Evening star., 1919-09-29
Equitable Rentals Fixing.

. Equitable Rentals Fixing.
The Ball amendment improved the
Salisbury law by co26ning the appli'
cation Of rentals-fxi1g legislation to
dwellings and parts Of dwellings, apart.
lnents and hotels. The conferees have
it is stated, reinserted the provision
which makes this legislation apply also
to business property.
If extortion is to be prevented by
fixing reasonable maximum rentals in
all disputed cases, the course of equi-
table procedure is clear. War rentals
fixing should apply only to the real
estate involved in the war necessities,
and the rentals in these cases should
be fixed by a rentals commission OF
some other equitable tribunal so as to
produce a reasonable net return on
the actual present value Of the leased
property.
IF Congress has decided that as a
choice of evils it must as the Districts
legislature impair for the wartime and
after-war reconstruction period the
obligation of certain District leasing
contracts, it will not work this impair
ment indiscriminately, wantonly and
unjustly, but will confine this impair
ment to the absolute minimum which
meets the nations war necessities. The
BAH amendment as amended by the
conferees and the Salisbury law are
unnecessarily broad in their scope of
application. They apply not only to
every dwelling house, apartment and
room in the District, but to every
piece of District real estate, whether
land built upon for business purposes
or vacant, whether unimproved lot or
cultivated garden or farm.
The British and colonial precedents
are of rentals-fxing only for dwell
ings and parts Of dwellings. Dwell
irgs and parts Of dwellings (including
hotels and apartments) are the SUBJ
ject Of nearly all of todsy's rentals
rroftee1ing in Washington.
Following tho British and colonial
sprecedents and needing the admoni-
tions Of the Constitution war rentals
fixing and war impairment of the OBJ
legation Of contracts should apply only
to the real estate involved in the war
necessities, which in the District seems
to consist Of all dwellings or parts
of dwellings, and perhaps all forms of
real estate of which the United States
Il lessee.
This concession to Uncle Sam should
not be made unless he wishes it, for
it puts him in the attitude Of pleading
the baby act and of protecting him
self legislatively a. . bargainer
against his own confessedly foolish
executive self. It seems also unneces-
sary, since under the war housing and
other kindred legislation broad powers
sef securing what he needs for war pur.
poses at reasonable rates are given
to Uncle Sam.
But clearly, with or without this ex-
eeption in favor of the United States,
! fha conferees should remove from the
application Of the law all property ex-
espt dwellings and parts Of dwellings.
How does it concern the government
what rental rate or term of tenure
two Washingtonians, as lessor and les.
zee, have agreed upon as fair, if the
rented property is naked lot, a gro
scery store, garage or any kind of
property not needed by the govern
ment for the war housing Of itself OF
ito employes7
How are the war-workers or the BOYS
in the trenches affected by such leases
- Why wantonly and without the com.
pulsion of national necessity impair
-the obligation Of any such leasing con.
tractsi
~ By thus narrowing the scope Of ap.
phcation of the rentals fixing law ia
the real estate distinctly involved in
: the war necessities the conferees will
reduce to a minimum unavoidable dis.
eriminatory violations of the letter o,
spirit of the Constitution and Of the
! lndividual constitutional rights of the
Americans of The District of Columbia
Flaws impairing the obligation OF
contracts are" says the Federalist
"contrary to the first principles of tn,
social contract and to every principle
! of sound legislation" Such laws arr
abhorrent, and when passed by any
state legislature are unconstitutional
and when passed by Congress, aetinl
not for the nation, but as the Dis
frict's state legislature, violate tn,
spirit Of the Constitution.