Evening star., 1930-06-23
Fact Finding and Fair Dealing.

Fact Finding and Fair Dealing.
If the deadlock on the District bill
Is broken by agreement to accompany
passage of the measure with a Joint
resolution, or an amendment, providing
for the creation of a fact-hnding COM
mission on FedeFal-District fiscal rela-
tions, interest Immediately centers not
only upon the personnel of the body
proposed, but upon the scope of its
inquiry. All that glitters is not gold,
nor Is the mere appointment of q fact
finding commission a guaranteed cure
all for the chronic ills that beset Uncle
Sam and his ward, the District In
their financial relations.
Under the present circumstances,
however, the appointment of a commits
sion Is aSsuredly wise step, provided
its membership and the terms of its
inquiry are studied seriously and with
the sincere desire to profit, on the side
Of equitable dealing and Capital well
fare, by findings that undoubtedly
would prove of great value.
The bill by Mr. Moore OF Virginia.
favorably reported in the House, is a
sound measure, in that it provides for
representation, not only of the Con-
gresS, which is the court Of final appeal,
regardless of how many commissions
are appointed but of the District Com
misSioners, who are the executive heads
OF the municipality, and of the citizen
taxpayers, who deserve that special
consideration due to the fact. that the
taxes they pay are directly concerned
rs one Of the debatable issues. None
OF these representatives could "don1i-
nate" the commission to the extent
that accusations would follow of ex-
parte proceedings accusations apt to
mar general satisfaction over the Sc
lection Of body representing merely
the Federal Government, an interested
party.
The Moore bill, in addition, charges
the proposed commission with a broad
neld Of investigation, enabling it to
look into the many sides of the fiscal
relations problem problem that
proves baftling chiefly because it has
many sides.
The value, for imaginary taxable
purposes, Of Federal holdings in the
District; the permanent effect on
District sources of revenue of repeated
transfers to the tax-exempt list of
taxable property; the analysis of taxes
tn comparable cities, taking into ac-
RnIInt f1,ok
OF tax rates and assessment bases-these
are merely few of the many facts
that have bearing on the case. Their
discovery would be relatively simple.
But in addition there must be con-
adhered the matter of equity, and equity
TOO often depends upon a point of
view.
The setting up of adequate safe
guards for the people of Washington
against unjust or whimsical taxation,
such as that provided in the principle
OF fixed ratio; the obligation of the Fed
eral Government to the CAPITAL of
the Nation because it is the Capital of
the Nation, exclusively governed and
planned by the Federal Government:
the laying down Of some new rule. if
nxed ratio is discarded, either to pre-
serve the integrity of the ideal of
partnership In Capital building.
wherein all the expenses are divided
On the basis of that partnership, or
else to discard the idea of partnership
enttrely and endeavor to effect some
other arrangement whereby the expense
of various activities and projects could
be equitably divided-these are matters
ehat involve the consideration of that
Intangible dement, known as fair deal
ing. They are as important as the
facts themselves.
The findings of any commission would
be merely advisory. The acceptance of
It's facts or the adoption of its recon-
mendations would always rest with
Congress. Therefore the membership
of the commission should be broadly in
elusive at the outset and its Jurisdiction
should not be confined merely to one
aspect Of the case-such as the value of
the Federal, and therefore tax-exempt,
holdings.
The idea should be not only to get
an the facts available, but to obtain the
opinion Of those who have studied the
facts In their relation to the moral as
well as economic principles to be fol-
lowed in their application. Congress
has nothing Mt stake in the selection or
the findings of such a commission. The
diSfranctised, tax-paying District has
mra~vYSirr ~