[Rev. 12/19/2019 5:43:57 PM]
κ1928 Statutes of Nevada, 6th Special Session, Page 71κ
RESOLUTIONS AND MEMORIALS
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[Assembly Joint Resolution No. 1Mr. Boak]
No. 1Assembly Joint Resolution, memorializing Congress relative to federal aid for highway maintenance.
[Approved February 3, 1928]
Whereas, The legislature of the State of Nevada, now assembled in a special session, is again confronted with the necessity of enacting suitable legislation to provide additional funds for the department of highways to be used in maintaining the states seven per cent highway system; and Whereas, The tremendous yearly increase in motor transportation is commanding more money each year for maintaining the roads to a standard meeting the requirements of the federal bureau of public roads; and Whereas, This ever increasing cost of maintenance is becoming a heavy tax burden upon the people of the State of Nevada; and Whereas, The State of Nevada is the seventh largest state in the Union with 87.72% of the total area untaxable federal owned land; and Whereas, The total population of the state is less than 80,000 people; and Whereas, It is of great importance to the State of Nevada and all western and public land states a policy be developed which will insure federal aid for the maintenance of the roads built under the federal aid road act and on the equitable ratio of public land to privately owned taxable land; and Whereas, The conditions prevailing in the State of Nevada also exist in most western and all public land states; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate and Assembly of the State of Nevada, That we respectfully memorialize and petition the Congress of the United States to give due consideration to enacting federal aid for maintenance purposes on the same ratio as used for the basis of the present federal aid road act; be it further Resolved, That the secretary of the State of Nevada be, and is hereby, directed to forward a certified copy of this resolution by mail, to each and every member of Congress, to the secretary of agriculture, chief engineer of the bureau of public roads, the American automobile association, the American association of state highway officials, and to the governors and heads of the departments of highways of all western and public land states. |
Memorializing Congress relative to federal aid for highway maintenance |
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κ1928 Statutes of Nevada, 6th Special Session, Page 72κ
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Memorializing the secretary of agriculture to continue foot-and-mouth quarantine |
[Assembly Joint Resolution No. 2Mr. Winter]
No. 2Assembly Joint Resolution, memorializing the secretary of agriculture of the United States to continue in effect his federal quarantine against importation into the United States of live stock and livestock products from foreign countries where foot-and-mouth disease is known to exist.
[Approved February 3, 1928]
Whereas, Reports are being circulated that the present federal government quarantine against importation to the United States of live stock, meats, hides, and similar livestock products from foreign countries where foot-and-mouth disease is known to exist may be abolished or modified; and Whereas, Foot-and-mouth disease is known to be one of the most destructive of the contagious and infectious diseases affecting live stock, its appearance in this country, based upon past experience, not only causing terrific losses of live stock but requiring control measures necessitating drastic restriction of movement of all kinds of commerce in the areas affected as well as large expenditure of public funds; therefore, be it Resolved by the Assembly and Senate of the State of Nevada, That we endorse and approve the action of the secretary of agriculture of the United States in establishing the aforesaid quarantine and most strongly urge upon him the necessity and desirability of its continuance in force against all foreign countries where foot-and-mouth disease exists; and be it further Resolved, That copies of this resolution, duly authenticated by the proper officials of the State of Nevada, be sent to the Hon. W. M. Jardine, secretary of agriculture of the United States, and to each member of the Nevada delegation in the Congress of the United States. |
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Urging Nevada representatives in Congress to advocate increase in forestry road appropriations |
[Assembly Joint Resolution No. 3Mr. David]
No. 3Assembly Joint Resolution, memorializing our senators and representative in Congress to advocate the passage of a bill increasing the present forestry road appropriations.
[Approved February 4, 1928]
Whereas, The eleven so-called public land states, of which the State of Nevada is one, in which a large portion of the territory is owned by the government and occupied by national forests and national parks; and Whereas, Such parks and forests are nontaxable and do not contribute to local government; and Whereas, The cost of completing the highway system in said forests and parks in an adequate manner and standard is beyond the means of said states under the present annual appropriation of $4,500,000; now, therefore, be it |
κ1928 Statutes of Nevada, 6th Special Session, Page 73 (NUMBER 3, AJR 3)κ
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is beyond the means of said states under the present annual appropriation of $4,500,000; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Assembly and the Senate of the State of Nevada, That our senators and representative in Congress be urged to either introduce in Congress or support some proper measure already before Congress that will provide for an annual appropriation of $9,000,000 annually until such a time as the building of these roads in the national forests shall be sufficient to keep pace with the state highway construction in the public land states; and be it further Resolved, That the secretary of state of the State of Nevada be required to forthwith transmit proper copies of this resolution to our senators and representative in Congress in sufficient numbers that they may be distributed to such federal officials and departments as may be concerned. |
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[Senate Joint Resolution No. 2Senator Fairchild]
No. 4Memorializing Congress relative to reimbursement by the government of the United States for moneys paid by the State of Nevada for military purposes.
