Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-05-02
HOUSE VOTES AGAIN
T0EL|M|NATED.C. c.
HALF-AND-HALF TAX
Adopts, in Committee OF
Whole, Amendment in Effect
Repeating Principle.
PUT ON APPROPRIATIONS
MEASURE BY Mr.. GARD
Ohio Member Acts Without Warn
ing-Final Vote on Bill May
Reverse Action.

LUZ X4Aa4 vULC OA Dill Axdy
Reverse Action.
Yesterday the House Of Representa-
tives. in committee Of. the whole, adopt
ed without a roll call an amendment
to the District appropriation bill. offer
ed by Representative Gard Of Ohio. in
effect repeating the half-and-half pro-
vision of the organic act Of 1873 relat-
ing to the maintenance of the District.
This is the third time in less than
three years and half that the. House
has undertaken to destroy the half-and
half principle. In December. 1914. it
adopted by a vote of 1877 to 100 the So
called johnson rider. which provided
for the payment of the expenses of the
District out Of District revenues to the
extent that they are available" the
balance Ito be paid out of the Treas
ury." The Senate later. by vote of
46 to 20. rejected this rider and the
conferees sustained the action of the
Senate. In 1916 an amendment was Of
fered in the House virtually to the same
effect, providing for the payment Of the
Districts expenses out Of District reve-
nues to the extent that they are "sufh-
cient." the remainder" to be paid out
of the Treasury. This wAs adopted by
the House by a vote Of 1T to 135 and
was rejected by the Senate Al to 16.
the Senate's action being sustained by
the conferees.
Same as in 1915.
The amendment adopted yesterday
was textually the same as that Of 1915.
AS on previous occasions Of efforts by
the House to repeal the organic act by
it was sought to demon
strate that this course was in line with
the. findings Of the joint select commit
tee of Congress which was designated,
in 1915 by virtue of q Senate amend
t4ifs Adopted in substitution for the
Johnson ride- This committee, after
hearings lasting nearly month, and
protracted deliberatjon, made an ex-
ing abstract disapproval of the half
and-halff law, destroyed in detail all
reasons advanced for its repeal. While
the committee suggested that there
was no reason or necessity for continue
ing the half-and-half law, it deanon-
strated that there was no reason or
necessity for repeating 1t. 1t made no
specific recommendation for the repeal
Of the act, although in the House yes
amendment declared that his PROPOSE
tion was in exact accord with the
Unanimous findings Of the joint COM
mission. 4@E t.
In connection with the action Of the
ing amendment. in committee Of the
whole and without a roll call, it is a
point of reinsurance to the people Of
the District that whereas the House
adopted the johnson rider by a ma.
tority Of eighty-seven in 1914. it adopt
the face OF the joint commissions re-
port by only forty-one majority. Mean
while. the Senate's majority against
repeal had risen from twenty-six in
1915 to thirty-one in 1916.
Action Without Warning.
Yesterdays action was without warn
ing, the Gard amendment having been
presented on the floor Of the House
without submission to the appropriations
committee. The chairman Of that COM
mittee made point Of order against it.
which was overruled on tho same basis
as that invoked overruling a point of
order against the Johnson rider. name
ly, the so-called Holman principle. under
which any amendment to an appropria-
tion act Is germane the effect Of which
il to reduce the amount of the appro-
priation. It was held in 1914 by the
chairman Of the committee Of the whole
that the effect Of the repeating amend
~ ftn v{pkl
although tho total carried by the bill
remained unchanged. the only reduction
being in the proportion proposed to be
paid out Of federal revenues.
Text Of Amendment.
The Gard amendment, which the
House adopted yesterday, is as follows:
"The following sums are appropriated
out Of the revenues Of the District of
Columbia to the extent that they are
sufficient therefor, and the remainder
out Of any money in the Treasury not
otherwise appropriated, but the amount
to be paid from the Treasury of the
United States shall in no event be as
much as one-half OF said expenses, In
full for the following expenses for the
government of the District of Columbia
for the fiscal year ending June 80. 1913.
except amounts to pay the interest and
sinking fund on the funded debt Of said
District, Of which amounts one-half is
appropriated out of the money in the
Treasury not otherwise appropriated
and the other half out of the revenues
Of the District of Columbia"
Chairman Sisson Of tho District sub
committee on appropriations made a
point Of order that the amendment
would change existing law. This was
overruled, on precedent. by the chair =
Former Speaker Cannon. Represents
tive Wood OF Indiana and Representa-
tive Mclaughlin Of Michigan spoke in
Of hnGhedug the l,iSsstu&
amendment. and Chairman Sisson Of
the District appropriations subcom-
mittee. who is In charge of the bill,
and Chairman Ben Johnson of the
House District committee. answered
objections that in principle it would be
|shouldering the entire burden of taxa
ton upon the property owners of the
District, and that taxes would be In
creased. They all contended that neither
assessments nor taxes would be In
creased, and that the amendment re-
quired the District income to be ex-
pended before the federal govern.
ment was called upon to contribute.
Mr. Crisp Attacks Principle.
Representative Crisp Of Georgia
spoke against the haif-and-ha princi-
pie. He charged the people Of the Dis
- lcontlnled On Sixteenth Fage.J
- '~~s."~ y.