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DELEGATE SHERBOW: Yes, we are
saying that the legislature may not de-
crease any salary of any public officer.
I have no fear of the legislature de-
creasing its own salary. The safeguard we
are seeking is to keep the legislature from
decreasing the salary of any other public
officer.
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate Chabot.
DELEGATE CHABOT: As I had under-
stood some of the discussions in the Legis-
lative Branch Committee, the Committee
did have or did give consideration to a
real fear that the current legislature might
be quite a bit nervous about excepting its
own; the salary that we are going to rec-
ommend, if it had the power to decrease it,
there might be a force in the legislature
attempting to decrease it.
The current constitutional provision that
this provision related to had no effect upon
the legislature because there the salary was
set by the Constitution. So the legislature
could in no event either increase or de-
crease salaries. This sentence, therefore,
has a different effect in the constitution
that we are proposing, and I wondered if
you intended this effect?
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate Sherbow.
DELEGATE SHERBOW: All I can say
is in the legislative article you would pro-
vide that the legislature may not increase
except as you have got it there. You can
add to it that they may not decrease it, if
you get the assemblage to so provide. It
would just simply mean a separate provi-
sion for the legislature.
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate Chabot.
DELEGATE CHABOW: In section 6.08,
let us suppose that we are coming to, say,
about the 85th day of a regular session.
The budget bill has not yet been passed,
but the General Assembly may take this ac-
tion to extend itself at the very last mo-
ment during the 90 days. What would
happen if the governor makes the procla-
mation that he is authorized by this provi-
sion to make? Does it mean that until the
budget bill is completed the General As-
sembly cannot do these various other
actions?
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate Sherbow.
DELEGATE SHERBOW: The 85th day
is really incorrect. The governor would
have to act before the 80th day.
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Assuming it is a 90 day session, the
action has to be ten days before. In that
ten-day period, the legislature grinds to a
halt. Nothing can go through, only the
budget. It goes into the next session.
This is even stronger than in the present
Constitution, and in the present Constitu-
tion, in spite of the provisions there which
do not have quite the strength and force of
this, they have gotten the budget bill
through before the session has ended.
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate Chabot.
DELEGATE CHABOT: One last ques-
tion with regard to section 6.10, the last
sentence of it. It would appear to require
that additional revenue that the legislature
might provide for any additional appropri-
ation must come only from a tax. Is there
any reason why the legislature is pro-
hibited from providing additional revenue
in any other way, such as perhaps sale of
property or the charging of a fee for a
service that is now rendered without fee?
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate Sherbow.
DELEGATE SHERBOW: We were not
thinking of the items you mentioned. If
we were, we would have excluded them, I
am pretty sure.
What we were really thinking of is if
you are going to have this, you have to
provide the means of paying for it. You
cannot slash the governor to provide a sur-
plus, and then take that surplus to use it
for whatever these appropriations are.
We say, keep our eye on the ball. We
want a balanced budget. If you want the
additional appropriation, you have to pro-
vide a tax with which to take care of it as
sct out in these provisions.
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
The Chair recognizes Delegate Raley.
DELEGATE RALEY: Judge Sherbow,
following along the question directed to
you by Delegate Bennett and in regard to
section 6.10, supplementary appropriations,
I think we ought to get into the record
that this does not prohibit the legislature
from, say, passing a program for, say,
mental health, without a tax, and its not
going in effect in this coming budget year,
but the next fiscal year the governor would
then have to fund it?
DELEGATE SHERBOW: Yes. What
would happen would be if you provide it go
into effect in the next fiscal year, it would
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