[Approved February 4, 1928]
Whereas, The Territory of Nevada was created by act of Congress, March 2, 1861; and Whereas, Said territory was repeatedly called upon by the commanding general of the department of the pacific during the years 1863 and 1864 to furnish and equip troops to protect from warring Indians the overland mail route; and Whereas, At that time the routes to the pacific coast by sea had been closed and there were not sufficient troops otherwise available to protect and keep open said overland route; and Whereas, The conditions then existing and the exigency of the occasion is shown by the statements of General Wright, one of the many similar being-The Indian disturbances * * * threaten the entire suspension of our mail facilities as well as preventing any portion of the vast immigration approaching from the east. * * * It is impossible for us at this moment to purchase horses and equipment. Each man would have to furnish his own; and Whereas, The Territory of Nevada then comprised a vast, sparsely populated desert region between two great mountain ranges, fifteen hundred miles distant from railroad communication, and where the then cost of living vastly exceeded that of any other section of the United States; and Whereas, In pursuance of said most urgent calls for troops, repeatedly made, the Territory of Nevada provided a regiment of cavalry and a battalion of infantry, by the aid of which troops only the overland mail, stage, and immigrant route was kept open to the pacific coast; and |
Petitioning Congress to reimburse Nevada for military expenditures |
κ1928 Statutes of Nevada, 6th Special Session, Page 74 (NUMBER 4, SJR 2)κ
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Petitioning Congress to reimburse Nevada for military expenditures |
aid of which troops only the overland mail, stage, and immigrant route was kept open to the pacific coast; and Whereas, In order to at all provide sufficient troops for the purpose, the territory was compelled to and did, by act of its legislative power, provide for the payment to her troops of certain compensation in addition to that then provided to be paid by the United States to troops in other sections of the country, and to meet such payments the territory, being without other means, was compelled to and did authorize a bond issue in the sum of one hundred thousand ($100,000) dollars; and Whereas, Such additional compensation was intended to cover the expenses of recruits prior to being mustered into the service and to equalize in part the difference in the purchasing power of the soldiers pay due to the increased cost of all necessary supplies in the region; and Whereas, The officials of the territory may well have assumed that the territory would be reimbursed under the provisions of the act of Congress of July 27, 1861, entitled An act to indemnify the states for expenses by them in defense of the United States (12 Stats. 276), and the letter of secretary of state, Hon. Wm. H. Seward, of date October 14, 1861, addressed to governors and containing the statement-There is every reason to believe that Congress would sanction what the state should do and would provide for its reimbursement; and Whereas, Under the act of Congress creating the Territory of Nevada legislative power vested in a governor, appointed by the President, and a legislative assembly, and all legislative acts and executive proceedings were required to be transmitted to the President of the United States and to the senate and house of representatives, and were so transmitted, and no objection was made by the President or the Congress to said acts creating said debt for said military purposes; and Whereas, On March 21, 1864, Congress adopted an enabling act authorizing the people of the territory to frame a constitution and to become admitted into the Union as a state; and Whereas, The impelling motive of the administration and of Congress at the time in adopting such enabling act was to create an additional state in order to provide for ratification of the then contemplated amendment to the constitution of the United States abolishing slavery, which proposed amendment was deemed by the administration of President Lincoln, according to the statement of Hon. Charles A. Dana, then assistant secretary of war, to possess a moral force equivalent to new armies in the field-that it would be worth at least a million men; and Whereas, In pursuance of said enabling act the people of the Territory of Nevada adopted a constitution and submitted the same to President Lincoln for approval, notwithstanding the fact that the people of the territory had just previously overwhelmingly defeated a similar proposed constitution initiated by territorial action, and notwithstanding the further fact that the effect of admission to statehood was to shift the expense of local government from the United States to the few people then inhabiting the territory; and |
κ1928 Statutes of Nevada, 6th Special Session, Page 75 (NUMBER 4, SJR 2)κ
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the Territory of Nevada adopted a constitution and submitted the same to President Lincoln for approval, notwithstanding the fact that the people of the territory had just previously overwhelmingly defeated a similar proposed constitution initiated by territorial action, and notwithstanding the further fact that the effect of admission to statehood was to shift the expense of local government from the United States to the few people then inhabiting the territory; and Whereas, Upon admission the state was morally bound to assume payment of all debts and obligations contracted by the territory, which assumption was made by a provision of the state constitution and the same approved in accordance with the provisions of the enabling act by President Lincoln; and Whereas, The State of Nevada was bound to and did continue to carry out the policy inaugurated by the territory, and did carry out its obligations to pay the debts created by the territory and others necessarily contracted in continuing such policy, and that in order to do so the state was compelled to and did borrow money upon a bond issue for such purpose and has since continued to refund said bonds and to pay interest upon the same; and Whereas, By acts of Congress of June 27, 1882 (22 Stats. 111), and October 6, 1886 (24 Stats. 