Evening star., 1933-06-14

The Congress now about to adjourn
after passing the District appropria.
tion bill and the Federal Government,
contribution to new lows, has in Other
ways extended to the District two un-
usual sources of aid.
One of them was to put the District
on a parity with the States in the mat
ter of payments under the Federal re-
lief act, and under this act the Dis
trict already has received a payment
of $4,000 for unemployment relief
here
The other was the inclusion of the
District in two sections of the nationa
industrial recovery measure, allowing II
Government for public works and road
construction.
Under the relief act, the District anc
the States are entitled to grants from
a total appropriation of s500.000,000 ir
the following manner:
A fund of $250,000 900 is set up to
be allotted to States on the basis OF
the amount of public funds of the
States or their political subdivisions
spent on relief. For the purposes OF
this act, the District ranks as a State
Beginning With the second quarter OF
the present calendar year, the relief
administrator is authorized to pay each
State sum not to exceed one-third Of
the amount spent by the State on re-
lief in the preceding quarter. This is
the provision under which the District
has been allotted $4,000. Payments
can be received by the District in the
same proportion as long as it is spend
relief and the Federal relief funds
hold out.
Other Sections Applicable
But there are two other sections of
the act under which the District may
benefit After the $250,000, 900 to be
spent in the section referred to and the
amount to be spent in administrative
expenses (not to exceed $780, ,000) the
balance appropriated, some $249, CSC, 900,
is made available to the States and the
District for grants by the administrator
where the State or District funds, plus
the funds received under the first men
toned section, are together not ade-
quate to meet the State or District needs
for relief.
Again, if the District or a State
should need money to take care
of transients, referred to in the act
as NEEDY persons who have no legal
settlement in any State or COM
munity," then the administrator in his
discretion is empowered to make grants
to the States or the District for their
care This section offers the District
its first tangible scheme to take care
of its bothersome problem Of the
transients who arrive at the Nations s
Capital destitute and linger because
there is no inducement to return home.
The rules of administering the local
relief money call for aid to bona flde
residents only, and the burden placed
on the private charitable agencies by
the Districts peculiar transient prob
lens has proved hard to bear.
The District, with $1,300,000 OF its
own funds appropriated for unemploy-
ment relief for the next Q934 fiscal
year, can expect to add $433 900 to
this total in the form of grants from
the relief administration under the
first section mentioned. Grants from
the operations of the other sections
will depend upon the needs for money
that develop and the availability of the
funds in the hands of the admins
traitor.
Under the national recovery measure,
two of the sections extend to the Dis
trict parity with the States in eligibility
for Federal grants. One is the public
works section and the other is the sec
ton relating to the construction OF
roadways bridges and kindred projects.
The public works section authorizes
the President, through public works
administrator, to draw up compre-
hensive public works plan, to include,
among many other subjects, the fol-
lowing: Control, publication and
utilization of water, sewage disposal
,ny.f rf mo f0r
transmission of electric energy, con-
struction of river and harbor improve
ments, any projects of the character
heretofore constructed or carried on
either directly by public authority or
with public aid to serve the general in
terests of the public and construction
under public regulation OF loW-cost
housing and Slum clearance projects. 1t
further authorizes him to construct,
finance or aid in the construction or
financing of any public works project
included in the program.
Under another section 1t gives the
President power to make grants 70
"States municipalities or other pubic
bodies" for the construction, repair or
improvement of any such project, tne
loans not to exceed 80 per cent OF the
cost of the labor and materials therein
employed.
Grant Lists Projects.
Col. U. S. Grand, Sd, has prepared
and published a long list of the projects
which he suggests for inclusion IN the
public works program IN the District
In this list are improvement OF the
Rock Creek Potomac Parkway between
K and P streets, $166, 900; improvement
of the Rock Creek-Potomac Parkway
thorougnfare to skirt the National Zoo
logical Park, S342, 900; development OF
the Mall, $450,000; Improvement OF
Piney Branch Parkway, S127, 900, and
Meridian Hill Park, S17l,0 and i'm
provementS to Anacostia Park, Sl0o,uoo
Col Grants entire program contemplates
expenditure of $6,029,695.
The Commissioners have not drawn
up any official list, but the following are
known to be in the forefront OF tnell
ambitions, roughly in the order named
Construction of the first building OF
the Municipal Center, $6,000,OOO; con-
struction of primary sewage disposal
plant, S4,000,000; completion OF school
projects now authorized and partly ap-
propriated for. as follows:
Anacostia Junior High School, JET
ferson Junior High School, woodrow
I Wilson High School.
Construction of additional school
projects, not yet authorized, as follows
Manor Park High School, and colored
high school west of Benning Bridge on
Benning read. 81 100000 each.
And the following: Resume operations