Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1924-03-13


The cure, or hobbling. vii
come through a reduction in tn
number Of representatives and
biennial session of the legisla
ture.
Provide biennial sessions,
with salary limit and we will
have fewer and better laws. Ev-
cry legislator should be paid a
reasonable sum for his service
a stated sum, whether the legis-
lature remains in session 30 days
or 90 days. Do this and you'll
see fewer bills on the calendars.
The Journals editorial, which
follows, is interesting and in
formative:
The tendency of legislative
bodies toward too much activity
is an old complaint. Madison, in
the Federalist, uttered warning
words of this danger. Distin-
guished judges and bar associa-
tions all over the country have
entered objections to the steady
accumulation of laws.
There are forty-eight state leg
islatures grinding out statutes
and congress is in almost con-
tinuous session, with a steady
stream of new laws being pro-
posed regularly. In the present
session, with a steady stream of
new laws being proposed regu-
larly. In the present session of
congress, which has been sitting
scarcely three months, two thous-
and six hundred bills have been
introduced in the senate and sew
en- thousand two hundred have
been proposed in the house.
The liberties of the people
are threatened with suffocation
from the plethora of laws, not to
mention court decisions that seek
to interpret and construe these
enactments. Last year, we are
told, court decisions covered one
hundred and seventy-fve thous-
and printed pages. Where is the
lawyer, where the judge, who has
the time to read, let alone digest.
the decisions alone? How can
the average man or woman hope
to keep abreast of the laws of
the land, yet ignorance of the
law is no excuse in the court?
The quickest and surest way
of curing the veil of too many
laws is to hobble the state legis-
latures and curb the power of
congress. Many states have wise
ly limited their legislatures to BIZ
ennial sessions. Some few states
permit their legislature to meet
only once in four years.
The question of biennial ses-
sions in Georgia has been the
subject of agitation for several
years and some progress has been
made in this direction. Appar-
emily, the people believe in few
er sessions of the legislature. 1t
is urged by many thoughtful citi-
zens that the Georgia legislature
at its next session will submit to
the pepole a constitutional
amendment, providing for bien-
NAL sessions.
Many states, in addition to BIZ
ennlal' sessions, place certain re-
strictions around the introduc-
ton of legislation, forbidding new
measures after lapse of a fix
ed number of days. There is
wisdom in this course, to it
seems to US. Such a rule not on
~ cuts down the number of new
bills, but affords to the commit
tee time in which to consider
more fully legislation introduced
sion.
If the legislatures were afford
ed more time in which to con-
slder the measures that are pro-
posed there would be fewer am
pigultles and errors in laws. and
obviously less confusion in
courts, Much trouble is due to the
fact that many of the laws are
lil-csens.ldered, poorly drawn,
confusing in their text and un-
certain in their intent. This is
due to the fact that in MANY in
stances the laws are rushed
through the last hours of a SEES
sion, because the legislature
hasn't had the time in which to
perfect them.
1t is a fact, known and dis
cussed by members of the Geor-
gla legislature. that a number Of
bills are passed every year
which have been read by only
the author and maybe one or
two others. 1t is not possible
tor every member to read every
bill because of the vast number
introduced.
Not one-tenth of the debate
on the average bill is heard bv
the members. 1t is not surpris-
ing therefore, that much half
baked ! ill-considered, unwise
legislation is passed at each ses-
sion.
The remedy lies in fewer ses-
slons and fewer representatives.