The Durant news. (Durant, Miss.) 1882-1985, 1948-03-04
Legislative Digest
Speciul To The Durant News

Although the past week turned Out
to be short week" it was one Of
the most productive Of the 1948 ses
sions Of the Legislature to date. Dus
to the sudden and untimely death o,
Rep. Littleton Upshur, Greenwood
editor and veteran legislator. botf
houses quit Thursday so that mem
bers could attend funeral service:
Friday, but before adjourning fol
the-weekend the solons chalked uI
this progress:
The House passed (79 to 38) an oil
and gas conservation bill;
The Senate passed a $5,000,OO(
grant for cities and counties:
The House passed (73 to 49, bill
approving and setting aside land in
Jackson for four-year medical
school for the University of Missis-
sippi;
The Senate passed series of five
oils to increase Confederate pensions
and aid to needy children, then pas
sed a resolution asking Congress to
reduce the old-age pension minimum
from IS to so years;
The House passed $4,000 in
minor appropriation bills;
These were among the major floor
actions: committees in both houses
had the busiest week of the session,
during which top committees clear
ed their dockets of many proposals
by reporting the bills unfavorably.
Among bills killed by the House
Ways and Means committee-which
handles all tax matters-were several
to exempt certain industries and bus
inesses from the sales tax. and one
bill which would have provided a
$100,000000 bond issue for secondary
highways.
Among the bills passed, the House
spent most time on the oil and gas
conservation bill. AS passed, the
compromise" measure meets most
objections of opponents, Chairman
Icey Day (Attala) of the House con-
servation group, said; although it
does not comply with Governor
Fielding Wrights request for a full
time board, it does create board of
five-three to be appointed by the
governor, plus the attorney general
and lieutenant governor. A spacing
amendment, requiring smaller drill
ing units, also was adopted. The bilL
went to the Senate at weekend and
Chairman Stanton Hall (HattieSburg)
of the Senate conservation commit
tee said his group expects to bring
the bill out within week or ten
days.
In passing the $5,00O,OOO appropria-
ton grant for cities and counties
SO per cent to each-the Senate ap-
proved the principal of greater aid
for these governmental subdivisions;
the money will be divided on the
basis of population, with a 100000
ceiling. The Senate then repealed a
1916 act which would have given the
city county fund a grant from what
ever surplus there might be in the
state treasury. All this is part of
plan to try to help the cities and CO.
unties get their finances in better
condition.
AS the House passed the Medical
School bill, Senator Mitchell Robin
son of Jackson introduced series of
five bills which provide for establi-
shment of $4,500,000 state teaching
hospital, to be operated in connec-
ton with the medical school. The
hospital would be built under the
state hospital commission program,
with the city of Jackson and the CO.
unity of Kinds jointly and the state
and the Federal government. each
putting up one third. A 30-bed hos
pital is proposed. devoted largely to
teaching and working with the me-
dical school. .ls a.a :,
The Senate spent one morning de-
batting bill to create a committee
to study flood control in the water
shed of the Yazoo River and its tri-
butaries. finally passing the measure
with Sl2.500 appropriation.
Repeal of prohibition stirred the
House again; after the Price-Ross
local option bill had been killed,
Rep. Bowen Qttawamba), offered a
bill calling for statewide referen-
dunn on repeal; but Speaker Walter
Sillers sustained a point of order
that Mr.. Bowen's bill could not be
introduced except under Rule IS,
which prohibits introducing of bill
covering matter rejected by the
House except under certain condi-