LINCOLN DAY DINNER 61

"I have asked Mr. Jerome B. Wolff, whom I recently designated
chairman-director of the State Roads Commission, to have traffic
studies brought up-to-date so that we can proceed in an intelligent
manner.

"Meanwhile, recognizing that all of the crossings eventually will be
needed, there is no reason not to allow rights of way to be acquired
and some preliminary engineering to proceed.

"The costs of rights-of-way are skyrocketing, adding to the ultimate
cost of these projects. It would amount to gross negligence on my
part, and that of the Legislature, not to do something about it at this
session. "

The Governor also announced that the Administration will sponsor
legislation Friday to repeal the restrictions the Legislature imposed
on the State Roads Commission three years ago in the scheduling of
primary roads projects.

Substitutions in the long-range highway plan can be made by
majority vote of the county commissioners and local legislative dele-
gations. Governor Agnew said this has contributed to delays in the
primary roads program and in part has caused increases in costs.

He said restoring jurisdiction over primary projects to the Com-
mission, while leaving with local governments the decision on secon-
dary roads, "will be in keeping with the basic concept of the original
Act" which in J959 established the seven-member roads commission
headed by a chairman-director.

ADDRESS, LINCOLN DAY DINNER, PIKESVILLE

February 24, 1967

My Fellow Citizens:

I am here to reassure you that, although a Republican now occupies
the Governor's Office in Annapolis, the city still stands!... the Capitol
dome is still firm on its pinnings, and Louis Goldstein's tax return
files are more secure from pilferage than at any time in the past eight
years.

There are, indeed, some who wondered what the return of Repub-
licanism to the State House would mean. And while a final deter-