20 MONTANA BULLETIN 150 



be secured only witli proper organization, effective leadership, and 

 adequate financial backing. Lacking any one of these things, a large 

 outbreak can not be handled. To make it possible for counties to 

 finance campaigns against various insect pests, the 1921 session of 

 the legislature passed what is known as the insect pest law. 



Under this law the county commissioners are empowered (1) to 

 appoint a suitable person to supervise, under the direction of the 

 State Entomologist, the control of any dangerous insect pest, and (2) 

 to levy a general tax to be used in taking up county warrants issued 

 in payment for necessary supplies. Although this law has been used 

 in western Montana to partially support some fruit pest work, its 

 greatest use has been in connction with outbreaks of grasshoppers. 

 In 1921, twenty-six counties, and during the past season thirty-four 

 counties, operated the law to control these pests. It has proved to be 

 a very effective aid in fighting grasshoppers and has made possible 

 manj'' campaigns which resulted in immense saving of crops and which 

 it would otherwise have been impossible to undertake. Several changes 

 in the law, however, are advisable. Among these the two following 

 are the most important. 



Under the present law it is required that the county commissioners 

 issue registered warrants on the "Insect Pest Fund" in payment for 

 supplies. Then "the Board of County Commissioners shall determine 

 the total amount of such warrants outstanding, and the succeeding 

 j'car, shall levy a tax sufficient to retire and pay off all such outstand- 

 ing warrants with accrued interest, which said tax shall be levied upon 

 all the property in the county and shall not exceed one-half mill on 

 each dollar of assessed valuation, and such tax when collected shall be 

 credited to the 'Insect Pest Fund' and said warrants shall at once be 

 called in and paid off and discharged." This makes it necessary for 

 many counties which have sufficient money in the general fund to pay 

 interest on registered warrants when this could very easily be avoided 

 by transferring temporarily part of the general fund to the insect 

 pest fund until the insect pest tax is collecied. 



Another change in the law has to do willi an increase in the levy 

 which the county commissioners arc empowered to make. In raany 

 of the counties suffei-inir niidcr large insect outbreaks the assessed 

 valuation is loo low for the tax allowed to i-ai.se sufficient mone^y to 

 save the crops. It is recommended that lli<' iiiaximum lew be increased. 



