Papers Of Abraham Lincoln

In force, Feb.[February] 3d, 1840

AN ACT for the relief of contractors on public works in this State.
1

Fund com’r[commissioner] may sell bonds to pay contractors

Sec.[Section] 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly, That in case sufficient funds should not be available, from loans already negociated, to pay the contractors on the Internal Improvement system, for such balances as may be found due them for work already done, that the Fund Commissioner, for the time being, are (is) hereby authorized to sell, at not less than par, sufficient of the State bonds to pay said balances.2

Drafts drawn by board publie works on fund com’r heretofore, to be taken up and new drafts issued to bear interest

Proviso

Sec. 2. That when drafts have heretofore been, or that hereafter shall be, drawn by any of the Commissioners of the Board of Public Works, on the Fund Commissioner, for balances due contractors, for work done on any of the railroads in this State, or to any other person for other liabilities, embraced in “an act to establish and maintain a general system of Internal Improvements,” and all acts supplementary thereto, and those drafts shall not have been paid by the Fund Commissioner, it shall be the duty of the Commissioners of the Board of Public Works to give other drafts in lieu thereof, drawing interest at the rate of six per cent. per annum: Provided, That no such renewed or substituted draft shall be for a less sum than one hundred dollars; and no new contracts shall hereafter be let out by the Board of Public Works.3

Approved, February 3d, 1840.

1Henry J. Mills introduced SB 15 to the Senate on December 19, 1839, as “An act to authorize the Commissioners of the Board of Public Works to settle with contractors upon the Public Works.” The Senate referred it to the Committee on Internal Improvements on December 23. The committee reported back the next day and recommended an amendment, to which the Senate concurred. The Senate again referred the bill to the Committee on Internal Improvements on December 27. The committee again reported back on January 22, 1840, and recommended two amendments. The Senate rejected the first by a vote of 19 yeas and 20 nays, approved the second, and passed the bill. The House of Representatives referred the bill to the Committee on Internal Improvements on January 25. The committee reported back on February 1 and the House laid the bill on the table. The House took up the bill again later that day, passed two amendments, and passed the bill. The House concurred with the amended bill the same day. The Council of Revision approved the bill on February 3 and the act became law.
Journal of the House of Representatives (Vandalia, IL: William Walters, 1840), 233, 253, 318, 319-20, 328; Journal of the Senate (Vandalia, IL: William Walters, 1840), 34, 50, 54, 59, 164, 230, 234, 239, 243.

2The fund commissioner is an office set up by “An Act to Establish and Maintain a General System of Internal Improvements,” which stipulates that the General Assembly elect three such men to manage the funds allocated to pay for the state’s internal improvement program.

3The House of Representatives passed two amendments on February 1 substituting new text for the 2nd section.
Journal of the House of Representatives (Vandalia, IL: William Walters, 1840), 319-20.