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State Capitol News
By PARKE F. KEAYS
Depositors of failed banks at Brainard and Newman Grove received $110,000 recently.
Over 300 Nebraska 4-H club members and their club lenders spent last week in Lincoln attending the 17th annual club week at the college of agriculture.
A recent survey made by the national industries ouference shows that wage rates have been cut about 14% as an average in the United States. Executive salaries have been reduced 20 percent. The survey also shows that about 20 percent of the persons gainfully employed in 1929 are now unemployed.
If congress passes a bill now before it, Nebraska will get $1,800,00 in the fiscal year of 1984 and the same amount it 1935 as federal aid in the construction of its highways. The bill proposes an appropriation of $100,000,000 each year for use in highway construction over the country.
Representatives of the state railway commission, who recently returned from Kansas City where hearings on the western railroad grain rate case are being held, expect to leave soon for further hearings at Minneapolis and Chicago. It is reported that the alliance of state railway commissions is making a good showing in the hearings in favor of decrease in rates rather than the increase asked by the railroads.
The matter of fighting grasshoppers is a problem which is puzzling many counties in the state at the present time. The state has $18,000 with which to buy poison bran and has offered to use this fund to match county funds for the purchase of grasshopper poison. Some counties in the state, which have no funds available for the purpose, are planning to issue warrants if the banks will handle them. Representatives of several northern counties met at O'Neill recently and passed a resolution asking for complete state aid. These counties are in the drouth distriet and are unable to raise funds to match the state money. The state department of agriculture has received a quotation of $19 per ton for poison bran in carload lots. This is considerably lower than the price paid last year which-ranged from $25 to $27 per ton.
May tax collections amounted to $1,224,000 according to announcement made by state Treasurer Bass. The collections are about 16 percent lower than in the corresponding month of 1931. Officials say that this indicates people are paying their taxes as well this year as a year ago since the state levy is about 16 percent lower this year than before. The report shows $12,000 in delinquent municipal, county and school district funds with delinquent interest amounting to $4,000. The majority of these funds is tied up in failed banks, it is said.
Recepits of the game, forestation and park commission for 1931 were about $10,000 less than the preceeding year. Total receipts in 1931 were $217,817. The bulk of this money came from hunting, fishing and trapping permits. Last year the commission sold 13,000 scrip coupons for redemption. About 663 of them were unredeemed.
The state superintendent of schools has approved the application of the Norfolk school board to resubmit the question of establishing a junior college to the voters in Norfolk. The same measure was defeated at an election there late in May.
Nebraska voters will vote on an amendment to the constitution which prohibits the enactment by the legislature of any laws permitting establishment or perpetration of exclusive methods of healing or interferr- ing with the right of individuals to cheese what mothed of healing they prefer, if potitions new in circulation carry enough names and are approved by the secretary of state. The potitions must carry the names of 10 percent of those who voted for governor at the last general election.
At a recent meeting of engineers several interesting facts were brought out concerning the state capitol building. Enough concrete was used in the structure to pave 25 miles of read; more than one million rivers were used in the steel construction; 5500 carloads of material were used in the building, or enough to make a train reaching from Grand Island to Lincoln.
The state banking department has reported the reopening of the Tryon State Bank, which suspended business January 8. During April over $500,000 n dividends were paid to depositors of failed banks in the state.
A recent report shows that Nebras. ka completed 1431 miles of improved highway last year. Of this total 280 miles graveled, 49 miles oil graveled and 222 miles paved. Nebraska's total for the year compares favorably with that of nearby states. Iowa completed 1060 miles, South Dakota 937 miles, Kansas 1724, Wyoming 1450, Colorado 400 and Missouri 3296.
Total gasoline tax collections for May were $793,540 or about $75,000 more than the amount collected during May a year ago. This is a sharp increase over April collections which totaled $643,000 and March collections of $445,000. Gross gasoline tax collections since the law went into effect in April 1925 totaled to $41,497,000.
The federal government has a deficit of about 2 1-2 billion dollars for the first 11 months in 1932. Mounting expenditures an decline in all tax collections, especially income tax collection; are the first contributors to the deficit.
A savings company, which holds a general insurance agency contract under a Nebraska life insurance com pany, recently proposed to sell trading stamps to merchants which they in turn would give as a discount to purchasers at their stores. It was proposed to accept these trading