217), the secretary of the treasury, with the aid of a board of examiners consisting of army officers, was required to examine and investigate the claims of certain states and territories including that of Nevada, said act of 1882 providing that no higher rate shall be allowed for the services of said forces and other proper expenses than was allowed and paid by the United States for similar services in the same grade and for the same time in the United States army serving in said states and territories and for supplies furnished in the same country; and Whereas, There were no other soldiers of the United States army serving in said territory and receiving less pay than that received from all sources by troops raised in the Territory of Nevada; and Whereas, The said board of examiners reported that with the extra pay allowed under the territorial act their compensation from all sources did not exceed, if indeed was equal to, the value of the money received as pay by the troops stationed elsewhere, and that in passing the territorial act the legislature was mainly instigated by a desire to do a plain act of justice, and that the term bounty as used in the territorial act was in fact a payment made to captains of military companies for expenses incurred by them in enlisting, lodging and subsisting the men prior to their entering the United States service * * * and, under the circumstances, this expense was economical; and |
Petitioning Congress to reimburse Nevada for military expenditures |
κ1928 Statutes of Nevada, 6th Special Session, Page 76 (NUMBER 4, SJR 2)κ
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Petitioning Congress to reimburse Nevada for military expenditures |
under the circumstances, this expense was economical; and Whereas, Said board of examiners rejected said disbursements because of the technical reason they were described in the statute as bounty and extra pay, notwithstanding the findings of fact made by said board show that such disbursements were in no way a gratuity, but upon the contrary were in one case economical and in the other a plain act of justice; and Whereas, Both the said board of examiners and the court of claims in considering the matter of such disbursements felt bound by general laws and hence could not consider conditions and circumstances peculiarly applying to Nevada alone and to the equities of her case; and Whereas, By an act of Congress, approved March 3, 1899 (30 Stats. 1206), the secretary of the treasury was required to investigate and report to Congress * * * the amount furnished by the State of Nevada or by the Territory of Nevada and assumed by said state * * * with such interest on the same as said state has actually paid, together with what amounts have been heretofore paid by the United States; and Whereas, In pursuance of said act of Congress of March 3, 1899, the secretary of the treasury transmitted to Congress a statement of the case made by the auditor of the war department, from which it appears that inclusive of the interest paid by the state to January 31, 1899, there remained the sum of $462,441.97 for which the state has not been reimbursed; and Whereas, Since the furnishing of said statement made in compliance with said act of Congress no material part of said sum for which the state has not been reimbursed has been paid; and Whereas, The senate of the United States upon four several occasions passed measures providing for the reimbursement of the State of Nevada in full for all her said war expenditures and appropriate committees of the house of representatives, after exhaustive investigations, in every instance recommended the passage of such measures; and Whereas, The State of Nevada has not yet been reimbursed for its said expenditures but has continually been compelled to pay interest upon the original debt incurred; therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly, That it is the sense of the legislature of the State of Nevada that if, as would appear to have been determined by the board of war examiners and the court of claims, a strict legal obligation does not rest upon the government of the United States to reimburse the State of Nevada for the expenditures by it assumed and incurred for military purposes in keeping open the overland mail route to the pacific coast during the time of the war between the states, that in equity the government of the United States should reimburse the State of Nevada for such expenditures and that in addition thereto a moral obligation is imposed to make such reimbursement for the following reasons: |
κ1928 Statutes of Nevada, 6th Special Session, Page 77 (NUMBER 4, SJR 2)κ
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of the war between the states, that in equity the government of the United States should reimburse the State of Nevada for such expenditures and that in addition thereto a moral obligation is imposed to make such reimbursement for the following reasons: First-That the use of the words bounty and extra pay in the territorial statute were misnomers and did not express the real purpose of such act. Second-That the debt was contracted by territorial officers created by act of Congress and were in fact federal officers. Third-That the acts of the territorial legislature were submitted to the President and the Congress, and were not disapproved. Fourth-That the territorial officers in incurring the original debt acted in a great emergency and pursued such methods as were best calculated to accomplish the result required. Fifth-That in calling upon the people of the territory to accomplish a great war measure by assuming the obligations of statehood, the state was bound to assume the debts and obligations of the territory in the first instance, and by approving the constitution the President and the Congress ratified the action of the people of the state in the second instance. Sixth-That by assuming the obligations of statehood Congress was relieved from an expense of territorial government vastly in excess of the entire amount assumed and paid by the State of Nevada for war expenditures made upon request of the proper military officers of the United States and for which it asks reimbursement. Be it further Resolved, That the action of the state officers in presenting a memorial to Congress for the reimbursement of the State of Nevada of date December 5, 1927, be approved; be it further Resolved, That the Congress be, and it hereby is, petitioned to provide for the reimbursement of the State of Nevada for the disbursements by it made and referred to in this resolution; be it further Resolved, That a copy of this resolution be transmitted to the United States senate, to the house of representatives, to the controller-general of the United States, and to our senators and representative in Congress. |
Petitioning Congress to reimburse Nevada for military expenditures |
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