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having the treasurer elected by the General
Assembly on the Board of Public Works
and the governor the third member, makes
it very possible for the comptroller and
the treasurer to outvote the governor on
proposed policies and programs and that
is what the Executive Branch Committee
wanted to avoid.
This particular amendment will avoid
that by giving the governor two people on
the board and giving the General Assembly
one individual on that board of review.
The Board of Review I assume will op-
erate in the same manner as the Board of
Public Works. It will operate in public.
Minutes will be kept and I am hopeful that
the General Assembly in exercising the
power that we have given it will winnow
out the mass of trivia that the Board of
Public Works has to deal with at the
present time and that takes up so much of
its energy.
I ask for the adoption of this amend-
ment.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Dorsey.
DELEGATE DORSEY: Mr. Chairman,
when my good friend Gerald Morgan called
the honor roll of those who voted in favor
of this amendment, you will notice that my
name was not among them.
With a Republican governor there is no
doubt that this amendment would be a
check on the executive.
I am looking forward to the years ahead
when there will be both a Democratic gov-
ernor and a Democratic legislature and I
say to this Convention that under this
amendment there would be no check com-
parable to the present Board of Public
Works upon the executive.
Some years ago, Woodrow Wilson wrote
that the history of human freedom is the
history of restraints and limitations placed
upon the power of government.
I say as I said yesterday that for over
a century the Board of Public Works has
been a good check upon the executive
branch of this state, and for that reason,
Mr. President, I shall continue to oppose
this amendment.
THE CHAIRMAN: Does any delegate
desire to speak in favor of this amend-
ment?
Delegate Gleason?
DELEGATE GLEASON: I have a ques-
tion I would like to ask the Chairman of
the Committee.
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THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Morgan, do
you yield to a question?
DELEGATE MORGAN: I yield.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Gleason.
DELEGATE GLEASON: Am I correct
in my understanding of this compromise
proposal that the General Assembly if it
should so desire does not have to grant any
power to the Board of Review provided for
in this amendment?
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Morgan, I
did not understand. Does not have to what?
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Gleason.
DELEGATE GLEASON: Does not have
to provide any powers to this Board of
Review, if it desires not to.
DELEGATE MORGAN: That is correct.
DELEGATE GLEASON: In that even-
tuality I will support this meaningless pro-
vision.
THE CHAIRMAN: Does any delegate
desire to speak in opposition to this amend-
ment?
DELEGATE JOHNSON: Not really in
opposition, but I do have a question.
THE CHAIRMAN: To whom?
DELEGATE JOHNSON: I assume to
Delegate Morgan.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Morgan,
will you yield?
DELEGATE MORGAN: I yield.
DELEGATE JOHNSON: Would you be
kind enough to enlighten me as to the
names of some of the principal depart-
ments your Committee has in mind?
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Morgan.
DELEGATE MORGAN: The principal
departments will be initially established by
the General Assembly; in other words, the
General Assembly under our executive ar-
ticle will have two years within which to
group the various functions of the execu-
tive branch of the state government under
not more than twenty principal depart-
ments. After that two-year period the
governor can establish principal depart-
ments by executive order.
Does that answer your question?
DELEGATE JOHNSON: Yes.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Freedlander.
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