Evening star., 1932-04-09


branch of the Gov
David Lawre Se. ernment to present
its estimates after
they have been carefully revised by the
Bu: get Bureau They have the approval
of the President and the department
heads before being transmitted to Con-
gress. When. however the proposed
expenditures reach the legislative body,
it is manifeStly impossible for all mem
bers of the House and Senate to study
such items 1t is true that the two
Appropriations Committees work night
and day listening to testimony from the
department officials and bureau chiefs
and every detail is made available to
the legislators. But the whole proceed
ing is based upon the assumption that
there is definite purpose or policy on
the part of the Federal Government in
the matter of expenditures. Actually
party politics, group politics and special
local desires are all interviewer in the
matter of spending Federal money.
Lately the House of Representatives
appointed a special Committee on Econ
omy to make recommendations on
particular points which it was assumed
the Appropriations Committee would be
too busy to deal with. In other words,
a committee of review was established
to see whether investigations could be
conducted and reports brought in on
possible economies.
Too Busy With Detail.
The Appropriations Committees are
so busy with the detail that they are
not able to give much consideration to
a national policy with respect to the
purposes Of each fund. There is no
opportunity for the formulation of a
rule to which all expenditures might
be expected to conform.
Thus, II the theme or policy were to
be that the Federal Government should
spend money only for those things which
properly belong to the Federal func-
ton, there would be no method where
by adherence to the rule could be car
ried out unless a special committee
were set up in both houses of Congress
to review all national expenditures in
the light Of the formula prescribed.
In other words, Budget Bureau
merely sets forth in systematic form
the desires of the executive branch of
| the Government and its ideas with re-
spect to policy. There is no analogous
body in either house Of Congress to go
over a budget with an idea of de-
termining what is Federal policy and
what is a function that properly be-
| longs to the States and cities.
Similarly there is no cross-exami-
nation CT witnesses who appear in be-
half Of special appropriations unless
such interrogation is conducted by
members Of Congress themselves, many
of whom are necessarily much less ia
miliar with the. project in hand than
are the witnesses who appear before
! them. Lately it has been suggested
| that consumers counsel should ap-
act in behalf of the people generally.
Similar suggestions have been made
| from time to time in respect to other
governmental bodies.
II there were some Government Of
fetal who represented no political
party and no region in particular and
no special interest but merely the ma
tional interest-that is, the taxpayers
'nterest-it would be possible for such
an officer to scrlltinize governmental
expenditures on behalf of legislative
committees with an idea of dstermin-
ing whether p particular appropriation
did or did not conform to the general
rule
Taxpayers Not Represented.
! AS it is. the taxpayers generally have
no representative to combat the testi-
mony of the many special interests who
appear before legislative committees
The members of Congress themselves
are in no position to combat organized
groups, because the latter hold the po-
litical club over their heads. Organ
lied minorities are so powerful in
America that they can dictate to legis-
lattve committees just what shall and
shall not be appropriated Organiza-
tions like the Anti-Saloon League, As
| sociation Against National Prohibition,
! American Legion, Veterans of Foreign
Wars, farm organizations, labor groups
have all learned how to play the bi-
partisan game. They know how to or
ganize committees in every congression-
| al district and whether the candidates
are Republicans or Democrats, how to
WELD the threat of group voting This
method of political pressure Is not con-
! fined to any one group. 1t is the ac-
i cepted form of influencing legislation.
The power of these minority groups,
however, Is entirely due to the indiffer-
ence of the average voter It is safe
: to assume that if all the people in a
district who are eligible to vote were
to take an interest in public affairs
| and were to insist upon economy, or at
J least the expenditure Of public funds
1Ol OtdICu PuIpOoCo, LllC RTOuDS
would lose their power. It is because
the taxpayers generally are not organ
| lied that these special groups WELD
the influence that they do.
Government operations are not con-
Quoted on the same lines as private
business. The incentive for profit Is
absent. The main purpose Is to satisfy
real or imaginary general interest.
/ This means that every group interest
convinces itself that what it has to
propose is in the national interest,
Members of Congress often feel help
! less in the face of threats from minor
| ity groups, and the result is a hodge
podge of governmental expenditure for
a variety of objects that cannot posi-
! bly, do as much good as their propo-
nentS contend.
Biggest Single Example.
| Perhaps the biggest single example
of the way this increases the budget
and causes heavier taxation is the man
ner in which the Federal Government
/ has inserted into its annual budget a
billion-dollar item for the care of vet
Grams. This is practically one-fourth of
the total budget.
If there had been in existence some
governmental agency, particularly in
/ Congress to decide TO what extent the
care of veterans is Federal responsi-
bility, the Government might not now
today be saddled with all Of this heavy
expense. 1t is estimated that probably
two thirds of the annual expense, a sum
approximating $3.50, 900, goes to
able bodied citizens who were net In
iured in the war If part of this burden
| had been distributed among the 48
States the situation now would be very
different and it would be easier to pre-
vent the expense from mounting from
year TO year.
But the veterans groups are not the