Simpson v. Hill

1927 OK 453, 263 P. 635, 128 Okla. 269, 56 A.L.R. 706, 1927 Okla. LEXIS 444
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedDecember 3, 1927
Docket18968
StatusPublished
Cited by41 cases

This text of 1927 OK 453 (Simpson v. Hill) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Simpson v. Hill, 1927 OK 453, 263 P. 635, 128 Okla. 269, 56 A.L.R. 706, 1927 Okla. LEXIS 444 (Okla. 1927).

Opinions

*270 BItANS'ON, O. J.

Ttoe appeal is from the district court of Oklahoma county. In this ■court the parties appeared as there.

The plaintiff, John A. Simpson, as a taxpayer, sought an injunction against the defendants to prevent their incurring any expense or obligation against the state, or which would or might cause the state, or officers thereof, to incur expense in numerous and vexatious suits, by reason of a purported call of an extraordinary session of the Eleventh Legislature of the state of Oklahoma. The purported call, as pleaded, is in words and figures as follows:

“To the Members of the Eleventh Legislature of the State of Oklahoma:
“In obedience to a petition signed by a majority of the members of the House of Representatives of the Eleventh Legislature, asking that the Legislature be convened for purposes authorized by article 8 of the Constitution of the state of Oklahoma, and the undersigned being in possession of such request, do hereby call the Eleventh Legislature in extraordinary session to assemble at the State Capitol in Oklahoma City, on the 6th day of December, 1927, at 12:00 o’clock noon.
“This call is made under the inherent power and authority of the legislative branch of this government to convene at any time they may see fit, for such purposes as are named in the call, and upon the further authority of section 1 of article 8A of the Constitution of the state of Oklahoma, and other constitutional and statutory provisions of said state.
“This meeting of the Legislature is for the purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of article 8 of the Constitution of the state of Oklahoma.
“Given under our hands and seals this 21st day of November, 1927.
“E. P. Hill,
“Representative of Pittsburg County.
“Tom Johnson,
“Representative of Pushmataha County.
“H. Tom Kiglkt,
“Representative of Rogers County.
“Robert. O. Graham,
“Representative Fifth District of Oklahoma County.”

Plaintiff alleges further that the defendants intend to interfere with the orderly and legal performance of the duties of the officers of the executive and judicial departments of the state government, in an unlawful and vexatious manner, unless tihe said defendants are prevented by order of court from carrying out the intended organization of the Eleventh Legislature into an extraordinary session..under the said call.

It is clear from the oral argument that ■the defendants assume to assemble the Legislature and organize the same, by reason: First, of Initiative Bill No. 79; and second, by reason of the alleged inherent power of the Legislature to convene itself for inquisitorial purposes, on its own initiative. ■Whether the first pretended authority really exists depends upon whether Initiative Bill No. 79 has any force as law.

On the 13th day of August, 1923, the Honorable J. 0. Walton, as Governor of the state of Oklahoma, issued his proclamation under authority and by direction of the Legislature. calling a special election for October 2, 1923, for a vote on certain constitutional amendments proposed by the Legislature of tihe state, at its biennial session be-ginninfg the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January, 1923. After said proclamation was issued, initiative petitions were filed proposing the provisions found in said Initiative Bill No-. 79, which, in effect, provided that on a majority petition of the elected' members of the Legislature it could convene on a day in the petition set. It was placed on a ballot at said special election, and received a majority vote. The Legislature did not order that this initiated measure be submitted at tihe said election. Neither did. the Governor issue any proclamation or order directing the submission of the same to the people of the state of Oklahoma on said1 date, or on any other date when an election was held. There being no order of the Legislature, or ttoe Governor, the question is, Did the affirmative vote in favor of the said initiative measure give it any force and effect as law?

It is settled by the authorities that the Constitution of a state cannot be amended, except in the exact method provided by the Constitution itself. Some of the authorities supporting this proposition are: City of Chicago v. Reeves, 220 Ill. 274, 77 N. E. 237; Warfield v. Vandiver, 101 Md. 78, 60 Atl. 538, 4 Ann Cas. 692; Commonwealth v. Bowman, 191 Ky. 647, 231 S. W. 35; Sims v. Sawyers, 85 W. Va. 245, 101 S. E. 467; Johnson v. Craft, 205 Ala. 386, 87 South. 375; State v. Donald, 160 Wis. 21, 151 N. W. 331; Crawford v. Gilchrist, 64 Fla. 41, 59 South. 963, Ann Cas. 1914B, 916; State ex rel. Atty. Gen. v. Board of Equalization, 107 Okla. 118, 230 Pac. 743. If the purpose and effect of Initiative Bill No. 79 was to amend article 8 of the Constitution, it falls under the ban of the settled law.

*271 Sections 2 and 3 of article 5 of tike Constitution deal with the question of initiating measures and referring same to a vote of the people. In section 3 is found this language :

“All elections on measures referred to the people of the state shall be had at the next election held throughout the state, except when -the Legislature or the Governor shall order a special election for the express purpose of making such reference.”

It is clear that such initiative measures must go to the next regular general election held throughout the state, unless the Governor or the Legislature shall order that it he submitted at a special election. The election of October 2, 1923, was a special election.

Not having been submitted at the said special election by direction of the Governor or the Legislature, Initiative Measure No. 79 was not presented for consideration of-the people as by the Constitution of -the state directed, and it has no force and effect. In tihe oral argument little, if any, contention was made that it was effective, but we have deemed it better to set out the reasons.

The second question grows out of that part of the call, quoted supra, based on the alleged inherent power of the Legislative branch of the state government to convene upon the order of the members thereof.

The state is a political entity, or sovei’eign. Its reason for legal existence is the recognized -necessity for rules regulatory of the relations of men. The sovereign owes its existence to its people, for they formed it and maintain it in the exercise of that right, which, by common consent, society concedes inheres in the members thereof. In the exercise of such rights, the Constitution of Oklahoma was formed, creating governmental agencies, whose powers and duties are defined therein. Such agencies cannot usurp the rights which inhere in the people and in the people alone, but such agencies have only such rights and powers as the people have surrendered to them by the organic law.' We shall not undertake to write a commentary upon what the law ought to be.

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Bluebook (online)
1927 OK 453, 263 P. 635, 128 Okla. 269, 56 A.L.R. 706, 1927 Okla. LEXIS 444, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/simpson-v-hill-okla-1927.