Evening star., 1920-02-28
LEGISLATION IS
URGENTLY NEEDED
BY WASHINGTON
Repeal of Law of 1909 and
Cure for Surplus Dis
trict Revenues.
BY THEODORE W. MOVES.
Editorial Correspondence Of The Star.

!
stitute for the Mapes bill. and printed
/ in yesterdays Star. puts in concrete
shape legislative proposals which the
Board of Trade. voicing the petltlon
of all Washington, has for several
I years been urging.
| The immediate legislation urgent :
| Iy needed by Washington was d,s
/ closed in the hearings before the
joint fiscal committee in 1915 and
| again in the recent hearings pe1ore
the House District committee:
% The law arbitrarily limiting
the Commissioners annual estimates
should be quickly repealed. 1t pro-
hibits the statement by the Commits
sioners and the satisfaction by Con
gress of the actual needs Of the DIS
trict. 1t prevents the nation. newt,
ably, from meeting fully its capita
obligation. 1t automatically insures
an unexpended surplus OF blstrlct tax
money. 1t accomplishes. as congress
applies it. no good purpose whatso-
ever The Commissioners estimates,
in accordance with the spirit OF the
Joint committees report. should dis
close to Congress Washington's gen
uine municipal needs. ooth 1or cur
rent maintenance and Tor permanent
improvements: and the responsibility
for appropriating all or only paIt OF
these estimates should las II ooes)
rest solely on Congress
(2) The effect of the report OF the
Joint committee is to Vlndlcate IN
principle the treatment OF the nan
and-half provision as not necessarily
applying arbitrarily and separately
to each year. considered alone OUT 70
the average of a series OF years. ihe
Joint committee points out that Dis
trict expenditures since 1878 nave
been in the aggregate. though not in
every year viewed separately. on the
half-and-ha basis. The committee
expresses the belief that this, fact is
evidence of design. not an accident
and that the nation thus not only IN
tended to carry out. but dlo carry Out
it's half-and-half promise,
Under the present practice. Whlch
puts local taxation beforeS congress
sional appropriation. the half-and-
half provision is not and cannot be
arbitrarily enforced and literally
obeyed in any one year. But in the
long run, in the future as in the past,
this proyision 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 committed? The only legislation
necessary will be a provision to put
the surplus Of District tax money In
any year into tia Treasury, not As
with national money and lost to the
p,ssFet fssts .sgStisss sgt IS M e zen. se M
Tor the beneft OF the District OF Co
1umbia - to be expended in the
government Of the District Of Celum-
bia and for no other purpose"
Repeal Of the law limiting the Com
missioners' estimates will permit Con-
gress to consider in appropriations
the full needs Of the District. and the
surplus in any year OF unexpended
District tax money will thus be re-
duced to a minimum. But any sur
pluses, even though large. which un-
der the proposed legislation VIII 60
into the Districts trust fund will
clearly be needed in the future as a
reserve fund az to pay District in
debtedness, fictitious or genuine: In
cluding the alleged ancient resurrect-
ed debts, based on the blunders OF
neglects of government officials In
the seventies Of the last century
which have been con3ured up IN the
House; (2) to be accumulated and
later wisely utilized to meet the pos
sible emergency Of a District short
age in some year in necessary tax
revenue under the organic act. and (3)
to meet the Districts share of the
cost of great permanent public i'm
proyements which will call for the
imm ediate expenditure of more money
than can be spared from current rev.
enues.
All Washington says amen to the
unanimous petition of the Board OF
Trade in 1916, which says:
A Petition and a Protest.
owe. the members of the Washing
ton Board OF Trade, do earnestly peti.
tion ConxreAs 1) for the repeal Of tha
law Of 1909. which restricts the Com.
mi.sioners' estimates to twice the
amount Of the Districts estimated
revenues; and (2) for leEislatiol
which shall cause any surplus of Dis.
| trirt revenue arising in any year from
the enforcement Of the half-and-hall
! law to be held in the Treasury m Z
| trust fund for the benefit Of the Dis.
| trict to meet its needs In some future
year.
1--WE protest against the repeal n
| this time of the haH-and-half law
which the Joint congressional com.
mittee has In effect declared to b<
fair; and we especially protest aEains
such repeal BY rider on IN apprspria,
| tion bill; or In suck form N to be re.
troactive; or by any method whicl
| does not secure for the proposed leg.
islation thorough preliminary consid
Grafton by the District c0mmittee~
and by Congress. and which does mo-
substitute for the repealed law On,
establishing = definite policy of resu
lar and liberal APPROPRIATION by Con
xres. for capital maintenance and de-
velopment. and a AXed and certai.
<s~ hmvAem fOP the nfakv{r< - 70