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class of courts, and not in conflict with laws governing such matters. To the same end, the court may, and when requested by the legislature by joint resolution, shall certify to the legislature, its conclusions as to desirable amendments or changes in the general laws governing such practice and proceedings.
Board of Educational Lands and Funds.
Section 1, Article VII. The governor, secretary of state, treasurer, attorney general and commissioner of public lands and buildings shall, under the direction of the legislature, constitute a board of commissioners, for the sale, leasing, and general management of all lands and funds set apart for educational purposes, and for the investment of school funds, in such manner as may be prescribed by law.
Legislature Must Provide Free Common Schools.
Section 6, Article VII. The legislature shall provide for the free instruction in the common schools of this state of all persons between the ages of five and twenty-one years.
Equitable Distribution of School Fund Must Be Provided for by Law.
Section 7, Article VII. Provision shall be made by general law for equitable distribution of the income of the fund set apart for the support of the common schools among the several school districts of the state and no appropriation shall be made from said fund to any district for the year in which school is not maintained for the minimum term required by law.
Legislature May Provide for Sale of School Lands at Public Auction.
Section 5, Article VII. No lands now owned or here
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alter acquired by the state for educational purposes shall be sold except at public auction under such conditions as the legislature shall provide.
Legislature Shall Prescribe Duties and Powers of Board of Regents.
Section 10, Article VII. The general government of the University of Nebraska shall, under the direction of the legislature, be vested in a board of six regents to be styled The Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska, who shall be elected from and by districts as herein provided. Their term of office shall be for six years each. Their duties and powers shall be prescribed by law; and they shall receive no compensation, but may be reimbursed their actual expenses incurred in the discharge of their duties.
The legislature shall divide the state, along county lines, into six compact regent districts of approximately equal population, which shall be numbered from one to six, consecutive numbers to be given adjacent districts. Such districts shall correspond, as nearly as may be practicable, in location and numbers with the present six congressional districts of the state. Such districts shall not be changed, except upon the concurrence of two-thirds of the members of each house of the legislature, nor shall any such change vacate the office of any regent. Until such districts are established, the six congressional districts of the state as now constituted and numbered shall be the districts provided for by this section.
Provided, that the regents elected before the adoption of this constitution shall serve out their respective terms and that the successors of those whose terms expire in January, 1923, shall be elected from districts numbered three and four respectively at the general election to be
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held in 1922; of those whose terms expire in 1925, from districts numbered one and two at the general election to be held in 1924; and of those whose terms expire in 1927, from districts numbered five and six, at the general election to be held in 1926.
State Aid to Non-Sectarian Schools Provided for; Qualifications of Teachers.
Section 11, Article VII. No sectarian instruction shall be allowed in any school or institution supported in whole or in part by the public funds set apart for educational purposes, nor shall the state accept any grant, conveyance, or bequest of money, lands, or other property to be used for sectarian purposes. Neither the state legislature nor any county, city or other public corporation, shall ever make any appropriation from any public fund, or grant any public land in aid of any sectarian or denominational school or college, or any educational institution which is not exclusively owned and controlled by the state or a governmental subdivision thereof. No religious test or qualification shall be required of teacher or student, for admission to or continuance in any public school or educational institution supported in whole or in part by public taxation.
Legislature May Provide for Reform Schools.
Section 12, Article VII. The legislature may provide by law for the establishment of a school or schools for the safe keeping, education, employment and reformation of all children under the age of eighteen years, who, for want of proper parental care, or other cause, are growing up in mendicancy or crime.
Board of Education of State Normal Schools.
Section 13, Article VII. The general government of the state normal schools, as now existing, and such other
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normal schools as may be established by law, shall be vested under the direction of the legislature, in a board of seven members to be styled board of education of state normal schools, six of whom shall be appointed by the governor, with the advice and consent of the senate, two each for a term of two, four, and six years, and two each biennium thereafter for a term of six years, and the state superintendent of public instruction shall be a member ex-officio. The duties and powers of said board shall be prescribed by law, and the members thereof shall receive no compensation for the performance of their duties, but may be reimbursed their actual expenses incurred therein.
Legislature Shall Provide for Levying of Taxes; by Valuation; in Proportion to Value; Uniformity.
Section 1, Article VIII. The necessary revenue of the state and its governmental subdivisions shall be raised by taxation in such manner as the legislature may direct; but taxes shall be levied by valuation uniformly and proportionately upon all tangible property and franchises, and taxes uniform as to class may be levied by valuation upon all other property. Taxes other than property taxes, may be authorized by law. Existing revenue laws shall continue in effect until changed by the legislature.
Exemptions; Shall Only Be by General Law.
