Evening star., 1942-02-25
Budget Bill Weighed
By Virginia Senate
After Passing House
Delegates Add S5W, 900
To 219-MiIlion Measure
For School Bus Aid
BY the Associated Press.

Fof SCn0oI buS Al0
BY the Associated Press.
RICHMOND, Va, Feb. 25.-The
Virginia Senate today received the
s219 $50 ,070 biennial budget bill be-
fore turning to a calendar already
studded with important measures.
The appropriations bill unani-
mously passed the House yesterday
after being augmented by $911 ,263 by
the Appropriations Committee.
$500, 900 a year added on the floor
for subsidizing the localities school
bus operations and another $4,000
inserted for surgical treatment of
tuberculosis.
Chairman Aubrey G. Weaver of
the Senate Finance Committee said
his group would wait for reprinted
bill containing the House amend
before beginning considera-
ton.
On the Senate calendar for final
action were bills authorizing the
State Corporation Commission to
direct zoning around airports; re-
codifying the game, inland fish and
dog laws for the first time in II
years: changing the Virginia vot-
ing hours from am. to 6 pm,
instead of from sunrise to sunset
and providing a, system of stag
yered" terms for county school board
members. 80 - - ses ~-sF
Interest Rate Bill Voted.
The Senate yesterday by a unani-
nous vote sent the Gibson bill re-
ducing small loan interest rates to
Gov. Darden The bill cuts the
maximum rate from 31a to per
cent a month.
A bill by Senators M. NJ Hillard
and Charles w. Crowder empower
ing two or more counties to estab-
lish regional housing authorities to
build homes for low-income farmers
was approved % to 0, but a COM
panion bill to make bonds OF local
housing authorities legal invest
ments for the State, its subdivisions
and iduciaries met opposition. 1t
passed, however, % to IL.
The House passed the Loving Sen
ate bill requiring one member OF
county public welfare boards to be
a member of the Board of Super
visors or other local governing
groups.
Two Senate bills-one requiring
the Highway Commission to spend
at least 80 per cent and not less
than 5000, 600 of its funds on the
secondary system each year and the
other authorizing the commission to
transfer a maximum of $50 miles a
year from the primary to secondary
system-were also passed by the
House.
Committee Kills Two Bills.
At an afternoon session, the House
Finance Committee voted to kill a
bill, introduced by w. N. Nef and
John Spiers, to earmark an addi-
tional $500,000 year for the State
from the liquor boards profits. The
committee also killed bill which
would limit pawnbrokers, interest
rates to per cent month.
By a vote of seven to six, the Sen
ate Committee on Public Relations
and Education killed controversial
bill to allow the boards of supervis-
ors to appoint one of the three
members of the school electoral
board.
The Blackwell House bill to per-
init motor carriers, in lieu of buying
the legal proportion of their gaso-
line in Virginia, to pay an equiva-
lent amount of the gasoline tax
into the treasury under regulations
of the State Corporation Commis-
sion, was passed by the Senate yes
terday.
The Senate session was enlivened
by a brief visit from Senator Glass
his second of the year.
Special Hearing Set.
A special hearing on the De JAR
nette bill to outlaw strikes and pro-
mote the open shop in Virginia
war work was set by the House
General Laws Committee for pm.
Monday.
The bill would ban strikes on de-
fense projects, provide that union
could not be made a
for obtaining employ
ment on such jobs and outlaw use
of violence, threats or intimidation
in attempts to stop work.
Representatives of both A. F. L.
and C. I. o. unions oppose the bill,
and Silas Switzer, legislative agent
for the c. I. O., appeared at the
meeting yesterday to
ask for the special hearing.
A bill authorizing the State to
receive Belmont, the Corinne Law
ton Melchers estate in Stafford
County, as a memorial to her dis
painter husband, the late
Carl Melchers, was introduced in
the House.
Mrs. Melchers offered the estate
some time ago to Virginia, with the
provision that she retain life in
terest.
Sponsors of the bill include Dele
gates e. r. Connor of Manassas and
- r