ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, December 13, 1995 TAG: 9512130008
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-12 EDITION: METRO
IN DUBLIN recently, senators and representatives considered bills to raise taxes on alcohol and tobacco products, require drug tests for college athletes, ban smoking in public places and raise the minimum wage to $6 an hour - passing some and dispatching others to the dustbin.
It was a mock congress at Pulaski County High School - part of a 13-year tradition in teacher Bill Meyer's government classes - with students temporarily taking on the responsibility of lawmakers. Which is, say real lawmakers, to make ``tough choices'' that will resolve pressing matters of the day.
The remarkable thing is that students dealt with numerous issues, holding committee hearings on them and subjecting them to spirited debate, and were still able to wrap up their session in 10 class-periods, or two weeks. And they did this without the help of paid lobbyists sitting at their elbows.
Perhaps they didn't dillydally away time with a lot of frivolous or narrow-interest bills. Which, unfortunately, can't be said of all legislative bodies, including Virginia's General Assembly.
The soon-to-be-ex Sen. Hunter Andrews of Hampton used to say that no bill is truly frivolous. Each is important to someone, even if it's only one constituent. Andrews often argued against proposed limits on the number of bills a state lawmaker could introduce per session - even as the bills mounted. (At the 1995 General Assembly, a total of 2,219 were filed - and that was not the record for a single session.)
Andrews was on the wrong track. There's evidence galore, in many states, that the legislative process is being choked by unnecessary bills and protracted debate over trivia - disabling state lawmakers at a time when the federal government expects them to do more heavy lifting.
Example: North Carolina's state legislators spent an entire day this year debating whether collard greens should remain the ``official state vegetable'' or be deposed by the sweet potato. (Don't laugh. Virginia legislators, who already have named a state dog, bird, shell, beverage and fossil, spent time this year debating whether the rattlesnake should be the official state reptile.)
While taking time to limit to 20 the number of students a barber can teach at any one time, North Carolina lawmakers stretched out their 1995 session to one of the longest in the state's history. Even so, they shelved welfare reform and tax cuts.
Tim Storey, a policy analyst with the National Conference of State Legislatures, says Mickey Mouse bills have been a growing problem, even as computers and larger staffs have helped legislatures become more professional. Partly, he says, this reflects lawmakers' concerted efforts to be more accessible to constituents. But, surely, they will need more time to deal with issues such as welfare and Medicare that Congress is passing to the states.
What's the answer? More discipline and restraint, for one thing, by lawmakers and those who think state assemblies should solve all their individual problems. If they need helpful advice, lawmakers could call Bill Meyer at Pulaski County High.
LENGTH: Medium: 58 linesby CNB