mmmm TexasA8cM ■ ■ mm The Battalion r ui e counit, ^mhi ^ games P’ altho t - l^ated 1 A 78 No. 49 USPS 0453110 10 pages Serving the University community College Station, Texas Tuesday, November 8, 1983 apitol blast orewarned x as Tect IWhil e United Press International » wi |,T VASHINGTON — An explosion oneofii ked the Senate side of the Capitol ^hisii ; Monday night minutes after a cal- 6.q VK to The Washington Post warned a nb in the building would explode xt ^ ause of U.S. military action in Gre- la and Lebanon, Capitol Police aylor, win ib ai orn gametoi d 7 1. No one was injured in the blast, igjress was not in session at the time he explosion, about 11 p.m., and re are generally few people in the a late at night. FBI officials who took charge of case declined immediate com- nt. In a call to the Post at 10:55 p.m., a e-recorded voice claiming to rep ent the Armed Resistance Unit l the Capitol had been bombed in iport of all nations’ struggles inst U.S. military aggression. The er U. :r paid the action was in response jlS. actions in Grenada and A Post reporter immediately called Capitol Police and was told, “Some thing has just gone off. I have to go.” The explosion went off in a main second-floor corridor near Senate Democratic leader Robert Byrd’s office, about 30 feet from the Senate chamber. The Senate had been scheduled to work very late on the defense approp riations bill Monday, but because of progress made during the day, the session ended at 7:02 p.m. Rep. Austin Murphy, D-Pa., who was working in the House side of the Capitol when the explosion went off, said he arrived to find a door blown off and some damaged woodwork and furniture — damage he said would be consistent with the effects of “two to five sticks of dynamite.” He did not see any fire. “When I came through the rotunda of the Capitol, I could smell the dis tinct smell of explosive powder,” he said. “There was still some haze on the Senate side. “The damage was considerable, but it’s repairable,” said Murphy. “I was worried there might be a statue broken, some of them are really price less” but there was not. Murphy said he believed the explo sion occurred in the corridor outside the Mansfield room, which is named after former Sen. Mike Mansfield and is often used for receptions and Re publican caucus meetings. Police quickly sealed off the entire Capitol and, with the help of dogs, searched the building for evidence of any bombs. About 15 fire trucks and at least four ambulances rushed to the scene. The explosion came several weeks after security in the Capitol was beefed up because a man was found in the House gallery with explosives strapped to his waist. He was arrested, and the explosives never went off. Local elections onducted today by Elaine Engstrom Battalion Staff i plan to centralize Brazos County y Condcds is one item on today’s election ~ ot. Eleven proposed constitutional jndments also are on the ballot in 3 do ve slate elecLion - e !e The last item on the ballot is a plan eptralize the county roads system L hire a county engineer to oversee ies n ^maintenance and handle the )i]|(i n ‘ Iget for the roads. Currently, each icir So nt ^ commissioner handles part of j ^ t county roads and each commis- ler has a separate budget and op- s sawaiLes independently. i’tseenbe:“The local League of Women Vo- learnedi' began a petition this summer to on for the issue on today’s ballot,” said ise.ltwai ; cinct 20 election judge Grant y that lufirtzwelder. wish w Polls opened at 7 a.m. and will stay oreofteosn until 7 tonight. The on-campus lhaveadlling place is Precinct 20 in room f that s<4 of the Memorial Student Center, ledge ttidents registered to vote who live Ight tokthe south side of campus may vote ond-platfPrecinct 20. g. A&M Those registered students who live 30 in G Jihe north side of campus must vote Precinct 35. The polling place for ecinct 35 is the College Station inicipal Builiding on Church l^l^eet, one block east of Wellborn. Other polling places for voters liv- t leJational 5 Opinions 2 [ports 0 State 4 What’s up 6 Varmer days and cooler nights, ^ardy cloudy with a high 77. Voters decide on Proposition 4: Appointing legislators after attack by Karen Wallace Battalion Staff One of the proposed constitution al amendments to be voted on Tues day is Proposition 4, which specifies the selection of an interim successor for state legislators killed or injured during an enemy attack. State Sen. Kent Caperton said the proponents of the proposition say it is necessary to be prepared in the case of a catastrophy caused by enemy attack. Opponents say the proposition is not necessary at this point in time, he said. “Em not absolutely convinced it is necessary,” Caperton said. “The proponents say it’s neces sary because we need to make some kind of contingent preparations in the area in the event of a catas trophe. I voted on it so the people would have the opportunity to de cide.” The emergency successors would be chosen from former state sena tors or representatives living in the district where the legislators had be come unavailable. The lieutenant governor and Speaker of the House would chose successors from from a list of seven names submitted by the executive director of the. Employees Retire ment System. The amendment also would allow the governor to suspend certain constitutional requirements in the case of enemy attack. For example, the governor would have the right to suspend the consti tutional requirement that the legisl ature hold session in Austin. The governor would be able to say where the legislature would meet, and would give the governor the right to keep the time and place of the meeting a secret, Caperton said. The proposed amendment would also allow the House and Senate to suspend constitutional rules gov erning the actions of the legislature for up to two years by concuring with a proclamation by the governor to that effect. Proponents of the proposition say it is a necessity because state govern ment lacks crucial powers to re spond to enemy attack or threat of enemy attack. The authorities would need an orderly plan for bypassing the usual restrictions which could become a hindrance during an emergency. Oponents to proposition say that in the event of a nuclear attack the government would most likely assume total control of governmen tal functions, making it unecessary. Voters to decide whether school fund ought to be used for bond guarantees by Karen Wallace Battalion Staff Voters will get the chance Tues day to decide whether Texas’ Per manent School Fund will be used as a guarantee for construction bonds issued by local school districts. Bryan School District Superin tendent Dr. Wesley K. Summers said the proposal would save the tax payers money. “It would save the taxpayers mil lions of dollars over a period of years,” Summers said. The Permanent School Fund is a perpetual trust fund made up of in come from public lands that are con stitutionally set aside for the support of the state’s public schools. There is no state program to assist school districts with construc tion costs, which are usually fi nanced through the sale of school district bonds. “This would enable the state’s Permenent School Fund to guaran tee the money spent on construction without using school funds,” Sum mers said. Summers said the proposition would allow school districts to build new buildings or make necessary re pairs on old buildings without tak ing any money out of the school dis trict’s funds. “This is something that is not going to cost the taxpayers any thing,” Summers said. Proponents of the proposition say a bond-guarantee program, by im proving most school districts bond ratings, would lower the interest they must pay on bonds. Because of the population growth in Texas, many districts face increasing needs for school construction. Opponents of the proposition say that if the state is going to use the Permanent School Fund to guaran tee school district bonds, it should also be prepared to spend part of the fund in the event of a default. Although defaults have been rare, the Texas economy is depressed in some areas and defaults may be come more common.