Evening star., 1933-08-27
the water tax-money when he wrote

in the District of Columbia In aid of
relief unemployment.
The program to relieve unemploy-
ment must, necessarily, be national
in scope I do not believe that
could properly exercise the discre-
ton vested in me without consider
ing the requirements of the District
of Columbia in the light of the ma
tional program.
Having in view all these consid-
erations. I must advise you that I
feel that I must be guided very
largely by the opinion Of the Pub
lie Works Administration. Until
that administration has studied the
national situation and formulated
its plan, and particularly until we
have more light upon the whole Of
the expenditures which are to be
made within the District Of Colum-
bia. I do not feel that I can prop
erlv pass upon your recommended
ton"
The additional string tied to the ex-
penditure of local gasoline and water
fund money was the condition that the
budget director would have to study
the national situation regarding unem-
ployment. as viewed through the eyes
of the Public Works Administration. be-
fore deciding what he could do about
letting the Commissioners spend money
to give local men work-money being
collected from the taxpayers and laid
away unused in the National Treasury
BY an odd process Of reasoning
the expenditures Of local tax revenues
had first been cut IS per cent IN con-
nection with national budget balancing.
although cutting the expenditure OF
these local funds had no bearing what
ever on the national budget situation:
Then, when Congress made part OF
the local surplus. which resulted avail
able for local unemployment relief, Mr.
Cannon said that it could not be used
unless local employment increased to
the extent that the budget director
would consider it iustifiable to spend
the local money. Then the budget d.
rector decided that first, he had to keep
local unemployment relief in mind
though making no inquiries about it
and second that he could do nothing
about local unemployment relief until
he found out what the Public Works Ad
ministration decided to do about national
unemployment relief. A tighter and
more puzzling knot could hardly be de-
vised by anybody
Funds Held Inadequate.
In the meantime. $50 members OF
the Highway Department were dis
charged. because there was no money
to pay them Four hundred and sixty
six workers in the Water Department
continued on payleSs furlough. because
there was no money to pay them. In
stead of $500 men being given work at
a decent rate of pay, the number OF
able-bodied men receiving dole Of less
than IS week from the public relief
agencies continued to grow by the hun
dredS.
Inspecting the local relief situation,
Alan Johnstone, deputy relief admin
istrator. called at the District Building
and looked things over. He found that
relief of unemployment was made
quate" and said that the District would
have to spend twice as much as was ap-
propriated and available for relief in
the current fiscal year.
The Bureau of the Budget, however
was presumably uninformed and made
no effort to learn the conditions re-
garding either relief expenditures OF
unemployment-the latter condition di-
rectly affecting the release Of the idle
surplus tax revenues being held in the
Treasury
In the past week, however. the Pub
lie Works Administration announced
an ALLEGATION of S1.759, 900 for a Local
sewer improvement program. Whether
this will give the director of the budget
the information he needs regarding
the Public Works Administration funds
in order to hasten decision on releas-
ing local tax money for employment
giving work. remains to be seen. But
the Public Works Administration tied
string to the ALLEGATION of the sewer
money that plainly has the Distric:
Building authorities puzzled. The al
location announcement-which has not
yet been received by the Commission
ers-said that Congress would decide
the division of the sewer money as be-
tween the District and the Fedora!
Government.
Now the Commissioners, Of course
are perfectly willing to trust to the
discretion Of Congress and to the fair
ness of Congress in making that divi-
sion. But SO far the Public Works
Administration has made only a few
allotments of money to States and
municipalities allotments. ir
and another for the Tri-Borough
Bridge allotment is in the form OF
loan of $4,000 payable in
20 years, and a direct grant OF
$7,200,000 This grant represents
about 80 per cent Of the cost of labor
and material for the bridge, in line with
the recovery acts provision that so per
cent Of the cost of State, county and
municipal projects might be granted by
the Federal Government.
Money and Men Idle.
Now, if Congress should decide that
in accordance with the policy Of grant
ing 80 per cent for local projects, the
District would have to pay 10 per cent
of the sewer allotment-or 81 .231 300
and give the District as much as 20
years to repay the loan, the deal might
be considered highly acceptable to the
District
And if the Public Works Administra-
tion decided later to make outright
grants to the States and munictpali-
ties, instead of loans Of 80 per cent
then the ALLEGATION for sewer work In
the District might be considered in the
light of an outright grant-for which
there would be ample Justification.
The difficulty. Of course. is that the
Commissioners do not know what Con-
gress will decide: how much OF the
sewer money must come from local
revenues. and whether they have the
right to spend an undetermined amount
of local revenues without authorize
ton from the exclusively legislatine
Congress. Aside from this. in the pres
ent state of local finances. there Is
uncertainty whether money for sewer
improvements as contemplated in the
Public Relief Administrations alloca.
ton would be available. There are
other needs even more pressing.
The District has received as its share
of the s4O0, 100000 for road work made
available to the States and the Dis
trict in the recovery act $1,916, 900
Thus far only about $148,000 Of thi.
money has been contracted for, and