Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-12-20
The Borland Proposition.

The ruling of Chairman Hull OF the
House committee of the whole this morn
ing prevents for the present another in
sidious attack upon the half-and-half
principle Of financing the capital munich
patty. His declaration that the Borland
amendment. proposing q change i'm the
method of paying for street improve
ments, is substantive legislation and
therefore not suitable as an amendment
to the appropriation bill, prevents the ad-
dition of that dangerous proposal to the
money measure Last year it secured
place on the appropriation bill and went
to the Senate. where il was disapproved
and after a vigorous protest by the Dis
trict il was finally cut from the bill ia
conference. The fact that this year il
was eliminated in the committee OF the
whole in the House may possibly indi-
cate the development of a more equitable
spirit toward the District ON the part of
the lower branch of the national local
legislature.
BY this ruling the District is for the
present relieved of a menace as much to
be feared as direct assault upon the
half-and-half principle-indeed possibly
more dangerous than even the Crisp bill
itself, for as The Star suggested yester-
day. the indirect invasions of the organic
act do not attract the attention of the di-
rect and are more likely to be successful
through nattention and indifference.
After the passage OF the District bill
last year the Board of Trade committee
on municipal finance sent 10 the chair
man of the Senate appropria tons com
mittee letter strongly protest ling against
the Boriand amendment. Pc nting out that
it proposed revival OF the method of
street Improvement financing that had
been tried under former mode of Dis
trict government and had worked to the
serious injury of property owners and
caused endless complication. After setting
forth the inequities of the projected as
sessment of the cost of improvements
upon abutting property and the fact that
the method Lad been discarded after a
full congressional investigation. the Board
of Trade committed said:
No one who is familiar with the opera
ton of this i'll advised system in WASH
ington would ever advocate a return to
il. On its face it appears to be reason
able that some part of the cost OF paving
the carriageways should be assessed upon
the abutting property, because tnere Is
unquestionably some benefit resulting
from the Improvement But ii is imprac-
ticabIe to assess the benefits equitably,
and in the long run complete justice will
be done to all by defraying the cost from
the general fund There Is no de-
niand for this change, and it would work
great hardship and injustice upon de-
serving class of small property holders In
the suburbs and elsewhere who are pay
ing for their homes i'm monthly INSTALL
ments. Moreover, the proposed change
would not reduce The tax on amy property
in the District single dollar. and there
is no public necessity for such a change,
nor Is there much analogy between this
system and the existing law under which
sidewalks and alleys are paved, where the
benefits are almost wholly local. The
present revenues are adequate for ali the
work estimated for by the Commission
ers."
This letter states the case SO we'll that
II is reproduced today in the news col
uInns of The Star bearing upon the
issues raised by the offering of the Bor-
land amendment, which although it has
been for the present rejected BY the
House as inappropriate TO the appropria-
ton bill. nevertheless remains item of
the attack upon the half-and-half prin-
cipIe for possible separate enactment
hereafter.