Evening star., 1935-05-08
W0RK-A|D LOANS
TO CITIES FREE Of
STRINGENT RULES
President Says Policy to
Depend on Projects and
Finances.
END OF STATE CONTROL
OF RELIEF BY JULY SEEN
Illinois Continues to Go Without
Funds as Hopkins Insists
on Contribution.

By the Associated Press.
President Roosevelt said today there
would be no hard and fast rule on
loans to cities under the $4,OO0,00O,000
work relief program.
He said the policy would depend
upon the various projects and the
financial situation Of cities.
Meanwhile, high officials asserted
that the Government is planning to
take command of relief adminiStra-
tions in the States by July l.
May relief funds were still withheld
from Illinois as Harry L. Hopkins. the
relief administrator. allotted money
to four additional States-New York,
PENNSYLVANIA, Iowa and Vermont.
This left only Illinois and California,
which has not yet submitted an ap-
plication, without grants for the
month.
Hopkins Firm on Illinois.
Hopkins said he still insisted that
Illinois, where exhaustion Of relief
funds has brought threat of hunger
marches on the State Capitol, must
contribute S3,OO0,000 q month before
receiving further grants.
Most of the present State relief d.
rectors probably will be retained, it
was said, but they will be responsible
to washington instead of to the Gov
ernors.
officials who forecast this change in
policy said that recent controversies
with several of the States were partly"
the reason for its adoption.
Another explanation given was that
the centra1ization of relief forces would
provide a more responsive organization
to speed the $4,000 ,000, 900 work-relief
drive Just now getting underway.
1T will be q change in form rather
than substance" one official said. He
recalled that control of the billion
dollar Civil Works Administration
campaign slightly more than year
ago was centralized in the Capital.
The relief reins in several States
already have been taken into the
hands of Federal authorities.
When Senator Huey P. Long Of
Louisiana moved recently to give his
State administration control over Fed
eral expenditures. Harry L. Hopkins.
relief administrator. placed a man
lief activities.
Hopkins also took relief matters out
Of the hands Of Gov. Eugene Talmadge
of Georgia, bitter Roosevelt critic, who
only last night denounced the work.
relief program in a radio address.
Adequate Taxes Sought.
More recently the relief administra-
tor has been engaged In an intensive
effort to make various States levy
adequate" taxes for the benefit of
the destitute unemployed.
A report compiled by Hopkins at
the request of the Senate provided
insight today into the difficulties he
has encountered in trying to force
States to raise certain sums for relief.
1T is not the function of F. E. r. A.
to dictate within States to what stand
ards of living they shall adhere" the
report said. Nevertheless. when in
the estimation of the administrator
the State is making inadequate efforts
to meet its responsibilities he may
withdraw Federal funds.
Threat Not Easy"
"This is a threat neither easy to
make nor easy to carry out.
There are States where the stop
page of Federal funds as means of
forcing officials to do their duty would
have no other result than to reduce
the people on relief rolls to starva-
ton"
Hopkins advised the Senate that
the States in 1884 contributed $409,-
435, ,735-27.7 per cent-of the $1.478,-
406,447 spent for relief. He indicated
belief the figure would have been
nearer s5OO,O0O,o00 or $500, 900, 900 if
all States had contributed in accord
ance with their ability.
His report said the cost of admin
istering relief had been about 10 cents
on the dollar.
Elsewhere in the capital it was dis
closed that aeronautics experts of the
Commerce Department were endeav-
oring-so far without success-to have
the work-relief drive begun with an
outlay of $70.000.000 for airport con-
Struction.
After conferences at the new Di-
vision of Applications and Informa-
ton, headed by Frank c. Walker of
the Emergency Council, it was said
the Commerce Department represent
atives had been unable to convince
the D A. I. that the airport projects
were quite ready"