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National Resources Committee 



ascertainment that a proper accounting can be had of 

 all receipts and expenditures and that full compliance 

 has been had with all provisions of law regarding the 

 receipt, custody, and disbursement of public funds. 

 They should embrace the duty of making what is 

 technically known as a "service audit," that is, an 

 inquiry having for its purpose the ascertainment, nf)t 

 nnl}' of the fidelity with which financial aflFairs have 

 been conducted, but the judgment and efficiency witli 

 which administrative officers have exercised the powers 

 conferred upon them. In other words, it should be 

 one of the prime duties of the auditor general to act 

 as the investigating agency of the legislature through 

 N^hich the latter maj^ currently keep itself informed 



regarding the manner in which its administrative offi- 

 cers are performing their duties. To this end, the 

 auditor general sliould have conferred upon him full 

 investigatory powers. The function of the joint com- 

 mittee on public accounts would be to review and pass 

 upon the reports of the auditor general and to bring 

 to the attention of the legislature all matters requiring 

 legislative action developed by such examinations. 



With a legislative council of the scope suggested, an 

 auditor general of public accounts, and a joint com- 

 niittee on public accounts, the State legislatures would 

 have an integrated staff fully equipped to enable the 

 State legislatures efficiently to perform both their 

 legislative and administrative control functions. 



V. NATIONAL LEGISLATIVE ASSOCIATIONS 



No account of the relation of American legislative 

 bodies to research would be complete that did not 

 mention and describe the work of certain national or- 

 ganizations having for their purpose to promote co- 

 operative action on the part of American legislatures 

 and to improve the substantive content and manner of 

 statement of the law: The American Legislators' As- 

 sociation and its affiliated organizations; the National 

 Conference on Uniform State Laws; and the American 

 Law Institute. 



American Legislators' Association 



The first of these organizations, the American Legis- 

 lators' Association, was organized in 1925 through the 

 efforts of Mr. Henry W. Toll, at that time a member 

 of the Colorado Senate, and who has ever since been 

 its directing head. It has its headquarters at Chicago 

 as one of the group of national organizations operating 

 in the governmental field in close association with the 

 University of Chicago. It publishes a monthly jour- 

 nal. State Government, the first issue of which ap- 

 peared in April 1930.^^ It has promoted and been 

 primarily responsible for the creation of a number of 

 services and organizations, which function in coopera- 

 tion with it, having for their objective the rendering of 

 aid to State legislatures and securing cooperation be- 

 tween them in the attainment of common ends. The 

 more important of these are the Council of State Gov- 

 ernments and the Interstate Reference Bureau. 



The character of the Council of State Governments, 

 as set forth in successive numbers of State Govern- 

 mejit, is as follows: 



The Council of State GovGrnmpnts is a part of Hio govern- 

 mental structure of the United States. It is a joint aRPticy 



"In December 1925, the Association began the publication of a 

 monthly, four-page leaflet, The Legislator. This publication was sus- 

 pended durlns 1927 and 1928, but reappeared in 1929 in mimeographed 

 form. In April 19.sn, it was superseded by the periodical mentioned 

 above. 



created by 30 State governments. By legislative action, each 

 of these States has established a Commission on Interstate 

 Cooperation to perfect the particiijation of the State as a mem- 

 ber of the Council of State Governments. * * * Twenty- 

 four of these States have enacted statutes in this connection 

 declaring the Council to be a "joint governmental 

 agency" • • * The Council seeks to develop more active 

 cooperation between groups of States in the various regions 

 of the United States and also between all of the 48 States in 

 order to overcome problems which no State alone can solve 

 and over which the Federal Government has no jurisdiction. 

 The Council performs research and compiles bulletins for the 

 Governor's Conferences ; and the Governors' Conferences con- 

 tribute to the support of the Council. 



The Council has a joint staff with the American 

 Legislators' Association and the two work so closely 

 together that it is difficult for the outsider at all times 

 to distinguish between them in respect to responsibility 

 for work undertaken. It will be noted, however, that, 

 while the American Legislators' Association, in prin- 

 ciple at least, works in the legislative field and for the 

 benefit of legislators, the Council of State Governments 

 has the function of woi'king in all the fields of State 

 government. Especially does it cooperate with the 

 several national organizations of State officials, and 

 particularly with the Governors' Conference, the Na- 

 tional Association of Attorneys-General, and the 

 National Association of Secretaries of State. 



As set forth in the statement of the character of the 

 Council given above, n pi'imary function of the Council 

 is the organization of interstate commissions and coun- 

 cils for the consideration of and taking of action upon, 

 mattei's affecting a group, or all, of the States. Among 

 the bodies of this character the proceedings of which 

 were set forth in sumni.'irv form in the Book of the 

 States, vol. II, book II, 1937, are: The Tax Revision 

 C'luncil; Interstate Commission on Conflicting Tax- 

 ation; Interstate Commission on the Delaware River 

 Basin; and Interstate Commission on the Ohio River 

 Basin. 



