The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1939-01-26
LEGISLATIVE
SIDELICHTS
By H. E. Sauennes

WOnQ0r now DOuy Ol l0l IneIIl-.
bers could possibly cope with the
bills at the rate at which they
come in. These bills are all refer
red to committees that go over
them carefully before they are
submitted for a vote of the house
and great number of them never
get out of the committee. The
committees scrutinize all features
of the bills and usually hear them
discussed thoroughly by those
conversant with particular sub
ject.
The Civil Administration COM
mittee has had several sessions
just discussing the Civil Service
bills. There are three of them. A
Civil Service law is popular
measure and every effort will be
put forth to pass an acceptable
one.
The Civil Service bill proposed
by the Minnesota Civil Service
Council possibly has the most
favorable features because it re-
presents a cross-section of Min
nesota opinions. 1t is sponsored by
various state organizations and
for that reason has features that
take into consideration three
broad groups of society-the gen.
eral public, the administrative
heads of government departments,
and the large group of employees.
The bill does not say that pre-
sent employees must compete
with everyone else for their jobs
and it doesn't say they can come
under the set by just keeping on
the two extremes. 1t does, how
ever, provide that those on the
payroll must take qualifying ex-
aminations to determine if they
are fit to take care of the work
they are now doing. One fitted
for his job under this provision
has little to fear as far as his
job is concerned. Employees that
have passed qualifying or COM
petitive examinations under ex-
listing statutes will not be required
to take qualifying examinations.
The committee was very con-
cerned over the educational re-
uuirements that might be stipula-
ted before a person would even
be qualified to take an eXamin-
alton. The committee seemed
almost unanimous, however, that
experience and fitness should be
the dominating factor.
l haven't even attempted to COW
er a smattering of the proposals
in the bill but to merely point out
some of the proposals 1 think
readers would be most interested
in.
The two houses met in joint
session Tuesday to hear Sinclair
Lewis, famed Sank Centre, Mimi.
novelist, and who was doing a bit
of acting in his play, angela is
Twenty Two" in the Twin Cities.
Lewis is tall, gangling' and not too
distinguished looking. AS someone
put it, "He has a face definitely
his own" He talked for some Is
minutes and urged the legislature
to guard against provincialism. He
wore gold-rimmed spectacles
which he used only to see his
notes which consisted of eight
words, each one suggesting an
other subject. One of the employ
ees found the notes and had Lewis
autograph them.
A combination punishment bill
offered this week allows a max
imum of $40 month. The pre-
sent exemption of $35 per month
for single persons stands but it
provides SIS for spouse and $40
for each minor child. The present
law adds only SIS for each depend
ent, including the spouse. 1t also
provides for total exemption for
relief clients going back to private
employment for year.
Possibly the greatest task con-
fronting the Legislature is keep
ing the budget down to or below
the $72,O00,000 appropriated by
the 1887 legislature instead of
S87, 100000 as proposed by the
former budget commissioner, Paul
Rasmussen. Economies are being
effected but a too sudden or dras-
tic curtailment of activity is not
advisable either.
Senator Seifert got curious the
other day and asked for the COM
pilation of tax-exempt motor lie
enses issued in the state. The re-
port for 1887 totaled 4128, and
broken down includes the follow
ing divisions: State 1928, cities
1857, counties 731 and schools,
townships, sanitariums, federal
and foreign 612. The Senator's
idea is to get more of these back
on the tax rolls.
Loan sharks are in for a good
going over and the house and
senate are really wrought up over
the excessive interest charges that
have been 'milked'' out of unfor-
tunate small borrowers that in
some cases have figured as high as
1858 per cent. The bill being con-
sidered will put the sharks under
the banking department and limit
their charges to 3 per cent per
month on unpaid balances. Hen
nepin county has lately been wag-
ing war on this type of loan
companies.
More than 1900 tickets were
sold for the Farm Bureau ban
quet. last week, it was one of the
largest banquets / have attended.
Governor StaSsen was on the pro-
gram, and to say the Governor is
popular is putting it mildly.
Consultations and personnel
changes are being effected daily
with economy uppermost in mind.