Evening star., 1934-06-06
KING WILL SPEED
PARLEY ON LOCAL
PUBLIC WORKS BILL
Measure Would Provide 1C
Million for Construction
in City.
CUT IN SUM Is MADE
TO AVOID FILIBUSTER
Items Eliminated Urged as House
Votes on Proposal-School
Building Asked.

arrange conference WIN the HOUSE
District Committee, probably tCmor-
row, on the public works bill for the
District, which passed the House yes
terday by a vote of 1877 to 1873.
The bill, which passed the Senate
without dissenting vote, would au-
thorize the Commissioners to apply
for a loan from the Public Works
Administration to carry out program
of urgently needed construction prof.
ects and park and playground de-
velopment in the Capital. In order
to avoid threatened filibuster which
would prevent any action on this bill
in the House a conference between the
District Commissioners, members oil
the House District Committee and of
the House Rules Committee cut down
the amount of the loan from S20, ,000,-
600 to Sl0,750000. This came before
the House under a special rule yes
terday.
Approved by House.
The House District Committee had
unanimously approved the entire $40
O00,0 program. During the debate
on the rule and bill in the House yes
terday prominent members protested
that the items which had been cut
out to secure the special rule should
be included, especially the funds for
needed school construction and for
the Municipal Center Building on a
site which has already cost the Dis
trict about S6,000,000.
House leaders on both the Demo-
cratic and Republican sides led the
fight for the District public works bill
and especially emphasized that it
would be an injustice not to give the
District an opportunity to share in
the public works fund the same as
all States and municipalities, partiC
ularly referring to the Virgin Islands,
Hawaii Alaska and Puerto Rico
They also stressed that the District
being debt free is in a better position
to repay the loan than any of the
other communities and even went
further in guaranteeing amortization
of the loan by earmarking 10 cents
of the tax rate as special fund to
IuCCI Illlo OtiACl
community in the country has done.
Construction Projects.
The construction projects author
lied under the bill as it passed the
House are:
A sewage disposal plant to be con-
structed at Blue Plains at an esti-
mated cost of $8O00,000 in the inter
- I'D 70 eliY ifOo re
pollution of the Potomac River; a
new group of buildings for tuber-
culosis sanitarium to take care Of
adult cases supplementing the pro-
visions in the District appropriation
act for the care of tubercular chill
dren, 81 500, 900; an additional isola-
ton ward at Gallinger Municipal
Hospital, where there is now an over
crowded condition which is called
disgraceful, S750,00O, and to complete
the walled group at Lorton Penal In
stitution. S500,000
Representative Smith. Democrat, of
Virginia acted for the Rules Commit
tee in presenting the special rule, and
took charge of plotting the bill
through the House against the oppo-
sition of Representative Thomas l..
Blanton, Democrat. of Texas; Repre-
sentative Carl Mapes, Republican, of
Michigan, and Representative Cox,
Democrat, of Georgia.
Friends of Proposal.
Those who spoke most emphatically
for the District projects included
Representative Cochran, Democrat.
of Missouri, chairman of the House
Committee on Expenditures and au-
thor of a special bill for the new
sewerage system; Representative Dirk
sen, Republican, of Illinois; Repre-
sentative Harlan, Democrat of Ohio;
Representative Palmisano, Democrat,
of Maryland; Representative Black,
Democrat. of New York; Representa-
tive Jennings Randolph, Democrat. of
West Virginia, and other members of
the House District Committee.
Chairman Bankhead of the Rules
Committee emphasized particularly
that the District was fully guarantee
ing repayment Of 10 per cent of the
amount to be borrowed under the
terms of the public works act, which
he said no other community has done.
Representative OConnor, ranking ma
jority member on the Rules Commit
tee. challenged his colleague they
ought at least do as much for the
Nations Capital as they had author
lied for the Virgin Islands, Hawaii,
Alaska and Puerto Rico under the
public works act.
One of the leading champions of
the District was Representative Green
wood. Democrat, of Indiana. the ma
jority whip, who repeatedly stated his
strong conviction that the entire $50
900, 900 program should have been ap-
proved.
Bacon Leads Protest.
Representative Bacon, Republican,
of New York and Mrs Kahn, Repub-
1ican, of California led in the protest
against the elimination of school con-
struction items from the bill.
Acting Chairman Palmisano of the
House District Committee severely
criticized Mr.. Blanton and declared
that he was always in the position
of taking something from the people
of the Distrist." He said, in part:
when some one happens to take
the floor to seek justice for the Dis
trict the charge is made that they
want to get their names or their pic
lures in the newspaper l do not
believe there is q man in this House
vho has his name on the front page
more than does the gentleman from
Texas. Why. the only way to get
your picture in the paper is by criti-
cism. Whenever anything OF that
kind arises we see the face of the
gentleman from Texas right on the
front page.
He stated awhile ago that the gen.
tlemsn from Maryland likes TO give