Evening star., 1934-04-06
Rate by MaiI-Payable in Advance.
Member Of the Associated Prose
The District and the P. W. A.

Secretary Ickes does not contest the
obvious need Of certain municipal i'm
provements for which Public Works
Administration funds have been sought
by the Commissioners. In the case Of
one OF them, the sewage disposal plant,
which would go far to rid the Potomac
OF dangerous pollution, the P. w. A.
has already invested $4,000 for a
survey which emphasized the de-
STABILITY of the undertaking. The
need for an adult tuberculosis hos
pital is generally recognized. And the
first unit of the proposed Municipal
Center, already authorized by Congress,
has been put forward as one project
in which the District of Columbia has
already invested heavily and which
lacks only the advance of the national
Governments share to be started.
The Public Works Administration is
now out of funds and is waiting for
an appropriation from Congress. Any
advance now is automatically pro-
hibited. AS the P. w. A. was au-
thorized to advance money to munic-
ipalities for approved public works
and to share the cost on the basis of
80 per cent from the Federal Govern
ment and 70 per cent from the bor-
rowing municipality, Mr.. Ickes now
proposes a conference with the Com
missioners to discuss the possibilities
OF legislation authorizing the munic-
ipality to enter into such an arrange
ment and borrow 10 per cent of the
cost of certain projects when new
P. w. A. funds are made available by
Congress.
Such a conference should be of
great benefit, if it produced nothing
more than a clear understanding of
future P. w. A. policy toward the
District of Columbia. If the District
Is TO be denied further P. W. A. funds,
except on a loan basis, that fact
should be clearly understood. In the
first place, it would require legisla-
ton to permit the District to borrow
from the P. w. A., and that legislation
could then be discussed on its merits.
In the second place, it might prevent
repetition of the condition existing
last Summer, when the Bureau of the
Budget was waiting to see what the
p. w. A. would do for the District
before releasing the use of certain
surplus local funds, and the P. w. A.
was slowly discovering meanwhile
that the government of the District
OF Columbia is unlike the government
Of any other American municipality,
and its policies on loans and every
thing else depend upon Congress.
AS far as borrowing for certain large
undertakings is concerned, there is
much to be said for the advantages
Of financing large expenditures over
period Of years instead of relying
on current revenues, when those ex-
penditures are for essential, necessary
public Improvements and when the
terms of the loan are equitable and
not too burdensOme.
But it is another thing entirely to
propose the assumption of indebted
ness as one policy. while the con-
Trajectory policy of shaving expendi-
lures and accommodating local revenue
surpluses continues to exist. It would
be the height of absurdity for the
District of Columbia to borrow money
for one undertaking, while equally
important undertakings 60 by the
board and necessary municipal serv-
ices are neglected through failure to
grant the expenditure of available
local revenue and failure to provide
the Federal contribution which un-
repealed substantive law and con-
sideration Of the equities involved
demand.
The District is now suffering the
distinct disadvantages of divided re-
sponsibility and the resulting lack Of
any consistent policy in an admins
tration which has set itself up as
champion Of new planned economy"