Evening star., 1922-08-01
District Surplus Equities.

In its consideration OF the equities
in respect to the surplus Of District
tax revenues lying unappropriated in
the Treasury Of the United States,
will not the joint select committee of
Congress that is about beginning it's
research take into account the various
lapses from the principles Of the or
ganic act of 1878, by which the whole
cost of certain items of municipal
maintenance cost have been put
wholly upon the District?
In the course of the previous probes
into District-federal fiscal affairs, in
consequence of which large sums
the ground of long-neglected federal
claims, much stress has been laid upon
the fact that in certain instances there
has been failure of specific legislation
requiring the District to pay part or
all of the costs involved. Recently, in
the course of hearings on the District
appropriation bill, it was sought to
show that because of the lack of law
the District had failed to make the
United States good in a number of
cases.
There has been sharp strictness
in the matter of holding the District
to the half-and-half principle estab-
lished in 1S7S-lately changed to
6N-4O-but Congress has, whenever it
saw fit, ignored that principle and
shifted off upon the District the whole
cost Of maintaining particular items
OF municipal equipment or activity.
Has the District no equity now in
these sums, exacted from it in con-
travention of the basic statute?
1t may be that certain items will
appear, from a microscopic survey Of
the accounts since the conclusion of
the latest debt-seeking audit, that
be put upon the debit side Of the ledger
against the District-small odds and
ends that in the aggregate will hardly
total 2 per cent of the accumulated
District surplus. But the same princi-
pie that warrants their collection will
warrant, also. the cancellation of the
charges against the District on, the
whole cost" basis. If Congress
wishes to do equity to both the nation
and the District it should regard the
respects.
Whenever the United States has
loaned or advanced funds to the Dis
trict to make good its temporary
deficits. especially in the matter of
large projects for the financing Of
which the capital municipality lacked
immediate resources, it has exacted in
terest. That interest has always been
paid But whenever the District has
been forced to accumulate funds in
the Treasury by reason of lack of
appropriations absorbing it's revenues
the United States has paid no interest.
Would not the same scrupulous care
to preserve the interests and rights
of the United States in this District
federal relationship, which exacts re-
payment of minute items that have
chiefly, by reason Of federal auditing
lapses, failed to reach the federal
credit, now prompt the payment Of in.
terest on the Districts inappropriate
ed funds, which have for several years
lain idle in the Treasury-idle so far
as local uses were concerned-and
have been at the disposal Of the gov
ernment? The United States has had
the use of this District money for
considerable period. Should it not pay
at least as high rate Of interest on
it as it always requires the District
to pay whenever the Districts funds
are temporarily inadequate?
Thus consideration Of all the equi-
ties in regard to the surplus may
bring about a balance in which the
entire weight does not bear upon the
District.