OCR Text |
Show Under The Capitol Dome I By Haxry Marlowe There are several ways for legislative leg-islative bodies to make a record. They can do nothing. They can revise practically everything about state government Or, they can take care of most of the pressing problems and not change present statutes too much. The recently completed 31st Legislature fits in the latter category. cate-gory. They passed tha large total of 186 measures, most of which have or will become law. But in the passage of these bills, the legislators legisla-tors spread their subject matter out wide enough that with the possible exception of taxation they made few really big changes in any particular area of the state's economy. One of the most marked things about the legislature was the minimum min-imum number of really explosive issues. Another was the dearth of bills requiring financing of education educa-tion and yet, in the final analysis, analy-sis, search for school funds brought about all the tax changes. But there were no demands from the school people for more wages, more services, expanding of the minimum school fund. The educational deficit came about because be-cause of the normal growth and the reluctance of legislators to cut down from present school services. There was considerable legislation legisla-tion which will have, its effect in the rural areas of the state. Yet, none of this legislation was of the sweeping variety. Naturally, reapportionment is of great interest to the rural areas. And the changes made by the Legislature will come closer to affecting most of the people than anything else. Another important measure could have been the bill which revised the motor fuel tax laws all around and in the process gave farmers a tax rebate on fuel purchased solely for off-highway off-highway use. Changes in the water statutes of the state were important. But costly they effected only certain areas. Ratification of the Bear River Compact is very important to northern Utah. About the most far-reaching water bill was the one which came up with some technical revisions re-visions in the filing of water rights and that one will take some study to understand. On the whole, the farm people of Utah came out of the Legislature Legisla-ture quite well. They got no new restrictions except a sure- increase in-crease in property tax. A few bills of considerable interest in-terest were passed such as the one setting up quality bulls to be allowed on summer range and another an-other making uniform the authority author-ity of state agencies to acquire and dispose of land. In the final analysis, most Utahns were helped a little and maybe hurt a little by the 31st Legislature. All in all, it was a good session. |