The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1914-07-15
THE DISTRICT BILL CON-
PROMISE

The District appropriation bill at
last got out of conference, repre-
senting acompromise on the manner
Of paying for street improvements,
and victory for the half-and-half
system of handling revenues. 1t is
worth while to give a simple and
exact statement of what was written
into the new law, as to street i'm
provements, because there will be
conflicting reports as to the measure
Of the defeat that has been inflicted
on the District.
Under the law as heretofore set
down, the entire cost of these i'm
provements was borne by the gen.
eral fund; that is, the general body
Of revenue composed of equal con-
tributions by the District taxpayers
and the Federal Government. No
part at all was assessed directly
against the property benefited.
The compromise reached in con-
ference provides that half the cost
shall be borne by the general fund
and half by the property. The one
half borne by the property is, of
course, divided between the two sides
Of the street, SO that a given lot
will have its paving cost divided
really into four equal parts; one will
be paid by the property, one by the
property directly across the street,
enc by the general revenues Of the
District, and one by the Federal con-
tribution to general revenues.
This is to be modified as to streets
on which there are car tracks. The
street car companies must pave be-
tween their rails and one foot out
side.
Another modification is to be made
for streets exceeding forty feet in
width. The distribution Of costs as
above outlined will apply only to
the first forty feet of the streets
width. For all space above forty
feet of width the entire cost will be
paid from the general fund-that
is, the general half-and-half fund
precisely as in the past.
All intersections will be paid for
from the general half-anG-half fund.
If this plan had been adopted in
the beginning of street improve
ments it would have been COMPARE
lively unobjectionable. To adopt it
now, when street improvements are
largely completed, and have been
paid for on another Ilan, involves
some manifest inequities. A property
owner who has paid general taxes
for a series of years, to meet the
cost of improving streets for other
people, now finds that when his own
street has to be improved, he will
have no reciprocating contribution
from the community to equal that
which the community had extracted
from him. It is plainly unfair. But
Congress was figuring or the
equities as between the District
property and the Federal Govern
ment, and overlooked those as be-
tween the two classes Of property in
the District.
Section 8 of TIE House bill is en-
tirely stricken out by the conference.
This is the provision that the sur
plus of District revenues raised I'M
der the half-and-half plan shall be
covered back d into the general
funds of the national treasury. The
House insisted long and earnestly on
this provision, which would have
been a serious blow to the half-and-
half plan so long established. The
Senate at length won on this point.
Noting, however, the insistence of
the House, and the difficulty with
which the Senate was able to defeat
the provision, it is very plain that
before many years there will have
to be some concession to this years
demands of the House. The present
year sees a surplus of about three
quarters of a million Of dollars. The
next year will see this surplus reach
probably a million and 3 half dollars.
Congress will inevitably insist that
something be done with it. There
is no escape from pilirg it up, save