
tinuing appropriations. This action
will force several bureaus and de-
partments and state institutions to
c me before the legislature and ask
for direct appropriations. Some OF
the administration leaders are COM
planning over the action taken. They
say the appropriations will be in
creased.
Yes, but the tax levies will be de-
creased" Shook told them this week.
One of the continuing appropria-
lions cut off does away with the
state fund which has been aside to
match the money given Idaho by the
federal government in the Smith
Hughes act for vocational educa-
tional training. During the last
biennium it totaled $3S,40O. Many
high schools of the state have taken
up the vocational training work, but
unless the legislature sees it's way
clear to make direct appropriation
these departments must be closed.
The committee on state affairs in
the senate has introduced bill abol-
ishing the Albion state normal
school. The committee proposes to
close it forever. Members of this
committee say the school has only
sixty-nine students and that it is
asking for an appropriation of $780,
900 for the biennium, or approx
mately $4,000 for each student.
High costs of education in the
state is causing much concern and
several members of the legislature
are avtice in an effort to bring about
the consolidation of several of the
educational institutions. W. Scott
Hal head of the committee on edu-
cation in the house, wants to close
Albion and Lewiston normals and
establish normal department at the
state university. He also proposes
to close the technical institute and
rerz We the agricultural college from
Moscow to southern Idaho and con-
solidate the technical institute with
it.
Clifford of Adams, Montgomery of
Jerome and Fait of Clark county
have joined in introducing a bill
VIII h is a duplication of the old pri-
mary law which was abolished two
Yeas ago. They propose to take
the judiciary out of politics.
Friends of Senator William E.
Borah will introduce second pri-
bill this week. 1t leaves the
judiciary in politics. The legislature
appears to be divided over the pri-
maries.
The committee on irrigation, res
ervoirs and reclamation in the house
have introduced a bill establishing a
nation commission to be made
up of the attorney general, the COM
Il oner of reclamation and the
e" ,issioner of finance. This COM
mission would be given authority to
investigate conditions in a proposed
irrigation district and pass upon it's
feasibility.
ompanion bill which will be in
troduced this week by the same COM
mittee will authorize counties to
guarantee bonds sold by irrigation
districts. The taxable property is a
county would become a lien for
NC sold by the districts, but the
counties would be safe-guarded by
the reclamation commission.
n of these bills are administra-
tion measures. They are modelled
after the California law and are in
keeping with the wishes of men in
every section of the state, who have
been interested in reclamation. If
= bills go thru it is improbable
that the legislature would pass the
Clifford resolution providing for a |
tutional amendment which
would permit the state to loan it's
credit to irrigation districts.
The committee on state affairs in
y 'wer house is preparing a bill
multiplying the law enacted two years
ago which provides for the establish
NET of the tuberculosis sanitariums.
Tw" sanitariums were provided for. |
Ground for them has been purchased
at Favette and Standpoint. About
100000 was appropriated to cover
cir cost. The bill being drawn by
tie committee on state affairs re-
laalo the act of the legislature of two
years ago and diverts the funds set
aside for the senitarium into the
general fund of the state treasurer.
It is proposed by the committee
on state affairs that the money or
finally set aside for the sanitariums
be used for new buildings at the
state insane asylum at Blackfoot
and at the state sanitarium at
Orifino.
A fight is brewing in the legisla-
ture over the two-mill road tax en-
acted in 1919. The finance commit
tee in the house, acting at the sug-