Evening star., 1937-05-02

NJ something was wrong with
4 the bcameral system of legis-
laton and then do something out it,
will conclude within a few weeks the
first chapter of its uncameral expert
ment.
Final judgment upon its claimed Su-
perior value as laWmaklng lnStru-
ment of government must wait until
the curtain goes down and an unbiased
study of its work can be made. 1t is,
however, possible to make the general
izaton that the faults it has devel-
oped are the faults that attached to
the bicameral system, while its vir-
tues are those of the unicameral sys-
tenn alone.
Legislation is now pending that will
tend to cure some of these faults.
Others wait upon the development Of
greater resistance to outside pressure
on the part of the members, which is
expected to result from future i'm
provement of its personnel.
The unicameral legislature operates
under a set of rules that, if used by a
bicameral legislature, would slow up
work and prolong sessions intermina-
bly,. The unicameral rules set up a
system of orderly procedure that in
cludeS checks upon its own acts at
various stages of the progress of a bill
toward final passage. If in use by a
two-house legislature, these rules
would call for double checks in each
and a final check between the two
The rules make imperative that every
step in that progress be watched with
such care that the final product not
only represents the will of the ma
tority, but is in such form that the
law may reasonably be expected sue
Cessfully to run the gauntlet of the
courts when attacked as to its consti-
tutionallty.
One criticism of the bcameral leg
Islature was that too many of its laws
were later held by the courts to be
unconstitutional. To buttress its work
against such criticism and TO insure
the carrying out of the legislative will
as expressed in law, every bill that
has passed the committee of the whole
Is submitted to a group of three out
side lawyers, experts in constitutional
law and when so advised by the mem
bers of this council. bills invariably
are changed to meet constitutional
objections and remove all doubts as
10 ultimate legality.
43 Members at Present.
The bicameral Legislature of Ne
braska consisted of 80 Senators and 100
my 70 I1toip rtr
OF 43 members at present, but, under
the constitutional amendment, a later
Legislature may increase the number
to so or decrease it to 30 While 80
OF the 43 members now sitting were
members Of previous Legislatures, the
Caliber is higher, largely due to the
fact that they are selected from larger
districts. The virtues of the uni
cameral Legislature may be thus sum-
married:
1t eliminates the Conference Com
mlttee, which met in secret and was
powerful influence in legislation de-
layed until the closing weeks.
All business is transacted openly
and aboveboard Hearings on bills
before committees cannot be held
until five days public notice has been
given. These are open to all who
wish TO appear.
1t centers responsibility in one body,
and largely puts an end to buck
passing, common to the two-house
legislature
1t provides a double check on legis-
lation because of rules which provide
that, after bill has been favorably
acted upon by the Committee of the
Whole, it goes to a committee which
checks It's provisions as against ex-
listing statutes, edits out Implications
or contradictions, corrects grammar,
punctuation, spelling, capitalization
and phraseology and obtains, where
doubt exists, an opinion from the
Legislative Council as to it's constitu-
tionalty The bill then goes on spe-
cial file, where it may be amended or
indefinitely postponed, or otherwise
acted upon, as was possible in Com
mittee of the Whole This slows up
procedure, but makes for precision
and is a safeguard against hasty ac-
ton. 1t then goes to a committee
for engrossment for third reading,
but three full days must elapse before
the bill can be put upon final passage.
AS all members are elected upon a
non-political ballot, politics and po-
litical feelings arising out of discus
sion of political issues are largely
eliminated. Party lines, as evidenced
by the partisan politics of members
there are 81 Republicans and % Dem
ocrats-have been drawn only on
three occasions, one being a con-
demnation of the Presidents Supreme
Court proposal, with several Demo-
Gratis supporting the resolution. This
results in greater personal freedom of
members in passing judgment on leg
lslation.
Costs Cut in Half.
A reduction of legislative costs Of
approximately one-half.
More effective committee work, due
to the reduction in the number of
committees and schedule of COM
mittee sessions that enables every
member to be present, where, under
the old system, with many more COM
mittees. it was impossible to obtain
full representation when important
bills we're up for consideration.
1t makes for shorter sessions and
more carefully considered legislation.
While the present session will con-
sumo as many days as the average
Of past years, this was largely due
to the weeks required for installing
the new system and obtaining agree
ment upon rules.
The chief vice of the unicameral
system lies in the fact that, with only
43 members, the influence of outside
pressure groups, organized minorities
and plain lobbyists is noticeably en-
HANGED. Not only can more frequent
and more direct contacts be made with
members. but pressure can be con-