STATE SCHOOL SYSTEMS: LEGISLATION AND JUDICIAL DECISIONS RELATING TO PUBLIC EDUCATION, OCTOBER 1, 1906, TO OCTOBER 1, 1908.

GENERAL EXPLANATIONS.

Scope and plan.-In the following pages an attempt has been made to classify and to analyze the changes wrought in the public school systems of the various States and Territories by the legislative measures enacted during the past two years, October 1, 1906, to October 1, 1908. Supplementary to this legislative material, there are also included digests of or citations to those decisions of the state supreme courts containing important interpretations of statutes relating to public education, or defining in a significant way the status of the public schools.

Legislative sessions are biennial in all the States and Territories except in Georgia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and South Carolina, where they are annual, and in Alabama, where they are quadrennial. Consequently, the period selected includes the enactments of one session of the legislature in most of the States and all of the Territories, and of two sessions in the case of the States holding annual sessions. In addition, the acts of extra legislative sessions held in several of the States have been examined for measures relative to the public school system.

The following table displays the time of meeting of those legislatures the enactments of which have been presented:

Table of legislative sessions, October 1, 1906, to October 1, 1908.

a The acts of the 1908 session of the legislature of Georgia have been excluded, owing to the delay in printing. The acts of the 1906 session, excluded on this account from the bulletin issued in 1906, have been included here.

To accomplish the purposes for which the bulletin is immediately intended in as direct and brief a manner as possible, legislative enactments of the following specific character pertaining to state school systems have been included:

(1) All general permanent laws, whether new enactments or amendments to general permanent laws already in force.

(2) Constitutional amendments, adopted or proposed, whether general or local in their effect.

(3) Laws resulting in significant changes in the organization and administration of public education in the larger and more important cities of each State," even when general in form and special in application; provisions of new municipal charters, and amendments to existing charters.

(4) Laws authorizing special appropriation for the establishment of a new educational institution or class of institutions, and extraordinary appropriations of wide general interest.

(5) Laws relating to the general administration, control, and management of particular state educational institutions."

The following classes of legislation have been excluded from consideration:

(1) Laws providing for general appropriations.

(2) Special acts relating to particular individuals or minor localities.

(3) Special and temporary acts, unless of more than local or transitory concern.

(4) Federal and local legislation relating to education in the District of Columbia, Alaska, Hawaii, Porto Rico, Philippine Islands, and other insular possessions.

Such laws are, however, with few exceptions, merely classified and digested in the briefest possible manner. They have been reserved for complete analysis and treatment in a separate bulletin dealing with city school systems, which is in preparation and to be issued later.

Legislative measures relating to certain classes of reformatory, charitable, and quasi educational institutions have generally been omitted; for complete explanation see footnote under section T, "Education of defectives."

For instance, the appointment of the commission on industrial education in New Jersey (see enactment No. 1284); or the appointment of the Collinwood School fire relief commission in Ohio (see enactment No. 37); or the joint resolution of the Wisconsin legislature (enactment No. 55) concerning a national system of education are included. The legislation relating to education enacted by the 59th Congress (1905-7) was summarized in the Report of the Commissioner of Education for 1906, vol. 2, pp. 1229-55; that by the 1st session of the 60th Congress (beginning Dec. 2, 1907) in the Report for 1908, vol. 1, pp. 109-120.

In addition to the legislation above noted, digests of and citations to recent decisions of the highest state courts of the following general character have been likewise included:

(1) Those relative to the constitutionality of important statutes concerning public education.

(2) Those presenting special interpretations of measures enacted during the biennium 1906-1908.

(3) Those touching upon interests and principles of direct and vital importance to our social policy in public education."

Method of presentation.-With respect to the legislative material, the aim has been to present in a concise and serviceable manner the meaning and contents of each particular enactment, classified in accordance with the writer's best judgment. As a general thing but one entry has been made for each of those laws treating of but one particular topic or title. Frequently, where an enactment possesses a relation to two subjects, according to the scheme of classifi cation, a method of cross reference has been resorted to. Thus, for example, enactment No. 133 (Kentucky) contains several important items. In order to classify properly, several cross references are given. (See enactments Nos. 19 and 1239.)

In a number of cases wherein a single law treats of a number of diverse subjects or titles, or wherein the amendments to the educational code are grouped together in a single act or chapter, an effort has been made to distribute the particular portions of such measures so that the alterations produced in different directions would be evident. Such distribution has been indicated in an appropriate manner, either by indicating a particular section of an individual chapter or act, or otherwise.

Each law or separate title has been treated in one of three ways:

(1) Unimportant new laws and amendments have been indicated as briefly as possible by title or otherwise. Where the title of the law presents its import in a clear and concise manner it has been used, sometimes by quotation and sometimes by such modifications of the wording as would convey its significance in the best possible manner. (2) Frequently, and especially in the case of amendments to existing statutes, besides reference to the particular subject, more or less explanatory matter has been added to bring out the exact change produced.

(3) With important and far-reaching measures, in addition to the title and digest of the subject-matter of the enactment, either the whole or the most significant portion has been printed.

aAs, for example, the decision of the United States Supreme Court upholding the constitutionality of the Massachusetts act requiring street-railway companies to carry school children for half fare. The text of this decision is given at the end of this bulletin.

With respect to the judicial decisions, the method of simple citation has been employed in the case of those of minor importance. Generally, however, a brief digest of pertinent points has been included. In a few instances a complete syllabus of the decision has been presented. Appended to the main body of classified legislative and judicial material, there has been included the complete text of a number of recent court decisions, which are thought to be of more than passing interest to those engaged in the work of administration of public education.

Still further, by way of evaluation of the importance of laws and decisions in the respective States, use has been made of the information furnished by the various state superintendents and educational officers. Laws and decisions which they have regarded as of the first importance in the development and progress of the state's educational activities and system have been indicated by an asterisk (*).

Method of classification and arrangement.-In order to facilitate presentation and to render this bulletin of ready service for reference, the whole mass of the special class of educational legislation, together with the digests of and citations to related judicial decisions, has been carefully classified according to what seems to be a logical and consistent scheme. At the same time, throughout, the effort has been to avoid such complexity of classification as would tend to defeat its purpose. Under each of the headings indicated has been placed all of the matter properly belonging thereto, arranged alphabetically by States. In addition, the enactments and decisions have been numbered consecutively, thereby contributing to ease and readiness in discovering matter of a particular type. Citations to and digests of judicial decisions have been distinguished from legislative enactments by prefixing a capital "D" before the reference number. The index at the close of the bulletin further insures the discovery of legislation bearing upon any single topic.

Typography. In the case of each legislative item, the title of the measure, whether given verbatim or in modified form, is printed in the smaller type (8 point), leaded. Comments following the title of the measure, or a brief summary of its provisions are printed in the same type without leads. Direct quotations from the text of the measure are printed in 8-point type without leads, and are inclosed within quotation points.

The material taken from judicial decisions has been treated in the same general way.

The reviews found in connection with each classified group of legislation and decisions have been printed in the larger (10-point) type, leaded.