The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1929-03-15
LEGISLATIVE LETTER
By R. w. HITCHCOCK Representative. Goth District.


attempt to set forth the merits OF his
case and usually he Is Thoroughly
persuaded that the cause he advocates
is the one thing Of supreme import
ance to the state. A delegation once
came to the capitol, appeared before
the appropriations committee In num-
bers and solemnly argued that an ap-
preparation for $4,000 for a monu-
ment to commemorate the raid of the
James boys at Northfield was as i'm
portant to the state as any matter that
could be brought to the attention OF
the state In legislature assembled!
The "Tnterim" Epidemic.
The legislature runs to extremes In
the cut Of its legislation as completely
as does milady fair in the cut of her
skirts. Skirts-once so long, now so
short. Legislation-once so tight, now
so expensive. A few sessions back the
'interim" committee was severely
frowned upon. About eight years ago
an interim committee was, after con-
siderable pickering, authorized to make
a statewide educational survey. 1t did
the work and spent about $500 and
got itself grumbled at before its face
and behind its back. Now we've got
an epidemic of interim committee and
its the easy going fashion to endoW
| them. The interim committee on re-
] forestation actually won an expense al
| lowance of $4,000 two years ago. An
| interim committee on bank taxation
| has been voted fund of $4,000 for
| the ensuing two years The UNIVERSE
| ty wants an interim committee to
study its needs, the teachers propose
| an interim committee to probe the
| problem of teachers pensions, an In
| term committee to consider the need
| of iron ore tax relief is suggested, the
| continuance of the interim committee
| on river pollution has already been
| authorized and we havn't the slightest
| doubt that the necessity of another
| two years extension of the life of the
| interim committee on reforestation is
going to be put squarely up to us very
| shortly. If this keeps up we shall
| soon have enough interim commit
tees so that every member of the leg
| islature can be provided with place.
Idol Smashers.
| There Is a manifest tendency in the
| Legislature of 1929 to Tear down. The
most striking example of this is H. F.
| sc for the distribution of the gas tax
money diverted from the state trunk
highway fund by Amendment No.
| of last fall. This bill throws over
board the standards of road construc-
ton which have prevailed in Mime
sofa for many years. Supervision,
| which has built such splendid roads in
Minnesota, is abandoned. We turn our
backs on the safeguards we have here
| tofore defended The gas tax diver
/ sion is fat million-me we greed
| ily cut it into 81 hunks and let every
| man freely scatter as much as he can
| lay his hands on.
While no one has yet had the temer-
| ity to offer bill to abolish the high
way commissioner and to set up in
| his place highway commission, it is
talked of. We have kept our fingers
off that $4,000, 900 state highway fund
for ten whole years but, frankly, the
itching is something fierce. How nice
it would be to have a commission Of
five members, split the state into dis
tricts and let each district go it alone.
We're getting tired of all this super
vision anyhow.
lC1OlCoOoUkO11 PlOSA GILL SebAAo 4SA
a commissioner of conservation, but
there are mutterings. A board Of
three or five members would be so
much better-for job hunters.
School Aid Grows and Grows.
The state school aid has grown to,
be giant that fairly threatens to de-
YOUR the state. Begun as a means of
raising the standard Of education, it
has fairly outdone itself in its success.
1t has given Minnesota better school
all along the line but it has caused
many schools to become too ambitious.
They have introduced departments
they could ill-afford. School taxes
have mounted most alarmingly. The
pressure from the local schools for
more and more state help increases
each year. Several forms of school
aid have far outlived their usefulness,
but try and find school district that
will give up single dollar of state
aid They clamor incessently for more.
Every session of the legislature brings
new and ingenious laws for increasing
the state aid, which is mounting at
the rate of more than a half million
dollars year. Ten years ago the state
school aid was 100000 per year;
| today it is $6,000,O00. To pay the state
school aid in full will this biennium
require more than $850000 over and
above what was paid last bienniusn
To the local school district the state
school aid is like getting money from
home-local school boards seem to be
fully persuaded that it does not cost
anybody anything.
Minnesota's system Of state school
aid is a splendid system but perhaps
sometime and somewhere there should
be stopping point for it.
Hard Work Ahead.
This weeks adjournment for the
town meetings" is probably the leg
islature's last week end play spell. We
must get down to hard work in the
remaining six weeks of the session. A
| great deal has been accomplished in
the preliminary weeks of the session
Here It is that legislation is pre-di-
gested and whipped into shape for the
final grind on the floor Of each cham
Der. 1t is work that does not show
much, but it must be done. It Is the
final weeks of the session that bring
the big issues to open debate and the
final roll call. 1t was ever thus.
The big appropriation bills are fur
ther along than usual, but there are
signs Of friction and delay that may
cause them to clog the final days and
nights of the session as has been the
| case for many years. The money COM
mittees in both chambers, however,
are striving to whip these bills into
shape and get them passed by both
houses within the next three or four