The Glacier reporter. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1953-current, 1961-01-26
From The SideIines
by Tiff Mckay


/ spent a couple days last week
in Helena observing the legis.
Iative processes of the state al
work. The capitol city, at this
time of year, is a madhouse,
State Senators and Represents
tives, when not attending regular
Senate or House sessions, hurry
TO and from committee meet
ings, more often than not pur.
sued by various members of Mon
tana's so-caIled Third House
the vast corps of lobbyists which
this year outnumbers the total
of both the House and Senate
combined.
While | was there, the main
issues seemed to be the Govern
or's budget, the effect of the bud
get on the operation of the State
University system, the transfer
of the reserve in the State Hail
Insurance fund to the General
Fund, the hike in rental fees for
state-owned grazing land, and a
proposed change in the law gov
erning benefits paid to Montana
unemployed wage-earners.
Since that time, many other
issues have developed as a result
of the bills introduced in the last
few days before the January q
deadline set for such introduc-
ton.
We were there Phil Ward,
local Superintendent of Schools
and myself trying to drum up
support for three pieces of legis-
lation of vital interest to school
districts on Indian reservations.
air bases and other defense in
stallations, and any form of Fed
eral activity which created an
unusual burden upon the local
school district. The numbers of
these bills are Senate Bills No.
81, Senate Bill IS and Senate Bill
o..
We met with a group of Sena-
tors and Representatives from
counties having such forms OF
federal activity or impact, and
attended a hearing of the Senate
Committee on Education which
took testimony on these three
bills.
For the few OF you who may
not know il, Phil Ward is a very
capable man, well versed in the
many complicated phases OF
school financing. Ward gave
statements at the informal meet
ing as well as testimony at the
Senate Committee meeting. II
these bills are enacted, certainly
the Legislators who heard him
and had a chance to question
him will owe him a debt of graf
itude for enlightening them In
a field where most of us are lost
X. w. Bergan, former Brown
ing Superintendent of Schools
and now State Co-ordinator oil
Indian Affairs, is also very &C
lively supporting these bills. Der
gan, of course, with his many
years of experience in the State
Department of Public Instruction
as supervisor of Indian educa.
ton, is an expert on the subject
of Federal aid TO State education,
In short, through Bergan and
Ward, Browning did itself proud
at these sessions. But there Is
much left TO be done. / think
IL would be a good idea for local
organization such as the Cham.
Der of Commerce and the Lions
Club to hear these men on these
subjects and then try to organize
a campaign to drum up support
for these bills. The time, how
ever, is short. and If anything Is
10 be done IL must be done soon.
/ Fundamentally agree with
those who say the legislative ses.
sions should be held more fire.
quently. think we have an inn
possible situation on our hands.
Just think Of it for a minute
Think OF one man trying TO study
over 400 complicated bills in 90
days. This would be over eight
bills a day. If you were TO spend
Il hours per day reading them,
this would only allow you one
hour and a half per bill. And ]
defy anyone TO study and do
proper research on any of these
bills in an hour and half -Ac-
tuaIly, this time Is considerably
shortened by the sessions each
legislator must attend. Again,
this is truly an impossible situa-
ton resulting in an injustice to
the abilities of the legislators
and an injustice to the people
who pay for these sessions. No
one is getting their moneys
-~~~xn