Section 2, Article VIII. The property of the state and its governmental subdivisions shall be exempt from taxation. The legislature by general law may exempt property owned by and used exclusively for agricultural and horticultural societies, and property owned and used exclusively for educational, religious, charitable or cemetery. purposes, when such property is not owned or used for financial gain or profit to either the owner or user. Household goods of the value of two hundred ($200.00)
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dollars to each family shall be exempt from taxation. The legislature by general law may provide that the increased value of land by reason of shade and ornamental trees planted along the highway shall not be taken into account in the assessment of such land. No property shall be exempt from taxation except as provided in this section.
Legislature May Not Release Taxes.
Section 4, Article VIII. The legislature shall have no power to release or discharge any county, city, township, town or district whatever, or the inhabitants thereof, or any corporation, or the property therein, from their or its proportionate share of taxes to be levied for state purposes, or due any municipal corporation, nor shall commutation for such taxes be authorized in any form whatever.
Powers of Municipalities to Make Local Improvements.
Section 6, Article VIII. The legislature may vest the corporate authorities of cities, towns and villages with power to make local improvements by special assessments, or by special taxation of property, benefited. For all other corporate purposes, all municipal corporations may be vested with authority to assess and collect taxes, but such taxes shall be uniform in respect to persons and property within the! jurisdiction of the body imposing the same.
Legislature May Not Tax Municipal Corporation for Corporate Purposes.
Section 7, Article VIII. Private property shall not be liable to be taken or sold for the payment of the corporate debts of municipal corporations. The legislature shall not impose taxes upon municipal corporations, or
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the inhabitants or property thereof, for corporate purposes.
Legislature Shall Provide for Funding of Outstanding Warrants.
Section 8, Article VIII. The legislature at its first session shall provide by law for the funding of all outstanding warrants, and other indebtedness of the state, at a rate of interest not exceeding eight per cent per annum.
Legislature Shall Provide for Examination of Claims Upon Treasury.
Section 9, Article VIII. The legislature shall provide by law that all claims upon the treasury shall be examined and adjusted by the auditor and approved by the secretary of state, before any warrant for the amount allowed shall be drawn. Provided, that a party aggrieved by the decision of the auditor and secretary of state may appeal to district court.
Legislature May Not Form Counties of Less Than Certain Area.
Section 1, Article IX. No new county shall be formed or established by the legislature which will reduce the county or counties, or either of them to a less area than four hundred square miles, nor shall any county be formed of a less area.
Legislative Adjustment of County Boundaries.
Section 2, Article IX. No county shall be divided nor any part of the territory of any county be stricken therefrom, nor shall any county or part of the territory of any county be added to an adjoining county without submitting the question to the qualified electors of each county affected thereby, nor unless approved by a majority of the, qualified electors of each county voting thereon; pro-
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vided, that when county boundaries divide sections, or overlap, or fail to meet, or are in doubt, the legislature may by law provide for their adjustment, but in all cases the new boundary shall follow the nearest section line or the thread of the main channel of a boundary stream.
Consolidation or Division of Counties; Adjustment of Liabilities.
Section 3, Article IX. When a county shall be added to another, all prior indebtedness of each county shall remain a charge on the taxable property within the territory of each county as it existed prior to consolidation. When any part of a county is stricken off and attached to another county, the part stricken off shall be holden for its proportion of all then existing liabilities of the county from which it is taken, but shall not be holden for any then existing liabilities of the county to which it is attached.
Legislature Shall Provide for Election of County and Township Officers.
Section 4, Article IX. The legislature shall provide by law for the election of such county and township officers as may be necessary.
Legislature Shall Provide for Optional Township Organization.
Section 5, Article IX. The legislature shall provide by general law for township organization, under which any county may organize whenever a majority of the legal voters of such county voting at any general election shall so determine; and in any county that shall have adopted a township organization the question of continuing the same may be submitted to a vote of the electors of such county at a general election in the manner that shall be provided by law.
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Legislature Shall Provide Penalties for Violation of Provisions Relating to Duties of Railroads.
Section 1, Article X. Every public utility corporation or common carrier organized or doing business in this state shall report, under oath, to the railway commission, when required by law or the order of said commission. The reports so made shall include such matter as may be required by law or the order of said commission.
Legislature May Not Exempt Property of Railroad from Execution.
Section 2, Article X. The rolling stock and all other movable property belonging to any railroad company or corporation in this state, shall be liable to execution and sale in the same manner as the personal property of individuals, and the legislature shall pass no law exempting any such property from execution and sale.
Legislative Regulation of Public Utilities and Common Carriers.
