Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-04-07
TARIFF IN EXTRA SESSION
TO DRAW MUCH ATTENTION
WAYS and Means Committee Already
Writing Changes Intended to Be Made,
Whether for Farmer or for Revenue.
BY MARK SULLIVAN.
WEEK from Monday a special
session nf Congress begins. 1t

u or may not be primarily
tariff session. It was called
for the purpose Of farm relief. That
is, but for the pledge Mr.. Hoover made
to the farmers during his campaign the
special session would not have been
called. Once it was certain the session
would be called tariff revision came to-
ward the front. Whether farm relief
or tariff revision will bulk largest in the
proceedings remains to be seen. In any
event tariff revision will take place, and
will, one assumes. enlist the usual
amount of attention that accompanies
tariff revision.
The present article aims at no more
than to describe, so to speak, the me-
chanics of tariff revision and touch on
the more important elements that will
enter into 1t.
The changes in the tariff will be
writer initially by the ways and means
committee of the Lower House. A tariff
must always be written first in the
Lower House. It is one of a very small
number of subjects as to which 1t Is
imperative that legislation originate In
the Lower House. The reason Is that
the Constitution requires that all legis-
lation having to do with taxation origi-
nate in the lower body When the Con-
stitution was written, and for l23 years
afterward, the Lower House was elected
directly by the people, whereas the SEN
ate was elected by the States, acting as
States. This distinction ended in 1918,
and since then Senators as well as
members of the Lower House are elected
directly by the people. But the consti-
tutional provision, of course, remains,
requiring that all legislation having to
do with taxation originate with the body
that, at the time of the writing Of the
VIC a
direct from the people. The sentence In
the Constitution reads, "All bills for
raising revenue shall originate In the
House of Representatives"
Theory Of Tariff Bill.
The theory that tariff bill is a tax
alton bill-that is, bill for raising
revenue-continues. Everybody knows
the theory has become largely fiction.
Tariffs are written now. not primarily
for the purpose of raising revenue to
run the Government, but to protect
American industries against the COM
petition of foreign goods. The revenue
which may arise from the tariff on i'm
ports has become decidedly secondary
consideration.
Within the Lower House the tariff bill
must be written by the committee on
ways and means. More narrowly, 1t Is
actually written by the is Republican
members of the committee. The 8
Democratic members, while they took
part in the hearings, are not admitted
to the sessions in which the actual writ
ing of the tariff is done.
This is not any present extraordinary
discrimination against the Democrats;
1t is in sufficient accord with past GUS
tom. The practice may not have been
universal throughout all our history, but
as a rule, when the Republicans are in
power, the Republican members of the
ways and means committee write the
tariff bill, with Democrats excluded, and
the reverse when the Democrats are In
power.
Congress meets on Monday, April Is.
The new tariff bill, as written by the
Republican members of the ways and
means committee, should ordinarily be
introduced within a week or so there
after Thereupon the House proceeds to
debate the bill. The House as whole |
may or may not make important
changes in the bill as originally written
by the committee. In either event. In
due course the House will pass its bill.
Thereupon the bill goes to the Senate.
The Senate will refer it to the finance |
committee, which in the Senate is the
tariff making or tariff changing equiva-
lent of the House ways and means COM
mittee.
Question Of Hearings.
At this point the finance committee
of the Senate will make an important
decision. It may or may, not decide to |
hold hearings. If it decides to have |
hearings that process will consume |
probably several weeks.
Whether the decision is to have hear |
ings or not to have them depends on |
several elements The hearings can |
hardly bring out any new facts or ar |
guments. About all the hearings that |
any interested party could demand have |
already been held by the ways and |
means committee of the Lower House, |
which sat during nearly all of January |
and February and heard more than 900 |
witnesses. It is safe to say that prac- |
tically everybody wanting a change in |
any schedule had due knowledge of the |
ways and means hearings, had oppor-
ttunity to be heard and actually was
heard.
Consequently, If hearings are held by |
the finance committee of the Senate it |
probably will be because the bill as |
passed by the lower house is unsatisfac- |
tory to some persons interested. The |
hearings before the Senate finance COM |
mittee, IN short, If they are held at all, |
guments for changeS-presumably up |
ward changes-in the bill as written by |
the lower house.
II the Senate finance committee holds |
hearings at the conclusion of them the |
finance committee will write changes in I
the House bill. More accurately, as in !
the case of the ways and means COM |
mittee, the Republican members of the |
finance committee viii write changes In |
the bill as passed by the House.
Consideration by Senate.
Thereafter the Senate win consider |
the whole situation as 1t then lies-will (
consider the House bill, together with /
the changes proposed by the Senate !
finance committee. From this point |
there will ensue an amount of debate, of |
which the length Is most difficult to esti- |
mate. With great expedition and good |
luck, the Senate debate might end in |
four or five weeks. On the other hand. |
there Is abundant precedent for asstim- |
ing that q Senate debate on the tariff |
may drag for eight or ten weeks, or even |
more.
At the end Of the Senate debate that |
body win pass the traiff bill, together |
With-there need be no doubt what |
ever-n1any changes made by the Sem |
ate. After that there will be q confer. |
erce between House conferees and SEN
ate conferees,. who win compare the
bills as passed by the respective houses. !!
win wrangle undoubtedly great deal
about the differences and finally agree
upon q report. The concluding legis-
lative step viii consist of passage Of the !
bill as agreed upon by the conferees by
both houses. Thereupon the bill viii 20
TO the President for signature.
81
As 10 the time that may be consumed
by all this process there are diverse
estimates There is a prevailing ex-
pectation- more accurately, hope
THAT the process may be concluded by
July /. and that Representatives and
Senators may get to their homes as the
hot weather commences. There are