Evening star., 1934-04-17
WELFARE CHANGE
DELAY IS SOUGHT
Monday Evening Club Seeks
Consideration From
Every Angle.

Delay in action on the pending bill,
| which would make the Board of Pub
| lie Welfare advisory instead of admin
! iStrative, is to be asked of Congress
! by a committee of Monday Evening
Club members named to present to
the subcommittee for the District Of
| the House Judiciary Committee the
views adopted by the club at its meet
ing last night.
The meeting of the Judiciary Sub
committee was not held today owing
to other demands on the time of the
/ members.
Representative Dirksen, Republican,
Of Illinois, however assured represen-
tatives of leading welfare organiza-
tions in the District that they would
be granted an opportunity for a hear
/ ing before the full committee tomor-
row morning and requested Chairman
Norton to call the meeting for 10
o'clock instead of 1890 o'clock.
The bill in question is fathered by
the District Commissioners and was
/ drafted at the direction of Commis-
| sioner George E. Allen. 1t would
place the powers now held by the
| Board of Public Welfare directly in
! the hands of the Commissioners
! themselves. The Senate already has
passed the measure and it now is be-
! fore the House.
! No Action on Merits.
In discussion of the measure last
night, the Monday Evening Club took
no action on the merits of the bill it
self. The club adopted resolution
offered by Walter Ufford, former exec
utive head Of the Associated Charities,
calling for delay in passage of the bill
so that it could be considered thor
oughly from every angle. Speakers
pointed out that the questions in
volved in Board of Public Welfare
work are extremely complex, lnvolV-
! ing a great many laws"
I'VE are asking merely for a sane
/ action on this bill" L. MagnuSson,
/ past president of the club, who pre-
sided at last nights meeting. said
today. I'VE don't want to see the
! measure rushed through without
! thorough consideration as Congress
! seems intent upon doing. We don't
i feel qualified to pass on the merits
of the proposal, but we do ask for
slower action on it.
The committee appointed last night
by Mr.. Magnusson to take the clubs
appeal to the House today includes
| Mr.. Ufford, chairman; Ray Everett,
secretary of the club; Prof. D. w.
Willard, head of the department of
sociology at George Washington Uni
versity, and Mr.. MagnuSson.
Roberts Outlines Plans.
William w. Roberts, assistant cor
poration counsel, outlined his pro-
posals for a reorganization of the
work of the Welfare Board at last
| nights meeting He did not debate
the provisions of the pending bill.
however. merely presenting to the
| club facts which he has written into
his report on the reorganization of
the entire District government. Rob-
erts now is serving on a committee
with Maj. Daniel j. Donovan, District
+; auditor studying the major reorgani-
zation.
Members of the Public Welfare
Board serve without compensation and
/ Commissioner Allen has taken the
position that it would be unfair to
expect the boards members to devote
any great amount of time to their
public work without compensation.
Further, the Commissioner believes
that present conditions require daily
attention to the duties now placed on
the Board of Public Welfare.
Prof. Willard, who was named to
the committee to go to the House
today, addressed the club on public
! welfare work generally. He outlined
the principles of public welfare work.
advancing IA major points in this
| work.