Evening star., 1926-12-06
.EQU|TABLEF|SCA[
RELATIONS ARE AIM
. OF COMMISSIONERS
Traction Merger Legislation
Also Urged in Annual Re-
port to Congress.
BORlANO LAW CHANGE
IS ALSO RECOMMENDED
Removal of Present Price Limit on
Acquiring Land for City Is
Advocated to Lawmakers.

Enactment of legislation that will
place the fiscal relations between the
rFederal and District Government on
IL permanent and equitable basis and
a law To bring about a merger of tho
street railway systems is urged by the
District Commissioners In Their an
nual report. transmitted TO the Capitol
today with the cOnveninG of Congress
The commissioners. in addition ap-
peal for legislation that will either
modify or repeal the Borland law rela
tive to assessing costs of roadway pav-
ing, that will authorize the eljmina
tlun of the remaining grade crossings.
and Will permit the reconstruction Of
bridges now In poor condition or un-
suitable for modern traffic.
Attention also was called TO the
necessity of repeating the presem
price limitation governing the acquisi
tiOn of land for school sites, parks and
playground purposes. Unless this re-
striction is removed, the Commission
ers declared, the efforts of those VINO
ale endeavoring to plan and develop
the National Capital will be ham
pered, if not nullificd."
Achievements of Year.
Listing among the achievements of
the last year the passage of the bill
creating a new and separate Public
Utilities Commission. the Commission
ers recommended that this measure
be made a law as soon as possible.
The measure passed both houses of
Congress on the final day of the last
session, but was not engrossed OF
signed.
THE appropriations for the past
fiscal year We're in general more ade
quate than those for any previous
year since the United States entered
the World War said the report Of
the Commissioners. "As a conse-
quence. many public improvements
have been in progress.
1.-THE fveyear school building pro
gram is well under way. The new
water supply system is nearing com
pletion. Material progress has been
made in the installation of new street
lights in accordance with a plan ap-
proved for the whole District. COnsid-
cradle Improvement has been made in
the condition of downtown streets AMI
several streets have been wi(lencd, but
we still have over zoo, 900 square yards
of street paving over so years old. The
construction of permanent buildings
at the District workhouse and reform
atory is going ahead and the building
construction at the new District train
ing school is progressing satisfactorily
Traffic conditions have been improved
by the installation of traffic lights.
and the public is becoming accustomed
to the new regulations. Private build
ing construction in the District eX
ceeded all previous records, and as
consequence appropriations for many
purposes. such as water and sewer
main extensions. suburban roads.
street cleaning, garbage, ash ana
trash collection. Fairgrounds and
street trees have hardly sufficed to
maintain the standards of service here
tofore furnished.
Notable in the Legislation beneficial
to the District enacted at the first ses
sion of the SiXty-ninth Congress We're
the act creating the National Capital
Park and Planning Commission and
the act creating the Board of Public
Welfare"
Record Of Receipts.
The report pointed out that the cash
receipts of the District for the last
fiscal year. ended June 80. amounted
to $3l 564, ,S05.4S. made up as follows:
Revenue of the District from taxes
, and miscellaneous sources, $22,564.
S05. .4S; amount transferred to the reve
nues of the District by the United
States. 50 900 900. The collections
from taxes OH real estate, the report
showed, amounted to $14,3o2 ,605.44;
collections from taxes on persona
property, including taxes on gross
earnings and receipts of public utili
| ties, banks and building associations
and on gross receipts Of street railway
companies, 1889 ,602.SS, and collec
tions from taxes on intangible per
sonal property, $2,057,343.34. Collec-
tions from miscellaneous sources
amounted to 81 .76o .253.S2.
The cash expenditures for lhe fis
cal year from appropriations. the re
port said, amounted to $50 1859 .450.1G.
classified as follows:
General government. st.344.7OO.6s
| Protection of life and property,
! 1852 ,4S7.90.
Health and sanitation, $3,O7S, $50. 20.
/ Highways, s.. sos. 1882.
Charities and corrections. $3,439..
0S46S
Education. $10.153.54S.O4.
! Recreation. 81 ,482 ,09384.
Miscellaneous, $l23,776.94.
Public service enterprises, 81 .0OI.
0O8.4O.
Interest and debt, deduction on ac.
count of repayment in excess of ex
penditure. $121 1864.
| The assessed value of land, the Com
missioners pointed out. was $402 ,s4S.-
| 046, while the assessed value Of i'm
provements amounted to $497, ,90f 1896
or a total Of 5000. .842. Against
this assessment a rate Of $1.70 was
! levied. making the tax $15.312.747.
! Comparing the value of the assess
ments with the preceding year. the
report showed that land and buildingS
We're assessed for $S19.625,572, which
at a rate of $1.40 gave a tax Of
| $11, ,474,75S.
Insurance Laws Needed.
Urging the need for new insurance
| legislation, the report declared that
, the lack of uptO-date insurance laws
has caused a number of companies 10
! locate elsewhere. Hartford. Conn.
/ with population oe less than $50 900. =
! 1t said. has life insurance companies
alone domiciled there representing as.
sets of more than $3.50 ,000, 900, not
| mentioning the large fire. casualty and
surety companies also having their
home offices in that city,
| The Commissioners referred 10 the
amendment to the organic laws OF the
Public Library, which has removed
several obstacles that stood in the way
of speedy development of Washing
toms Public Library service Touching
upon other beneficial library lezisIa.
tion. the report said that in the future
! the question OF library sites will have
ICr,,f;,,,oA - M -.