Montana Kaimin, February 26, 1975 Associated Students of the University of Montana
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University of Montana ScholarWorks at University of Montana Associated Students of the University of Montana Montana Kaimin, 1898-present (ASUM) 2-26-1975 Montana Kaimin, February 26, 1975 Associated Students of the University of Montana Let us know how access to this document benefits ouy . Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umt.edu/studentnewspaper Recommended Citation Associated Students of the University of Montana, "Montana Kaimin, February 26, 1975" (1975). Montana Kaimin, 1898-present. 6351. https://scholarworks.umt.edu/studentnewspaper/6351 This Newspaper is brought to you for free and open access by the Associated Students of the University of Montana (ASUM) at ScholarWorks at University of Montana. It has been accepted for inclusion in Montana Kaimin, 1898-present by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at University of Montana. For more information, please contact [email protected]. montanaWednesday, Feb. 26, 1975 • Missoula, Mont. • KAIMINVol. 77, No. 75 Local ownership Illegal evidence of utilities possible possible in court By Doug Hampton By Peter Johnson Montana Kaimin Legislative Bureau Montana Kaimin Legislative Bureau Helena Helena ‘‘Socialism" won out over the "hogwash" yester day as HB 80, allowing local governments to own A bill allowing illegally obtained evidence to be and operate public utilities, passed the House, 51 used in court received debate stage approval in to 45. the Senate yesterday by a 37 to 11 margin. Bill sponsor, Rep. Mike Meloy, D-Helena, said his SB 314, introduced by Sen. Robert Brown, D- bill is intended to cut utility costs for consumers Whitefish, also would allow the defendant to sue by allowing local governments to take over exis the police officers involved and the government if ting public utilities or build new facilities. he feels his rights have been violated. Bill opponents called the measure “ pure Under the rule of law established by the U.S. socialism” and a government takeover of the free Supreme Court in 1914, any evidence obtained enterprise system. illegally must be excluded from court. Bill proponents called such arguments A proponent of SB 314, Sen. Jean Turnage, R- “hogwash” and “bunk," saying the bill would en Polson, admitted that the goal of the bill is to give courage competition and help break what they the current Supreme Court an opportunity to re called the monopolistic hold utilities have on ject the exclusionary rule. Montana. Opponents of the bill asserted that the bill is un If an existing privately-owned public utility is constitutional because it abridges the right to be taken over, Meloy said, the local government secure from illegal search and seizure. must give first preference in hiring to former em Brown said the exclusionary rule was designed to ployes, protect their pensions and fringe benefits prevent police from abusing rights but added that and honor contracts accepted when the utility it has not worked. was under private ownership. As a result of the exclusionary rule, “literally Meloy said locally-owned utilities are less expen thousands of criminals are let loose, most on sive for consumers because they have lower technical violations by police," he said. operating costs, lower production expenses, slower depreciation and they pay no stock Brown said the bill is an offshoot of a recent holders’ dividends. dissenting opinion by Chief Justice of the United States Warren Burger, in which Burger called the The average consumer price of electricity per exclusionary rule “conceptually sterile and kilowatt hour is 2.42 cents for industrially owned ineffective,” and called for Congress or the states utilities and only 1.63 cents for locally-owned to come up with a different solution. utilities, he said. Sen. Pat Regan, D-Billings, said it was ironic that The bill was opposed by Rep. Dennis Casey, R- the bill was introduced so close to the Bicenten Wolf Point, who said, “The free-enterprise system nial because "our forefathers were concerned should operate without a government takeover.” about illegal search and seizure, and that’s why Casey said he doubted consumer prices would, they prevented it in the Bill of Rights." drop after a local government takeover. “We should be educating police officers and Rep. Bill Baeth, D-Libby, called the arguments of teaching them to work within the limits of the Casey and others "pure bunk.” law,” she said. The House Democratic dean, Rep. Francis Turnage said the bill is not necessarily un Bardanouve of Harlem, said he sums up the op constitutional because the exclusionary rule is position to the bill in one word: "hogwash.” judge-made, not legislature-made law. He said CAROL HOLTE, SOPHOMORE IN PSYCHOLOGY, studies while sitting in front of the higher courts, perhaps ultimately the Supreme Bardanouve said he heard the same arguments Liberal Arts Building. Today’s temperature should reach 35 to 45 degrees. (Montana Kaimin Court, would have to decide on its against a public utilities bill in 1959. photo by Ed