The Waterbury Democrat., 1934-02-07

Highway Commisisouer John A.
 Macdonald to-day inaugurated by
 leftera to Connecticutsa congress
 niOnal delegation aud to the high-
 way officials of other states, what
 will undoubtedly be an intensive
 drive in Congress to secure alter
 ation ot the Federal Aid Highway
 act in such a manner that Con-
 ncctlcut and other heavily pop
 ulated states will receive more
 equitable share of the funds.
 s For years, the method of ap- z pOrtIonment of federal highway funds has been based on what ts
 known as the 1-3 Ia Ia method.
 that ia, they have been divided
 among the states one-third by the ' ratio which the area of the indi: 2 yiduai state bears to the total
 area of the United States, one- !. third sv the ratio which the pop z uiatibn bears to the total popula- 2 tion.fl and one-third by the ratio 7 which the mileage of rural delivery < routes and star routes bears to the ' total mileage of those routes ,. throughout the country.
 The "joker' in the method is the !. last one-third. Commissioner , Macdonald points out, for the
 2 states with the largest area natur.. @ ally have the greatest mileage of ' rural md star routes, so that the s whole basis of apportionment z might just as well be one-third ]. bv population and two-thirds by { area. With this method in use. 5 inc bulk of the federal aid money ( flows mostly to the western, mid- ' western and southern states while 2 the more populous eastern states : are the losers.
 : When the MIRA was before < Congress in last years special ses- { sion. the House, In which repre- s sentatives of the eastern states are z in the majority, forced the nrst i. change that has ever been made . in the method of distribution. al- though it was minor one. For the distribution of the MIRA high 2 way fund the changed method was 3 one-eighth by population ana 2 seven -eights by the old 1-3 l-S I'd method.
 Now that the subject of appor- tioninE federal highway funds is again tefore Congress (Bill S-2102 , ITO amend the act entitled An ! Act to provide that the United { States shall aid the states In the construction of rural post roads, and for other purposes "). It Is again proposed to utilize tho old split by thirds method. 50 that the wide open spaces beyond tne Mississippi will once more receive The bill appropriates the sum l. of S125,OO0.00O for the fiscal year ending June 80, 1885, and $l25,- 0O0, ,00O for the fiscal year ending n Juno 90, 1896, together with small 7 CT sums for forest highways, na- tional parks, Indian reservations { and sundry other work, in which Connecticut does not partcipate. If distribution of the money IN made by the old 1-S Ia 1-3 meth- cd, Commissioner MacdonaId eA- plains. Connecticut will reee've . $7g2.349; if distribution IS made on ] the basis of population. Cohhecu' cut will receive $l,5o6,bS2.
 Going to the other extreme no cites Nevada 10 show the inequi- ties of the split-by-thirds method finder the latter system, Nevada, z with a population density Of one
 inhnbitarrt per square mile as conn
 nared with Connecticut's popula- tfon density of 324 per square mile, will receive $l.596,967 or nearly double Connecticut's share. 1T the apportionment were to be made ID accordance with population. Ne- yada would get $90.1S7 or an amoun: which Mir Macdonald oe- lieyes is far more proportionate 10 Nevadc.'s requirements for high- ! ways than tho first named amount