Evening star., 1932-04-14
Gripping the District.

The nature of the District appro
priation bill for the next fiscal year is
best described in the report from the
subcommittee which drafted it, as fol-
lows:
Tie committee recommends Federal
contribution of S65000 COO, which is
S3,000.000 less than the amount of such
contribution for the current fiscal year
and a like amount under the budget
recommendations. The action pro
posed by the bill is in harmony with
the recommendation of the Select Com
mittee of the House appointed by the
Speaker under authority OF the
Seventy-first Congress.
The committee was advised that the
estimates for 1888 for this bill, as sub
mitted in the budget would not result
in expenditures to exceed the total in
come for that fiscal year from a con-
tribution Of $9,500,000 by the Federal
Government, the present rate of taxa
tion on real estate and personal prop
erty and receipts from other sources.
In other words, balanced budget was
submitted.
In decreasing the amount of the Fed
eral contribution from S9,500000 to
S6.5OO.O0O the sum of S3000,00O has
been changed from a charge against the
United States Treasury to a charge
against the revenues of the District of
Columbia This change would have
the effect of requiring the raising OF
additional revenue from District sources
were it not fer the fact that the COM
mittee in the preparation of this bill
has reduced the budget estimates of
appropriations chargeable against the
general revenues of the District by
$4,000 000 With this decrease in ap-
propriations there will be sufficient
Income to meet the estimated eXpendi-
lures for 1888 and provide a small sur
plus.
The result is obvious. In order to
make the income of the District 'suf
fiicient" after looping $4,000 900 from
the Federal appropriation, the commit
tee has been forced to take drastic
measures 1t left scarcely a single item
in the bill untouched, and every time it
touched an item it cut the total.
The District, therefore, faces a lean
year. Practically all new construction
work has been eliminated, including
such projects as the branch library for
Georgetown, the first unit of the Mu-
nicipaI Center group~ the P Street
Bridge in connection with the Rock
Creek-Potomac parkway, the New
Hampshire avenue grade crossing, the
widening of Constitution avenue from
Sixth to North Capitol streets and
about $500, 900 worth of street and road
Improvements. The committee over
looked no opportunity TO save pennies.
1t even eliminated new shirts and neck
ties for the fremen. 1t has placed the
District on a basis that practically means
mere maintenance. New construction
work is limited to beginning work on the
new Benning Bridge and less than
million and a half dollars for new
schools.
This being the Federal City, under
exclusive control Of Congress, the scale OF
its development depends altogether upon
the will of Congress. Some of the cuts
made by the committee are doubtless
justified by demand for economy. Butthe
result speaks for itself. Heavily taxed asst
Is. the inability of the District to continue
the development Of the Capital as
planned without generous support from
the Federal Government becomes ap-
parent The fault in this bill lies in the
method of reducing the already made
quate lump sum substituted for the
forty per cent fixed by unrepealed
statute and in placing the brunt of the
resulting burden on the shoulders Of
the unrepresented local taxpayer.
Among the bills legislative provisions
this year is a prohibition against ac-
cepting oUt-of-town students in the
washington schools without the pay
ment of tuition The same prohibition
has been attempted before. but without
result. The out-of-town pupils are rep
resented in Congress.
The bill carries the usual House
Appropriations Committee ban against
automatic salary increases and the fill
ing Of vacancies, the fate Of these pre-
hlbitions. as written into other supply
bills. now depending upon what action
is taken BY conferees on the agricul-
tural supply bill In the case of the
District the prohibition against filling
vacancies would seriously, and perhaps
disastrcusly, affect the operation of the
school system, a matter that apparently
left the subcommittee unconcerned,
$500 --