Section 3, Article X. No public utility corporation or common carrier shall consolidate its stock, property, franchise, or earnings in whole or in part with any other public utility, corporation, or common carrier owning a parallel or competing property without permission of the railway commission; and in no case shall any consolidation take place except upon public notice of at least sixty days to all stockholders, in such manner as may be provided by law. The legislature may by law require all public utilities and common carriers to exchange business through physical connection, joint use, connected service, or otherwise.
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Legislature May Regulate Railroads as Public Highways; Fix Rates; But May Not Limit Liability as Common Carriers.
Section 4, Article X. Railways heretofore constructed, or that may hereafter be constructed, in this state are hereby declared public highways, and shall be free to all persons for the transportation of their persons and property thereon, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law. And the legislature may from time to time pass laws establishing reasonable maximum rates of charges for the transportation of passengers and freight on the different railroads in this state. The liability of railroad corporations as common carriers shall never be limited.
Securities of Railroad Corporations, Regulation of.
Section 5, Article X. No railroad corporation shall issue any stock or bonds, except for money, labor, or property actually received and applied to the purposes for which such corporation was created; and all stock, dividends, and other fictitious increase of the capital stock or indebtedness of any such corporation, shall be void. The capital stock of railroad corporations shall not be increased for any purpose, except after public notice for sixty days, in such manner as may be provided by law.
The Power of Eminent Domain and Right of Legislature.
Section 6, Article X. The exercise of the power and the right of eminent domain shall never be so construed or abridged as to prevent the taking by the legislature, of the property and franchise of incorporated companies already organized or hereafter to be organized, and subjecting them to the public necessity the same as of individuals.
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Legislature Shall Correct Certain Abuses.
Section 7, Article X. The legislature shall pass laws to correct abuses and prevent unjust discrimination and extortion in all charges of express, telegraph and railroad companies in this state and enforce such laws by adequate penalties to the extent, if necessary, for that purpose, for forfeiture of their property and franchise.
Legislature Shall Provide for Organization of Corporations--Co-operative--Mutual.
Section 1, Article XII. The legislature shall provide by general law for the organization, regulation, supervision, and general control of all corporations, and for the organization, supervision and general control of mutual and co-operative companies and associations, and by such legislation shall insure the mutuality and cooperative features and functions thereof. Foreign corporations transacting or seeking to transact business in this state shall be subject, under general law to regulation, supervision, and general control, and shall not be given greater rights or privileges than are given domestic corporations of a similar character. No corporations shall be created by special law, nor their charters be extended, changed or amended, except those corporations organized for charitable, educational, penal or reformatory purposes, which are to be and remain under the patronage and control of the state. All general laws passed pursuant to this section may be altered from time to time or repealed.
Legislature and Street Railways.
Section 2, Article XII. No such general law shall be passed by the legislature granting the right to construct and operate a street railway within any city, town, or incorporated village without first requiring the consent of a majority of the electors thereof.
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Legislature Shall Provide By Law as to Right of Vote of Stockholders--Co-operative Voting.
Section 5, Article XII. The legislature shall provide by law that in all elections for directors or managers of incorporated companies every stockholder shall have the right to vote in person or proxy for the number of shares owned by him, for as many persons as there are directors or managers to be elected or to cumulate said shares and give one candidate as many votes as the number of directors multiplied by the number of his shares shall equal, or to distribute them upon the same principle among as many candidates as he shall think fit, and such directors or managers shall not be elected in any other manner; except that any mutual or cooperative company or association may, in its articles of incorporation, limit the number of shares of stock any stockholder may own, the transfer of said stock, and the right of each stockholder or member to one vote only in the meetings of such company or association.
State May Contract Debts to Certain Amount; Law for Payment of Interest Irrepealable.
Section 1, Article XIII. The state may, to meet casual deficits, or failures in revenues, contract debts never to exceed in the aggregate one hundred thousand dollars and no greater indebtedness shall be incurred except for the purpose of repelling invasion, suppressing insurrection, or defending the state in war, and provision shall be made for the payment of the interest annually, as it shall accrue by a tax levied for the purpose, or from other sources of revenue, which law providing for the payment of such interest by such tax shall be irrepealable until such debt be paid.
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Militia, Duty of Legislature.
Section 1, Article XIV. The legislature shall determine what persons shall constitute the militia of the state, and may provide for organizing and disciplining the same.
Official Oath, and Penalty for Violation.
