Evening star., 1926-05-25
L DISTRICT BILLS
PASSED BY HOUSE
Include Those for New Police
Court Building and Public
Utilities Body.

Ten District bills were approved Ds
the House yesterday, in what Is eX
pected to be the last regular DISTRICT
1lav this session, and one today. These
measures nine of which must still be
acted upon by the Senate, are:
Authorizing the. erection OF ne"
Police Court building.
creation of new Public Utilities
commission. distinct from the Boaro
Ct Commissioners. with, a peoples
cu,nsel.
y liberalized teachers retirement
hifi, modified to meet Budget Bureau
requirements.
Street Bill Has Passed Senate.
Provision for condemnation of land
for street purposes to carry out the
permanent highway plan. even where
benefits to he assessed do not equal
damages. This measure already has
passed the Senate.
Setting up board of chiropractic
examiners to regulate the practice OF
chiropra actors in the District.
Abolition of the half-cent fare to
street car riders across the Highway
and Francis Scott Key bridges.
Acquisition of a small strip of land
TO allow widening of Harvard street
for a more adequate entrance to the
Zoo.
Removal of restrictions on married
women to make business contracts.
Installation of petroleum pipe line
from Square 704 in Anacostia to the
Eastern Branch.
Permission to the Washington Mar
ket Co. for conduit under Twelfth
street for refrigeration purposes.
Two Bills Laid Aside.
Two bills were laid aside on objec-
tionS being made. which promised to
result in delay through calls for a
quorum. These were the GaSque bill
providing for popular election of the
Washington Board of Education, to
which Representative JTnderhill, Re.
publican, of Massachusetts objected
and the bill to regulate traffic in milk
bottles, when Representative Schaffer,
Republican, Wisconsin. raised QueS-
tion in the search and seizure feature.
The milk bottle bill, however. was
taken up again by the House today
and passed.
Much of the day was taken up with
discussion regarding conditions which
necessitate Congress acting on a
number of minor measures. Chair
man Zihlman of the District commit
tee reminded his colleagues that there
is now pending a joint resolution pro-
vidinG for a joint committee of House
and Senate to study the local gov
ernment and to recommend a more
efficient way of handling District leg
tSlation.
Stress was laid on the fact that the
House District committee found condi-
tions "intolerable" ir the Police Court
during recent visits. and that this
court is unique in being the only Fed
eral Police Court in the United States.
Chairman Zihlman pointed out that
the Public Utilities Commission as
now constituted, being Identical with
the Board of District Commissioners,
an account Of the press of many other
duties cannot give proper study to
public utilities problems, such as val
uations, rates of fare and other mat
ters directly affecting the patrons of
these companies.
The bill provides that the three
members of the Public Utilities Com.
mission shall be appointed by the
President and shall receive a salary
of $500 a year. The same salary is
recommended for the counsel who
will represent the people at the hear.
ings of the commission. The office
of a peoples counsel already has
been created in the District appro-
priation bill and a salary of $4,000 au.
thorized.