Evening star., 1962-05-23
State Leaders
Adopt Plan on
AppOrtiOning
District Suburbs
Would Be Given
8 More Seuts

ANNAPOLIS, May 23.-Gov.
Tawes and leaders of the Gen.
eral Assembly today agreed on
a reapportionment plan which
would give the Maryland sub
urbs of Washington eight new
seats in the House of Delegates.
The plan will be presented to
a special session of the General
Assembly which is expected to
be called Friday.
1t calls for giving 16 more
House of Delegates members to
the States four suburban coun-
ties and three to Baltimore
City.
The bill would provide for
selection of nominees for the
new seats by the Democratic
and Republican, Committees of
the areas affected.
Plan Is evised
AS drafted yesterday by a
committee of State officials
and members of the Maryland
Committee for Fair Represen-
tation, the plan called for a
special primary to select the
nominees. But this was re-
jected by the group today in
favor of selection by party
committees.
Two bills will be introduced.
One will be an interim measure
providing for election of the
additional 19 Delegates from
the urban areas in November.
A majority vote of both
houses would suffice for pas
sage of the interim plan. The
other bill will be for a consti-
tutional amendment setting up
a permanent plan to reappor-
tion the House seats. 1t would
require a three -fifths vote for
passage, and then would go to
the voters for approval in a
referendum.
In both the interim and per-
manent plans, the urban areas
would get 19 additional Dele
gates. The difference is that
in the interim measure they
would get them by increasing
the size of the House of Dele
gates but in the permanent
plan the House membership
total would remain at its pres
ent figure of 123 and the 10
would be taken away from the
rural areas and given to the
urban sections.
Two Plans Linked
The interim bill will have a
provision putting the perma-
nent plan into effect in 1866 if
the constitutional amendment
is not approved by then. This
was done because more resist
ance is expected from the rural
areas against the constitutional
amendment which would cause
them to lose Delegates to the
suburban areas.
Barring of a Republican con-
greSsional candidate caused a
brief furry as today's confer
ence between Gov. Tawes and
the legislators got under way.
The Governor refused to admit
Newton 1. Steers, jr., candidate
for Representative who
wanted to attend the confer
ence as a member of the Com
mittee for Fair Representation
and as a plaintiff in the re-
apportionment suit which the
committee filed.
Mr.. Steers said he considered
he had a right to attend the
meeting and charged the Gov
ernor with fragrant discrim-
nation" He noted that his
Democratic opponent for the
congressional office attended
the meeting, along with all of
the nominees selected from the
Tawes slate for Statewide Of
fices in the May is Democratic
primary.
Mr.. Steers, of Montgomery
County, is a member of the
board Of governors of the Com
mittee for Fair Representation
and is a party to the reap
portionment suit as an individ-
ual plaintiff.
Under the plan approved
by the Governor and legis-
lative leaders today. Montgom-
cry and Prince Georges Coun-
ties would get four additional
delegates each, bringing their
See REAPPORTION, Page AS