Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 12.djvu/122

 114 F. G. YOUNG heads of the various institutions urging largely increased ap- propriations, and by other agencies clamoring for state aid. This predicament of the members of the legislatures, ac- centuated as the affairs of the state are year by year attaining increasing complexity, was realized by the legislative as- sembly of 1909 and it provided a joint hold-over committee to prepare a budget for the institutions at the capital, or at least a report as the result of its investigations to be made the basis for a budget. Such a body using a few days just preceding the next session for its work would not find the way out to a satisfactory budgetary procedure. The most promising suggestion for Oregon is a State Board of Finance consisting of the governor, secretary of state and state treas- urer. These have positions on all the different boards of control of the different state institutions. They also consti- tute a majority of the state tax commission. To these the reports of all heads of institutions should be made. With these alone the legislative committees of ways and means should confer. The governor should have power of partial veto of appropriation bills. With authority and responsibility centralized in those who are in position to become acquainted witn the needs supplied from the state treasury, and with the right of hearings before the committees of ways and means and before the two houses accorded the members of this board of finance, the two houses of the legislature with suitable par- liamentary procedure in the discussion and passage of the budget, should be able to carry out the will of the people.