Section 1, Article XV. Executive and judicial officers and members of the legislature, before, they enter upon their official duties shall take and subscribe the following oath, or affirmation: "I do. solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the constitution of the United States, and the constitution of the state of Nebraska, and will faithfully discharge the duties of ----------------------according to the best of my ability, and that at the election at which I was chosen to fill said office, I have not improperly influenced in any way the vote of any elector, and have not accepted, nor will I accept or receive, directly or indirectly, any money or other valuable thing from any corporation, company or person, or any promise of office, for any official act or influence (for any vote I may give or withhold on any bill, resolution or appropriation)." Any such officer or member of the legislature who shall refuse to take the oath herein prescribed, shall forfeit his office, and any person who shall be convicted of having sworn falsely to, or of violating his said oath, shall forfeit his office, and thereafter be dismissed from holding any office of profit or trust in this state unless he shall have been restored to civil rights.
Who Not Eligible to Public Office.
Section 2, Article XV. Any person who is in default as collector and custodian of public money or property shall not be eligible to any office of trust or profit under
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the constitution or laws of this state; nor shall any person convicted of felony be eligible to office unless he shall have been restored to civil rights.
State Waters, Leasing or Developing of.
Section 7, Article XV. The use of the waters of the state for power purposes shall be deemed a public use and shall never be alienated, but may be leased or otherwise developed as by law prescribed.
Legislature May Regulate Hours of Labor and Wages.
Section 8, Article XV. Laws may be enacted regulating the hours and conditions of employment of women and children, and securing to such employes a proper minimum wage.
Industrial Commission, Powers of.
Section 9, Article XV. Laws may be enacted providing for the investigation, submission, and determination of controversies between employers and employes in any business or vocation affected with a public interest and for the prevention of unfair business practices and unconscionable gains in any business or vocation affecting the public welfare. An industrial commission may be created for the purpose of administering such laws and appeals shall be to the supreme court from the final orders and judgments of such commission.
Amendments, Duties and Powers of the Legislature in Relation Thereto.
Section 1, Article XVI. Either branch of the legislature may propose amendments to this constitution and if the same be agreed to by three-fifths of the members elected to each house, such proposed amendments shall be entered on the journals, with the yeas and says, and published once each week for four weeks, in at least one
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newspaper in each county, where a newspaper is published, immediately preceding the next election of members of the legislature. At such election said amendment shall be submitted to the electors for approval or rejection upon a ballot separate from that upon which the names of candidates appear. If a majority of the electors voting on any such amendment adopt the, same, it shall become a part of this constitution, provided the votes cast in favor of such amendment shall not be less than thirty-five per cent of the total votes cast at such election. When two or more amendments are submitted at the same election they shall be so submitted as to enable the electors to vote on each amendment separately.
Convention to Revise Constitution.
Section 2, Article XVI. When three-fifths of the members elected to each branch of the legislature deem it necessary to call a convention to revise, amend, or change this constitution, they shall recommend to the electors to vote at the next election of members of the legislature, for or against a convention, and if a majority voting at said election vote for a convention, the legislature shall at its next session, provide by law for calling the same. The convention shall consist of as many members as the house of representatives, who shall be chosen in the same manner, and shall meet within three months after their election, for the purpose aforesaid: No amendment or change of this constitution, agreed upon by such convention, shall take effect until the same has been submitted to the electors of the state, and adopted by a majority of those voting for and against the same.
Salary Schedule for State Officers.
Section 3, Article XVII. Until otherwise provided by law the following salaries shall be paid:
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Chief justice, judges of the supreme court and governor, each $7,500 per annum; judges of the district court, secretary of state, auditor of public accounts, commissioner of public lands and buildings, treasurer, attorney general, superintendent of public instruction, and members of the state railway commission, each $5,000 per annum. The lieutenant-governor shall receive twice the compensation of a state senator.
General Election, and Terms of Office.
Section 4, Article XVII. The general election of this state shall be held on the Tuesday succeeding the first Monday of November in the year 1914, and every two years thereafter. All state, district, county, precinct and township officers, by the constitution or laws made elective by the people, except school district officers, and municipal officers in cities, villages and towns, shall be elected at a general election to be held as aforesaid.
Judges of the supreme, district, and county courts, all elective county and precinct officers, and all other elective! officers, the time for the election of whom is not herein otherwise provided for, and which are not included in the above exception, shall be elected on the Tuesday succeeding the first Monday in November, 1913, and thereafter at the general election next preceding the time of the termination of their respective term of office. Provided, That no office shall be vacated thereby, but the incumbent thereof shall hold over until his successor is duly elected and qualified.
Terms of Office of State and County Officers.
Section 5, Article XVII. The terms of office of all state and county officers, of judges of the supreme, district and county courts, and regents of the university shall begin on the first Thursday after the first Tuesday in January next succeeding their election. The present
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state and county officers, members of the legislature, and regents of the university, shall continue in office until their successors shall be elected and qualified.
Constitution Made Effective by Legislature.
Section 6, Article XVII. The legislature shall pass all laws necessary to carry into effect the provisions of this constitution.
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