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THE PRESIDENT: Is there any fur-
ther discussion?
Delegate Rybczynski.
DELEGATE RYBCZYNSKI: What is
wrong with the word —
THE PRESIDENT: Just a second. This
is so important that the Clerk will please
ring the quorum bell and get all the dele-
gates in the corridor and in the lounge
to the chamber.
Delegate Boyer.
DELEGATE BOYER: Mr. President,
since there does seem to be some honest
dispute and apprehension on this, we might
suggest respectfully that the Convention
give us unanimous consent to retain the
exact wording that the present Constitu-
tion has in section 1, Article VIII, and we
would suggest this amendment on line 7,
"The General Assembly by law shall es-
tablish and provide for the maintenance of
a statewide system of free public schools".
What this will intend to do is to allow
the General Assembly by statutory law to
delegate to the various political subdivi-
sions, the various school boards, the taxing
power and the right to maintain their own
private free public schools and that is the
existing statutory provisions, the constitu-
tional provision which is implemented by
the statutory law.
THE PRESIDENT: If there is to be
such an amendment, the Chair thinks it
should be printed so that we can see it and
establish a record on it. I do not think it
should be made by interlineation.
Would one of the pages please get Mr.
Lee Benson and get him to come to Mr.
Boyer's desk immediately?
Delegate Rybczynski.
DELEGATE RYBCZYNSKI: I would
like to direct a question to Chairman Boyer.
Chairman Boyer, in view of the fact that
you are interested in maintaining the
status quo as to contribution and the meth-
od, may I suggest that you use the exact
same language as it now stands and simply
state the General Assembly issue, by law,
provide for a — in other words, the same
language that you came out of Committee
with.
This is the consensus back here frankly
and we are hoping that you will do that.
THE PRESIDENT: Delegate Boyer.
DELEGATE BOYER: We respectfully
approve the suggestion and this is what
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we are trying to accomplish. We are try-
ing to keep what has seemed to be a very
workable and practical system without
rocking the boat too much by any change
of the language. This was the intention of
my suggested amendment which will be
printed. It will add the words "and pri-
vate" by maintain, as well as maintenance;
but we will doctor that up so you will have
that before you.
THE PRESIDENT: Delegate James.
DELEGATE JAMES: I would like to
inquire why the word "state" was elimi-
nated and the term "General Assembly"
substituted. This is a responsibility basic-
ally of all three departments of the gov-
ernment at a state level. Certainly the
governor has his responsibility and ad-
ministrative responsibilities and that sort
of thing. It just seems to me that the lan-
guage of the present Constitution is per-
fectly adequate. I see no reason for chang-
ing it.
TPIE PRESIDENT: Delegate Penniman.
DELEGATE PENNIMAN: Wherever
there has been an establishment of some-
thing by law, we have said throughout the
constitution, "the General Assembly by
law," which would include both the General
Assembly's action and the approval by the
governor or the overriding of the gover-
nor's veto.
This is simply to be consistent through-
out the whole of the document.
THE PRESIDENT: Delegate Boyer.
DELEGATE BOYER: I might add by
supplementation, Delegate Penniman, this
is exactly the existing language in the
present Constitution, "the General As-
sembly."
THE PRESIDENT: Delegate Adkins.
DELEGATE ADKINS: Mr. President,
am I in order in speaking to the proposed
changes, or am I premature?
THE PRESIDENT: I think you are pre-
mature in view of the comment Delegate
Penniman just made to the Chair. I think
you better make it on the floor, Delegate
Penniman.
DELEGATE PENNIMAN: The com-
ment I made to the Chair was that under
the circumstances, I would withdraw the
suggestion of the addition "and maintain"
and leave it to the Committee to come in
with its amendment.
When we had put it in initially it was
with the assurance of the members of the
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