Evening star., 1935-06-25
D. c. AIRPORT BILL
GOES TO SENATE;
FATE UNCERTAIN
Entire Cost SaddIed on Dis
trict by BIanton Amend
n1ent.
MEASURE WAVING BOND
ON OFFICIALS PASSES
Action on Rent Commission and
Child Labor Proposals Baked
by Maneuvers.
BY JAMES E. CHINN.

AIhAdONhAoDCA Wy bAlC 11OuCCg blIC AllO~
trict Airport bill went to the Senate
today, where its fate is decidedly prob
lematical.
After languiShing around legislative
chambers for nine years, the House
finally passed the measure late yes
terday. but removed its very heart
with an amendment that will saddle
the entire expense of the project on
the taxpayers of the District.
Only one other District measure was
passed. 1t will relieve the Commits
sioners and about % other officials OF
the requirement of posting bonds.
Parliamentary maneuvers, prolonged
debate and filibustering tactics pre-
vented action on the two remaining
District bills on the House calendar,
one Of which would revive the war
time rent commission. The other
would amend the child labor act to
permit children to take part in pro-
fessional concerts and dramatic pro-
ductions.
Bill Debated Over Two Hours.
For more than two hours the airport
bill was debated. More time than
that was devoted to the bond meas
ure, due chiefly to a series of parlia-
mentary maneuvers, engineered by
Representative Blanton, Democrat, of
Texas.
1t was Blanton, incidentally, who
offered the amendment that will force
the District to bear the entire cost OF
the proposed municipal airport. Orig
nally. the bill contained a provision
which would have required the Fed
eral Government to share the expense
equally with the District.
The total limit of cost Of the air.
port, as fixed in the bill, would be
$2,500,000 Before Blanton's amend
ment was adopted, the Federal Gov
ernment would have been authorized
to advance that amount to finance
the project, and the District would
have repaid half Of 1t after a period
Of 10 years with interest at 3 per
cent a year. Now, however, the entire
amount will have TO come out Of Dis
trict revenues.
Two Commissions Provided.
The House left in the original bill
provisions creating two special COM
missions, one to select a site for the
proposed airport, and the other to
establish and operate it. The site Sc
lecting commission, due to an amend
ment offered by the District Commit
tee, will be composed of nine instead
of seven members, as originally pro-
vided. The two members were added
to give Washington greater repre-
sentation. One will be a representa-
tive of the National Capital Park and
Planning Commission, and the other
"a member Of the Washington Board
of Trade. tst
Aside from the Park. and Planning
Commission and Board of Trade repre-
sentatives, the commission win be COM
posed of the director of aeronautics
of the Department of Commerce, the
Second Assistant Postmaster General,
member of the House, a member of
the Senate. an appointee of the air
transport companies serving Washing
ton, member of the Board Of Com
missioners, and Amelia Earhart Put
nam, internationally known aviatrix.
The commission to have charge of
operating the airport would be COM
posed of three members selected by
the President. No qualifications are
outlined in the bill for these mem
bers. The only requirement is that
they shall live within 10 miles of
Washington.
Smith Leads Opposition.
Opposition to the airport bill was
led by Representative Smith, Demo-
crat of Virginia, who sponsored q
measure to locate the airport at
Gravelly Point He tried in vain to
alter the bill, offering two amend
ments which were promptly voted
down. One would have prevented use
of any Government property for an
airport. The other would have left
the members of the site selecting COM
mission undesignated.
Blanton did not oppose the bill, but
he objected to the Federal Govern
ment sharing in the expense of the
airport.
Representatives Randolph, of West
Virginia and Nichols, Democrat, of
Oklahoma, who served on the sub
committee that studied the airport
question, both fought Blanton's
amendment vigorously. '..
Nichols Fears Plan Doomed.
I'VE cannot force the District Of
Columbia to spend any sum of money
to build an airport" Nichols argued.
I'VE can simply make provision for It,
but we cannot force them, and II We
leave this amendment in the bill the
District Of Columbia will not build
the airport and the matter will stay
where it is now, with two little plots
of ground cut in, two by Military road.
where Eddie Rickenbacker testified
before our committee that every time
an airplane sat down over that Mill
tary road 1t endangered the lives Of
not only the passengers on the ship
but the lives of pedestrians along the
road"
Blanton led the fight against the
bill to relieve the Commissioners ana
certain other District officials of post
ing bonds, and by various parliamen-
tary tactics nearly succeeded in de-
feating 1t. On a roll call, however,
the House approved 1t. III to 1l5.
During the debate Blanton tangled
with Chairman Norton of the House
District Committee, who declared she
thought he was the entire Appropria-
tions Committee.
From what we hear on the floor"
she said, "one would not know that
anybody else was on the committee"