Smyrna times., 1936-02-13
DEMANDS GROW
FOR PENSIONS
State Old Age Welfare Com
mission Sees Attempt to
Share Funds
REPORT TO GOVERNOR

some Delawareans to apply for old
age pension assistance on the the
ory that they might just as well
get their share of public funds is
outlined in the annual report of the
State Old Age Welfare Commits
sion to Governor Buck, made pub
lie last week. Other features of
the report inclule a growing pen
sion waiting List believed to be
largely the result of the enactment
of the Federal security act, pro-
viding for State participation, and
an unusually low operating cost of
.0472 Of a 100000 fund for the
past year. In extenuation of the
tendency to rush for pension aid,
the Commissions report states:
'fWe should not blame them al
together for it seems as if such
would be the inevitable result of all
this nation wide demand for old
age assistance, public grants, etc.
1t is presenting G very serious and
difficult problem to the State and
the Commission.
The commission reported further
that its work had been carried on
with efficiency and with as low a
percentage of administrative costs
as possible. From January to De
cember inclusive the total expendi-
ture was S197, ,326.76 but the com
mission explains:
you will note that the total ex-
penditures for the year are S197,-
326.76. This woull indicate that the
total appropriation of 100000 had
not been spent, but this is not the
case. The figures shown are from
January 1885 to December 1885 in
elusive, whereas the appropriation
runs from July 1 to June 80 of each
year. You will also note that the
report does not show any fees for
meeting or mileage of the commits
sioners. This is due to the fact
that meetings have been combined
with those of the State Welfare
Home, thereby saving the expense"
The report shows that on Decem-
ber 81 1885, there were 1869 per-
sons on the pension list compared
with 1865 persons on the lists in
January of last year. The average
pension per person ranged from
S9.87 in one month to S995 in an
other month. Considerable space
In the report is devoted to the dis
cussion of the application of the
Federal Social Security Act to Del
aware as regarding old age pen
sions.
Your Commission, Governor
Buck is Informed, has been in con-
ference by letter and personally
with the Social Security Board ex-
ecutives. We have submitted our
law to them and we have their as
surance that there is now no OBJ
stacle in the way of our complete
cooperation with the Federal gov
ernment and our receiving Federal
old age assistance according to the
security act, when such funds are
available.
There may be one or two claus
es in our old age assistance law
which it would be well to amend at
the next session of the Legislature
but fortunately the authority anl
power given the Old Age Welfare
Commission under this law and un-
der the correlate law establishing
the Welfare Home, has made it
possible to meet the requirements
Of the Social Security Commission
even without amendment"
I'VE refer particularly concern
ing the matter Of possible amend
ment, to the clause in our law re-
quiring fifteen years residence in
the United States. The Federal
law explicitly requires that no cit
izen of the United States otherwise
eligible shall be excluded or dis
eliminated against and it is very
evident that our law, requiring fif-
teen years residence in the country,
might exclude a person who has
been in this country less than fif-
teen years and yet had been a citi-
zen for some time. This, in the
opinion of the Attorney General, is
very clear. At the same time it is
his opinion that our law giving the
Old Age Welfare Commission the
funds for outside relief in connec-
tion with the Welfare Home makes
it fully possible for us to take care
of such cases as might be excluded
under this fifteen years residence
requirement.
THE Social Security Board was
satisfied that the objection which
they might have to this clause is
fully met by the supplemental
funds which the Old Age Welfare
Commission has in connection with
outside relief, and such isolated
cases as might occur of this kind
can be readily taken acre of. They
were entirely satisfied on that
point, but in order to have our law
conform more fully, it seems to us