Vashon Island News Record

WASHINGTON SOLONS ADJOURN MEETING

Senate Emerges Victor; House Yields on Every Demand as Session Ends.

In Session 72 Hours Continuously—House Yields to Ultimatum—Tax payers Get Three Cheers—Legislative Summary—$3 Auto License and Gas Tax Pass.

Olympia, Wash. — The Washington legislature adjourned at 12:10 a. m. Monday after a deadlock between the house and senate was broken which had lasted during most of the session and 72 hours overtime.

The house supporters of Governor Hartley began cracking under the long strain early Sunday afternoon when the house yielded to the senate in conference fights over the $20,000,000 road bill, the $40,000,000 general supply budget, and reclamation levy and supplemental appropriations.

Thus the senate "majority," which has been in constant conflict with the governor since 1925, during which time the senate group took several lickings, managed to come out on top in the most unusual legislative fight and deadlock in the history of Washington.

72 Consecutive Hours.

The legislature had been in continuous session for 72 hours, although the members, while under constant call, were given long periods of "at ease" under a "gentlemen's agreement" to enable them to obtain sleep, but at no time was the chair of either house vacant. Members of several conference committees were not so fortunate, especially 12 senators and representatives on the committees dealing with general and highway appropriations, being required to keep plugging night and day in efforts to compose the differences between the two houses.

The final break came when the relentless senate rules committee headed by Lieutenant-Governor Gellatly, having won in conferences on general appropriations and the reclamation levy, formally served an ultimatum on the house to recede from its stand for $500,000 for a bridge over Deception pass and to consent to a provision of $400,000 for a sea wall on the Seattle water front. The senate threat was adjournment without a road bill.

The senate majority also won on its demand that road appropriations be definitely tied down to specific projects. This provision was demanded, according to a formal statement by the senate, to prevent the highway department from shifting funds to projects favored by the governor.

Senate Wins Three Points.

Three points were won by the senate majority in the fight over general appropriations. First, the house yielded to a downward revision of salaries for executive employees, including the department directors who are members of Governor Hartley's cabinet. The reductions, which were calculated to average 10 per cent, do not apply to clerks, stenographers and members of the state highway patrol, in other words, they are political cuts.

Second, the house consented to a segregation of appropriations for salaries, which was demanded by the senate to prevent "springing back" of salaries after adjournment of the legislature. In addition, the senate forced a number of revisions in other appropriations recommended by the governor. While the revisions have not been tallied, senate leaders claimed that the Hartley budget was "trimmed by more than $1,000,000."

But after all, it must be remembered that Governor Hartley has the last word, and perhaps some of the pet bills that the senate fought so hard for and won over the house may be discarded by the executive veto.

Senator Paul Houser voiced a bristling attack on the "hangover" legislative session as both houses neared the finish of the second overtime day.

"There is a great deal of talk about lawlessness in the land, especially in regard to the eighteenth amendment," Houser declared.

"But here we have the spectacle of forty-two senators and ninety-seven house members in open, willful violation of the state constitution for more than thirty-six hours."

Taxpayers Remembered.

Senator E. B. Benn of Grays Harbor dissolved the serious discussion into laughter when he rose and solemnly declared:

"We have been in session sixty days without doing anything for the taxpayers except to cinch the load on them a little tighter. This session must not adjourn without doing something for the taxpayers. I move that we give them three cheers."

Walker seconded the motion, and Lieutenant Governor Gellatly put it, and declared it carried

The personal and corporate income tax bills were passed by house and senate during sessions in which a protest was made on the house floor that

LEGISLATIVE SUMMARY AT ADJOURNMENT

Governor Hartley had 163 legislative bills in his hands, on which he must act by March 24.

The governor has signed 38 bills and vetoed 11.

Senate bills introduced, 267; passed, 90; signed by governor, 14; vetoed, 5; still with governor, 71.

House bills introduced, 418; passed, 122; signed by governor, 24; vetoed, 6; still with governor, 92.

only 65 members were present, although the official vote showed 65 "ayes," 22 "nays" and 10 not voting.

Conference committee agreements had settled the major differences. The major controversy over certain deductions from the tax in lieu of personal exemptions of income, was settled by a provision including all ad valorem taxes on real and tangible personal property not to exceed 75 per cent of the total income tax.

After the passage of the personal income tax bill, the companion measure, placing a 5 per cent tax on net income of corporations, was voted upon and passed by a vote of 60 to 19, with 18 absent or not voting.

The two bills were then transmitted to the senate and passed by a vote of virtually 3 to 1.

The personal income tax measure would require the payment of taxes on all income of single persons above $800 yearly and married persons with incomes more than $1400, with rates running from 2 per cent on the first $1000 and 5 per cent on all income above $5000.

Shortly after midnight Thursday, the official hour of adjournment, both houses acted upon two of the most important vetoes of the session.

Unexpected Vetoes,

The senate received an unexpected veto of the Showalter school bill and the house the veto of the permanent registration bill.

Lacking the votes to pass either bill over the veto, each house tabled its vetoed bill, thus killing the issues for the session.

It was the same old story of the "road melons," only more intensified this session than ever before that held up everything and forced the overtime. Two years ago it held the legislature twenty-one hours overtime. Then, as at this session, some of the disgusted personnel demanded changes in the rules so it could never happen again. Four years ago it was the same story, only the overtime then was but six hours.

There is no question but the long overtime delay will become an issue in the next campaign, through a demand for a rules amendment to force early action.

Indications of this are found in the announcement by the State Grange that it will circulate an initiative measure to create an elective highway board. This will tend to center attention of the state on the conditions which tied up the present session and will have the effect of putting candidates for the legislature on the firing line on this issue alone.

Auto License and Gas Tax Passed.

The house yielded to the senate in conference and passed the motor license fee revision bill for a flat license fee of $3 and a 2-cent increase in the gasoline tax. It now goes to Governor Hartley.

If the measure is approved, Washington will have a gasoline tax of 5 cents a gallon beginning April 1, 1931, and a $3 license fee for cars, regardless of size, beginning January 1, 1932.

It is calculated that the revised system will yield more than $13,000,000 yearly.

The possibility and probability of Governor Roland Hartley vetoing the 2 cent increase in the gas tax, but leaving the flat $3 fee for the automobile licenses, is also a factor in the present situation, as such a veto means a curtailment in 1932 of approximately $5,000,000 in revenues for highway purposes. The state's revenues come entirely from the license fees and gas taxes. Such a reduction means a heavy slashing in appropriations, as the highway department will not spend any more money than it has.

By making "over appropriations" the legislature will place in the hands of the director a chance to weed out programs he does not favor even although demanded by the legislature, he being able to assert "no funds are available."

Governor Hartley will not "be at home" to callers for the next few weeks. This was the announcement made at the executive office.

The governor and his advisors have a mass of approximately 160 bills left by the legislature to consider. He will "work without interruption" from now on until March 24, he announced.

The governor has ten days, exclusive of Sundays, to consider and pass upon bills, after the session ended, Thursday, March 12, in so far as his office is concerned.