Evening star., 1922-07-01
Rate by Mail-Payable in Advance.
MARYLAND and Virginia.
All Other States,
Starting the Surplus Inquiry.

Prompt organization of the joint
select committee to inquire into the
equities of the million.dolla sur
plus of District tax revenues lying IL
the Treasury through failure OF appro-
priations during the past few years
means doubtless that there Will be d
thorough searching investigation, and
it may also mean a report to Congress
in season for consideration in the
drafting of the next appropriations
bill Election of Senator Phipps as
chairman of the joint committee was
accompanied by decision to proceed al
once with the inquiry, although the
House has adjourned until the 18th OF
August. Thus, presumably in a few
days. the Attorney General will upon
requisition designate an assistant to
represent the United States as the
legal factor of the inquiry and &C
countants will be chosen i'll accord
ance with the terms of the act, which
prohibits the employment of any VINO
are residents of the District or who
have been previously employed by the
District or the federal government.
Upon the selection of these account
ants so much will depend that it is
important that they should be chosen
with care for their ability and, OF
course, their impartiality in the scru-
tiny of the old accounts of District
federal relationship.
The question before the joint con-
gressional committee is simple, though
the details may be complex. Is the
District entitled now to the use of its
own tax revenues which have accumu-
lated during several years through
failure of Congress adequately to ap-
propriate for local needs? Are there
eny offsetting federal claims against
this fund, claims arising from faults
Of federal fiscal officers in the past
from failure of statement or OF col
lection? Has Congress in the enact
ment of laws affecting the District,
and especially in the organic act of
1873, failed to protect federal interests.
and should such failure. if any oc-
CURED, be corrected now by belated
collection from fund which has been
allowed to accumulate through further
failure of Congress. this time in re-
spect to the appropriations for Dis
trict maintenance?
Expert testimony will not be neces-
sary to establish the main facts re-
garding the surplus. The committee
will doubtless hear the evidence Of the
District Commissioners and the Dis
trict auditor to establish the amounts
of District tax revenues annually left
unappropriated and accumulating in
the Treasury. Those are matters of
record, easily demonstrated. The COM
mittee will also probably seek to learn
how it happened that these tax rev.
enues piled up through the annual
shaping of the District appropriation
bill below the estimate, which by law
was confined to a maximum of the
estimated revenues. At that point the
committee will run into the first
equity in the case, the equity Of
District ownership in funds that. ac-
cording to the law of 1878, should not
have been collected unless they were
appropriated.
The committee cannot fail to recog-
niZe the nature of these annual sure
plus accretions as the result of a fail
ure of Congress to carry out the law
under which the District government
is organized and the capital municipal
ity is maintained. That law antedated
1874, set as the beginning Of the
period covered by this inquiry. Under
1t surplus Of District tax revenues
is in theory impossible. In practice of
late years surplus Of five millions
has accumulated. Now the simple
question is whether that money be-
longs to those from whom it came,
and is to be applied either to current
appropriations to meet large needs, or
is to be available as part of the pro-
posed surplus five years hence,
enabling the District to meet its
acquisitions with it's own cash.