Evening star., 1916-05-26
discussion and consideration no re.
pealing substitute should be enacted.
n>xSxs>- .-J n..A>.x

discussion and consideration no re-
pealing substitute should be enacted.
Petition and Portest.
The report concludes with the follow
ing petition and protest:
We, the members of the Washington
Board of Trade, do earnestly petition
Congress (D for the repeal of the law
of 1909 which restricts the Commission
ers' estimates to twice the amount OF
the Districts estimated revenues: and
CD for legislation which shall cause
any surplus of District revenue arising
in any year from the enforcement of
the half-and- half law to be held in the
treasury as trust fund for the bene-
| mt of the District to meet it's needs in
some future year
We protest against the repeal at
this time of the half-and-half law,
which the joint congressional commit
tee has in effect declared to be fair;
and we especially protest against such
repeal by rider on an appropriation
bill, or in such form as to be retro
active, or by any method which does
| ton thorough preliminary consdera-
tlon by the District committees and by
Congress, and which does not substi-
tute for the repealed law one estab-
llsning a definite policy of regular and
fishing definite policy of regular and
capital maintenance and development
and hxed and certain tax burden for
the District of Columbia
We further earnestly protest against
the appropriation by this years Dis
less than twice the Districts estimated
revenues, in accordance with existing
law. unless the resulting surplus of
District tax money is declared to be
hall tyH INST %I,A
benefit Of the District to meet. in part.
its needs outside of current routine
expenditures in future years.
Needs Of Washington.
The portions of the report which
were summarized consisted Of an
analysis of the findings of the joint
select committee of Congress which
reported on the fiscal relations be-
tween the District of Columbia and
the federal government and mentions
legislation which Washington needs
Under the latter heading the report
states:
The immediate legislation urgently
needed by Washington is disclosed in
the hearings before the joint commit
tee. % The law arbitrarily limiting
the Commissioners annual estimates
should be quickly repealed. 1t prohibits
the statement by the Commissioners
and the satisfaction by Congress of the
actual needs of the District. 1t pre-
vents the nation. inevitably, from meet
ing fully its capital obligation. 1t auto
matically insures an unexpended sur
plus OF District tax money. 1t accom-
plfshes. as Congress applies it. no good
purpose whatsoever. The Commission
ers' estimates. in accordance with the
spirit of the joint committees report
should disclose to Congress Washing
tons genuine municipal needs, both for
current maintenance and for permanent
improvements; and the responsibility for
appropriating all or only part of these
estimates should (as it does) rest solely
on Congress.
90 The effect of the report of the
joint committee is to vindicate in prin-
ciple the treatment of the half-and-half
provision as not necessarily applying
arbitrarily and separately to each year.
considered alone. but to the average of
series of years. The joint committee
since 1873 have been in the aggregate.
though not in every year viewed sepa-
rately. on the half-and-half basis The
committee expresses the belief that this
fact Is evidence of design. not an acct
dent, and that the nation thus not only
intended to carry out. but did carry out,
its half-and- half promise.
Under the present practice which
puts local taxation before congressional
appropriation the half-and-half pro-
vision is not and cannot be arbitrarily
enforced and literally obeyed in any one
year But in the long run. in the fu-
ture as in the past. this provision can
be enforced and obeyed.
Why not go ahead in the future in
general conformity with this practice
thus vindicated in principle by the Joint
committee? The only legislation neces-
sary will be provision to put the sur
plus Of District tax money in any year
into the Treasury not as miscellaneous
receipts, to be merged with national
money and lost to the District, but. as
the joint committees report describes
1t, as "a trust fund for the benefit of
the District of Columbia to be
expended in the government of the Dis
trict of Columbia and for no other pur-