|
years from July 1, 1968, to July 1, 1970,
within which the counties can act to bring
into existence their own form of charter or
instrument of government.
Whether by way of the appointment only
by the board of county commissioners, or
by way of the election process upon the fil-
ing of petitions, we will fall conveniently
within that period in that the maximum
period of time involved insofar as the leg-
islative process is concerned would be
twenty-one months allowing a period of
three months within which the charter as
recommended can be published, the voters
become familiar with it, and cast their vote
insofar as the acceptance or rejection of it.
Of course, if it is rejected, then the
charter that will have been drafted identi-
fied by Delegate Hardwicke as the so-
called model charter would then become ef-
fective in that county as well as in any
other counties which had failed to adopt
the charter within the prescribed period of
time.
I urge that you favorably act upon this
amendment. It is quite important, as you
will note by the names who are sponsoring
it, coming from Prince George's County
where over the period of many years a
battle insofar as the selection of an instru-
ment of government has been a most bitter
one.
It is felt by providing the two approaches,
the appointment and the election process,
the final result would be one which would
be far more palatable to the people of that
county. As it applies there, it applies
equally with respect to other counties
which have failed to adopt a charter, not
withstanding Article XI-A having been
available to them since 1915.
I urge that you favorably act upon this
amendment, and that it be included in the
schedule of legislation.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Hardwicke,
did you desire to comment?
DELEGATE HARDWICKE: Mr. Chair-
man, I have studied the proposal very
carefully and discussed it at great length
with Delegate Clagett, and I consider it to
be a desirable addition. Frankly I think
that it will be an improvement. It is a well
thought-out provision for this schedule of
legislation, and I urge that it be adopted.
THE CHAIRMAN: Is there any further
discussion.
(Call for the question.)
|
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Bennett.
DELEGATE BENNETT: Delegate Clag-
ett, what concerns me about this section is
the timing of it. I take it that the board of
county commissioners could postpone the
appointment of this charter board up until
July 1st, 1970 or very nearly to that date,
and then your amendment would come too
late, would it not?
DELEGATE CLAGETT: Yes, it would
then be ineffective because, of course, this
whole amendment is designed to fill the gap
until the time that the General Assembly
would have to act upon it.
I believe it is section 38 of the interim
provisions and you will find it on page 12.
The General Assembly has until July 1,
1969, within which to provide a choice of
procedures by which a county can struc-
ture its government. This takes care of the
interim period until July 1, 1969, and per-
mits the counties, if they choose to do so,
to act immediately in the direction of get-
ting a charter drafted.
If they fail to do so, then they would fall
under whatever choices are available to
them provided by the General Assembly
pursuant to section 38.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Bennett.
DELEGATE BENNETT: Delegate Clag-
ett, would you not then want to change the
date from July 1, 1970, to December 1,
1969, if your amendment is really to be
effectuated?
DELEGATE CLAGETT: No, I would
not because it is possible, of course, that
the General Assembly will not act at all to
provide the choices specified to be provided
in section 38. If it should fail to do so,
this provision, having the effect of law,
would accomplish the same purpose. And
also, I might add, I could not imagine that
the General Assembly would not provide
among its choices two approaches similar
to the two suggested here, the appointive
or the elective process.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Bennett.
DELEGATE BENNETT: All I want to
suggest is that your amendment might fall
by the wayside if the county commissioners
decided through dilatory tactics to debate it.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Clagett.
DELEGATE CLAGETT: We are aware
of that, and the consequence of that, of
course, would be that that county would
then have a so-called model charter on Jan-
uary 6, 1971.
|
