1978                                       Vetoes

Article XVI, which goes on to prescribe the form and nature of a
referendum petition and election. No authority is contained in
Article XVI for the referral of acts or actions of county commis-
sioners.

The provisions of Article 33 of the Annotated Code of Mary-
land, and in particular the provisions of sections 23-1 to 23-11
thereof, under the subtitle "Questions", were enacted pursuant to
Article XVI to deal with referendum elections. These statutes do
not purport to enlarge the right of referendum beyond that allowed
by Article XVI, and could not, in any event, have that effect; c. f.,
Levering v. Supervisors, etc., 129 Md. 335 (1916).

The Attorney General, while not specifically disapproving the
bill on constitutional grounds, has advised me that neither Article
XVI of the Constitution nor Article 33 of the Code apply to acts
of the County Commissioners, and, in the absence of procedures set
forth in the bill itself, there are no provisions dealing with refer-
enda of such matters. The only possibility suggested by the Attorney
General was that the election officials follow the procedures set forth
in Article 33 even in the absence of Constitutional authorization.

Regardless of whether it would be legally possible to authorize
and conduct a referendum on an action of the County Commission-
ers, there is an additional substantive objection to the bill.

The bill, if valid, would apply to any action of the type described
taken after January 1, 1972, and would therefore be retroactive in
effect. In fact, its enactment as an emergency measure and its ex-
piration on January 1, 1973, would indicate that it was one or a
group of specific actions of the Commissioners to which the bill is
directed.

The problem with such a procedure is that it serves to destroy,
or put in serious doubt, the finality of the Commissioners' action; and
it could serve to put in jeopardy actions taken by persons in reliance
on the Commissioners' action. Persons affected by decisions of the
Commissioners on plans for subdivision control would be unable to
rely on them.

For these reasons, I have decided to veto House Bill 1151.

Sincerely,

/s/ Marvin Mandel,

Governor.

House Bill No. 1154—St. Mary's County Jail

AN ACT to repeal and re-enact, with amendments, Section 92
of the Code of Public Local Laws of St. Mary's County (1965 Edition
and 1971 Supplement, being Article 19 of the Code of Public Local
Laws of Maryland), title "St. Mary's County," subtitle "Keeper of
the Jail," removing the authority for the appointment of the keeper
of the jail of St. Mary's County from the County Commissioners
and placing the authority with the Sheriff of St. Mary's County, and
relating generally to the keeper of the jail in St. Mary's County, and
clarifying the language therein.