The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1941-02-27
Hot Fighting
In Legislature

~
Battle Put Up Against
Reapportionment = Old
Age Assistance Killed.
BY Edward ]. Heilman
United Press Staff Correspondent
HELENA, Feb. .24.-UD-Mon-
tana's 9th legislature was headed
down the home stretch today, and
indications were that unless unexz
pected floor fights developed, they
would finish the session within the
statutory 80 days.
Transmission day"-the last day
on which bills could be sent from
one house to the other-saw both
the senate and house clean up their
calendars. The smoothly-working
senate, prodded along by Majority
Leader w. E. Kelley, R., Powell,
finished work on its own bills by )
p. m. OF the 1875 bills introduced in
the upper house, all but five were
acted on in one way or another.
These five died in committees.
The house required until the last
minute-and two or three more
of transmission day to finish its
calendar However, against the SEN
ate's 1876 bills, $3.50 were dumped
into the house hopper. Six died in
committee and the others received
action of one kind or another. An
additional 18 bills, all appropriation
measures, were introduced in the
house Saturday, long after the dead
line for introduction of bills. How
ever, rules permit appropriation
measures to be introduced at any
time.
Hottest Fights
The week saw the house en-
broiled in the two hottest fights of
the session to date
One was the battle over reappor-
tioning the next legislature in line
with the 1910 census. A reappor-
tionment bill calling for one repre-
sentative for each 5000 OF popula-
ton came on the floor for debate
and was amended to make the pop
ulation unit 1000. The original
bill provided that no county, how
ever small, would have less than
one representative.
The Silver Bow and Cascade del
egations, which will lose member
ships under the bill, fought bitterly
| to kill or hamstring the measure,
Members of the Butte group, partic-
ularly, used every parliamentary
procedure on the books to prevent
enactment They argued that the
bill was unfair in that it permitted
counties containing minority of
the states population to control the
lower house. Earlier, the Butte
delegation had introduced a bill
proposing reapportionment on a
strictly population basis, and divid-
ing the state into representative dis
tricts. This would have permitted
4 two or three small counties togeth-
er only one representative. The bill
was killed in committee.
Despite the efforts of the Silver
Bow and Cascade delegations, the
reapportionment bill based on the
\ 7,000-population unit went to the
senate. The upper house approved
it without discussion and sent il
to Gov. Sam G. Ford for signature
Old Age Assistance Killed
Proposals to increase old age as.
sistance, to create an old-age pen.
sion system, and the much discussed
gambling and liquor bills, all were
killed during the week after bitter
floor fights.
The battle started when the vel
fare department appropriation bill
was brought up in committee of TIL,
whole. The old-age pension blo'
tried to increase the old age assist
ance appropriation from $780, 0l
to 100000 year, and for TIM
succeeded. However, on reconsid
Grafton, the house approved tn,
: original bill. Later in the week, i
killed bill proposing to appropri
ate S4000,000 year for old ag
pensions.
In the senate, a bill proposing t
require the state to pay $40 month
, ly pensions to oldsters, regardless
of whether they actually needet
the money, was killed promptly af
ter its author, Sen. M. j. Mulhol
, land, D., Silver Bow, forced it on
: of committee.
The house spent hours debatin
, bills to legalize gambling, pro
: posed constitutional amendment t
allow the state to conduct lottery
and measure to refer to the state
voters the question of legalizin
gambling. Only the last, revive
during the last-minute rush c
transmission day, was passed. As
: result, the ballot for the next ger
eral election will permit the stat
as whole to decide whether Nor
tana shall legalize-and thereby ia
: and regulate-ga gambling.
No Liquor Change
Proposals to change the stat
liquor setup also were voted dow
:, II ytac r,roDocad m allow fhe eta