Paffc Four 



THE I. A. 



RECORD 



1 



the dite of distributing any funds in eilcess 

 of $3,000 from September 30 to March 31; 

 second, by making it possible for a resident of 

 any county of the state who has losses in any 

 other county to file claims for indemnities; and 

 third, by specifically making eligible to in- 

 demnities the death or tVie killing of anj of 

 the domestic animals named in the act wli 

 might be proved to have been infected ifith 

 rabies. 



AMEND INSURANCE ACTS 



Senate Bills 375 and 376, introduced by 

 Senator Hagg, and sponsored in the House by 

 Representative G. J. Johnson, provide that any 

 county fire insurance company may reinsure 

 the whole or any part of its risks with ofcher 

 fire insurance companies, and that it may 

 insure the whole or any part of the risk 

 catcd in this state of othci; fire insurance 

 panies organized under the jlaws of this st^ 



The representatives of the Association 

 ported these amendments in their £nal 

 because they facilitate and regulate the pradtice 

 of' reinsurance. 



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FERTILIZER ACT 



With the concurrence of the Universit) 

 Illinois and the National fertilizer Associ 

 the Illinois Agricultural A^ociation introduced 

 a bill modifying the fertilizer law to eliminate 

 the term "ammonia" and to require, i 

 the term "nitrogen" as a means of report 

 the nitrogen content of commercial fertil 

 The change, representing an improve 

 which the Illinois Agricultural Association 

 advocated for some time, was passed wit 

 oppositittn. 



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OTHER RILLS 



Other bills favorably regarded by the As- 

 - sociation and in some iitstances given sjome 

 active support were: 



Senate Bill 9, by Senator Lantz, amcndi 

 the act of 1895 for the organization of |ia 

 districts and providing that in the orgaii 

 tion of such park districts where a portion 

 the proposed district is outside of a city, 

 lage, or incorporated town, such outside t 

 itory cannot be included in the proposed 

 trict unless a majority in| such outside t 

 tory votes in favor of organization. 



Senate Bills 126 and 127, companion 

 relating to boys' and girls' 4-H Club 

 by Senator Lantz, the first providing that 

 cultural extension clubs may participate in 

 distribution of the newly named state, coi 

 fair and agricultural extension premium f i 

 the second setting forth the requirements 

 participation in such premium fund by rr 

 be'rs of agricultural ex'cnsion clubs. 



House Bill 361, sponsoBed by the Fan 

 'Grain Dealers Association of Illinois, and 

 troduccd by Representative Hunter, amemli 

 section 50a of the Act of 1874 regarding li 

 and providing that a' thresherman's lien 



■ not be valid and enforcible against a pure 



■ of crops from the owner or lawful 

 thereof unless the lien holder shall, previou 

 or at the time of making final settlement 

 such crops by such purchaser, serve upon s 

 purchaser a notice in writing of the eiisu 

 of such lien. 



In determining the provisions of this bill 



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and in its passage in the General Assembly, the 

 Illinois Agricultural Association cooperated 

 with the Farmers Grain Dealers Association of 

 Illinois. This followed a meeting of repre- 

 sentatives of the two organizations in which 

 the legislative program of both organizations 

 was reviewed. 



RESIST TAX INCREASES 



In every recent session, the General Assembly 

 has had scores of bills to increase taxes either 

 by making appropriations for new purposes, by 

 increasing appropriations for present activities, 

 by increasing maximum tax rates, or by re- 

 moval oi limitations on tax rates or on the 

 power to issue bonds. In this respect the Fifty- 

 sixth General Assembly was no exception. In 

 spite of the general recognition of the gross 

 injustice of the present general property tax, 

 especially on real estate, many bills were en- 

 acted into law which cannot fail to increase 

 the present burden of taxes. Apart from cer- 

 tain taxes for state purposes, most of the in- 

 creases in taxes were sought by city representa- 

 tives and will fall upon owners of urban 

 property. Some of the increases, however, 

 especially for state purposes, will fall in part 

 upon owners of farm property. 



The Conerton Bills 



Representatives of the Association actively 

 opposed a series of bills introduced in the House 

 by .Mr. Conerton, of La Salle county, and 

 sponsored by the state associations of supervis- 

 ors, county commissioners, county and probate 

 clerks and county auditors. The purpose of 

 these bills was to increase from 2 5 cents to 

 40 cents the maximum rate that can be used 

 for county purposes without a referendum. 