LaCasse) constitutionality. Shell could bypass reclamation laws Helena AP on a 30,248-acre tract of Crow Indian By restricting their plans to within relating to the Northern Cheyenne on exploration permits, or what The Shell Oil Co. may be able to Reservation near Wyola in the reservation boundary, Shell can Reservation said the state has no realty specialist Myron Salt marsh of bypass Montana’s stringent strip southeastern Montana. legally ignore stiff state mining laws regulatory authority on Indian lands. the BIA called a “ bonus to do mining and reclamation laws by min Shell has paid $1.1 million for rights and follow federal strip-mining business.” ing coal from within the boundaries to strip mine the estimated one Lease bargaining begins at the tribal of an Indian reservation. guidelines which do little to address level, said Lt. Gov. Bill Christiansen, billion tons of sub-bituminous, low- Shell has submitted its mining plan the problem of reclamation, state of but any valid civil contract must be sulfur coal for 10 years, or for as long as required to the Crowtribe, the BIA The oil giant, part of the thereafter as the coal can be mined in ficials say. multinational Royal Dutch Shell of approved by the federal Bureau of In and the regional mining supervisor paying quantities, said officials at the of the U.S. Geological Survey. The the Netherlands group, has dian Affairs. state office of the Bureau of Indian A Montana state attorney general’s operation could begin as early as purchased a non-competitive lease Affairs (BIA). opinion issued in December 1973 Energy producers first submit bids 1977. KUFM to air program for the blind By Doug Hampton would appropriate $42,000 to the University of Montana sistant to the governor, who spoke as a former president of Montana Kaimin Legislative Bureau radio station for the development and airing of a radio a non-commercial radio station in Spokane. Helena program designed to take the place of newspapers for persons unable to read. "You cannot overestimate the importance of radio for A special news and feature radio program for blind and persons who are visually handicapped and physically han Kimble said the program would not be aired on the regular other "print handicapped" persons would be aired by dicapped," Cole said. “It is literally the front page of their KUFM under a bill passed yesterday by the House Public KUFM radio band but would be broadcast on a “sub paper, it is literally their magazine rack." Health. Welfare, and Safety Committee. carrier” band that could be picked up only by special receivers. Those special receivers would only be available Cole endorsed the reading of advertisements on the Ironically, the bill was opposed by the Montana As to “print handicapped" persons, such as the blind or those program, saying "It is nice to know where they can go for a sociation for the Blind (MAB). This surprised several com suffering from severe arthritis, muscular dystrophy or special on Thursday.” mittee members. cerebral palsy, making it difficult to hold a newspaper or turn pages, he said. Phil Hess, chairman of the UM radio-TV department, also spoke in favor of the bill. The association objects to the bill because the proposed program would not cover a large enough area in Montana Kimble said the program would include news stories, Hess said the present program would use broadcasts for the money expended, MAB representative John Sibert feature stories, financial news and advertising. Since emanating only from Missoula. However, he said, within said. KUFM is a non-commercial radio station, money would not the next two or three years, national broadcasting of this be accepted for advertising, he said, but ads would be read sort should be available. The fear was also expressed that the program would take from a newspaper at random for information purposes. away money from other visual service programs across the Hess said federal funding for such service programs will state, especially in Eastern Montana where the programs Kimble estimated there are about 800 persons in Western probably become available by 1977. The program should would not be broadcasted. Montana who would be eligible for the program. be gotten underway now, because federal money is more likely to go to existing programs rather than to start new The bill, introduced by Rep. Gary Kimble. D-Missoula. The bill was supported by George Cole, administrative < ones. *>0000000000000ooeoooooooooooooooooooooooooooQoeoooooc WHAT? $165,0 0 0 !!!? News item from The New York Times of December 7, 1974: “The president of Queens College, balking at a request to pare $160,000 from this year’s allocation, has proposed to the City University chancellor that the official residence of the college president be sold instead and the income “be used to offset this current budget cut." The first thought that would come to the mind of a University of Montana student upon reading this item might be, "Aha! Why doesn’t President Bowers ask the Regents to sell the $165,000 residence the University is providing for him?” A compelling thought, especially when one compares some statistics of the two schools.