 This proposed increase of 60 per cent in the 

 county tax rate would have permitted in the 

 state as a whole, an increase of nearly 

 $13,000,000 in county taxes. There can be 

 little doubt that if these bills had been enacted 

 into law, most of the possible increase would 

 have been made in taxes to be paid next spring 

 and that nearly all of the possible increase 

 would have been made within a few years. In 

 the state as a whole nearly one-fourth of the 

 increase would have fallen on farm property. 

 In many counties most of the increase would 

 have been paid by farm property. 



When the bills were before the Revenue 

 Committee of the House and again later were 

 before a sub-committee of the Revenue Com- 

 mittee, representatives of the Association pointed 

 out that the proper remedy for a shortage of 

 funds in many counties is either equalization 

 upwards of low valuations of some classes of 

 property, or a general increase of valuations 

 to the level of valuations in the state as a 

 whole. If either or both of these remedies are 

 not applicable to some counties, any such 

 county has the constitutional and statutory 

 right to submit to a referendum Vote of its 

 people a temporary increase in its county tax 

 rate. 



Tax Increase Fails 



Representatives of the state associations of 

 supervisors, county commissioners, county and 

 probate clerks, and county auditors, objecting 

 to all of these remedies as politically inexpedi- 

 ent, urged a favorable report on the Conerton 

 bills. However, neither the sub-committee of 

 the Revenue Committee of the House, nor the 

 Revenue Committee as a whole, was willing to 

 assume the responsibility which the county 



orticials were trying to shift to the General 

 Assembly. 



Until the present revenue system is so re- 

 vised that taxes can be distributed equitably 

 among all persons able to pay them, owners of 

 some kinds of property, especially real estate, 

 are compelled to resist further increases in 

 taxes. The present inadequacy of funds for 

 many purposes is due to such resistance. More 

 serious inadequacy of funds, however undesir- 

 able, may prove to be the surest and speediest 

 means of changing the taxing system. 



The defeat of the Conerton bills is a strik- 

 ing example of one type of service which the 

 Association can perform by having its repre- 

 sentatives in Springfield. To prepare and 

 sponsor constructive measures in the interest 

 of agriculture is an important type of service. 

 To be watchful for bills which would injure 

 agriculture is an equally necessary duty. Legis- 

 lation invariably tends to move in the direction 

 desired by powerful and active organizations, 

 especially if those who may be injured thereby 

 make no resistance. In former days many 

 burdens were thus placed on farmers solely 

 because they were not organized, and there- 

 fore, could make no effective resistance. 



Examine All Bills 



Representatives of the Association have ex- 

 amined every bill and resolution ofFered in 

 the 56th General Assembly. In many cases 

 they suggested or asked for modifications. In 

 a few cases active opposition was necessary. 



The accomplishments of the Association in 

 the recent legislative session are in large part 

 due to the effective work of the County Farm 

 Bureaus and their collective supporting mem- 

 bership. The continued prestige and influence 

 of the Association in matters of this character 

 in a very large measure depend upon the un- 

 derstanding, determination and activities of the 

 membership throughout the state. 



Farmers should study the records of their 

 representatives and regardless of party affilia- 

 tion, return their proven friends to the legis- 

 lative halls. By following such a policy, farm- 

 ers can render the most effective service in 

 protecting their rightful future interests. 



September Drive 



A NATION-WIDE drive for Farm Bureau 

 members is announced for September by 

 the American Farm Bureau Federation. 



"Success of the national farm program for 

 the improvement of agriculture depends upon 

 the majority of farm people acting in 'unison'," 

 said President Sam H. Thompson in a recent 

 statement. "This principle, which has been 

 advocated as Farm Bureau gospel since the 

 creation of the organization, was recently given 

 governmental sanction by Secretary of Agri- 

 culture Hyde. 



"Through organized effort agriculture can 

 add from four to five billion dollars to its 

 annual income. Trarjslated in terms of in- 

 dividual farm families, this means $750 a year 

 for every family now living on a farm in the 

 United States. 



"The national organization has set aside the 

 month of September and has asked all state, 

 county and community units to co-operate in 

 building membership, to the end that we may 

 more quickly reach the goal of organized effort. 

 I hope every member during September will 

 become an energetic volunteer recruiting of- 

 ficer." 



Be sure to read pages 6, 7 and 8, this issue. 



-t. 



