Evening star., 1937-05-02

|
tered under social security was placed
at 26,0o0,000. BY adding figures from
! other sources on the number of work.
ers not covered by the social security
registration requirement. Vandenberg
said the total would indicate more
than 100000 gainfully employed
| The Michigan Senator asked the
Labor Department for a report on that
! analysis OF the situation In a reply
| from the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
authorities were cited to indicate that
Of the 26,00O000 registered under the
social security law, the probabi is
! that only about $4,000 900 are actually
employed. Applying this analysis 10
! Vandenberg's other figures, the bureau
arrived at approximately 100000
employed and stated this would be only
50OOOO more than the Labor Depart
ments February employment estimate.
Without questioning the bureaus
method Of analysis. Vandenberg said
the exchange Of correspondence clearly
demonstrated to him the vital need for
AN accurate, authentic, current cen.
sus Of the unemployed"
Efforts to have the States and local
authorities assume larger part Of ths
. total relief burden also is expected to
feature the forthcoming debate in Con.
gress.
s65 Month Per Man.
In last years House hearings on the
current relief appropriation, Works
Progress Administrator Harry L. Hop.
klns testified that the cost from Fed
eral funds for working a man in w.
P. A. is about s65 per month He asti-
mated the percentage of local contri-
buttons al SIS month, making a total
OF $50. On this basis, the local con-
trlbution averages 20 per cent. The
amount of local contribution on spe-
clflc w P. A. projects varies according
to the financial ability of the sponsor.
ing community.
In announcing recently his determi-
nation to reduce the relief budget es-
innate for next year. Senator Byrnes
declared that if localities sponsoring
w. P. A. projects were required to fur
nlsh so per cent of the cost. 81. .OO0..
100000 appropriation would be ample
for the coming year
This is the sixth year of congres.
sional consideration of the relief prob
lem since the R. F. c. was authorized
IN 1882 to advance to the States total
OF s300,000,000 TO help meet the relief
burden. Originally these allotments
were regarded as loans, to be deducted
from each States future Federal aid
highway grants. AS the depression
went deeper. however, Congress subse.
quently Cancelled the repayment re.
quirement from highway funds.
Direct Federal relief and work re-
lief projects started in 1898, and it is OF
interest in considering the pending
estimate for next year to look back
over the trend of past allotments and
the number cared for through the re-
lief rolls in the past.
The Federal Emergency Relief Ad.
ministration, the first agency set up
to handle direct relief, began func-
tioning in May, 1888. and during that
calendar year the Federal obligation
incurred for the continental United
States Through this one New Deal
agency was s48O7l6,27o. These were
grants to State relief agencies to aug.
ment local expenditures. BY Novem-
Der. 1888, it was estimated there were
3829,529 relief cases being cared for
by the Federal funds. A case meant
the unemployed head of family, or a
single needy individual.
In 1884 the F. E. R. A. obligation for
the whole Nation was sl,O65 ,OO4,451.
During the Winter months of 1894
the direct relief load went down, be-
cause the Civil Works Administration
had been set up as temporary agency
to provide work projects for employ
ableso In April of 1884 emphasis
again was placed on F. E. R. A.
straight relief, but with a work pro-
gram included for about 100000. In
April Of that year the number of re-
lief cases was approximately 44OO. 900,
and in October the number was ap-
proximately 100000 cases.
Sl.366, ,69S,477 in 1888.
For 1885 the F. E. r. A. financial
obligation was sl,366 ,698.477. The
emergency relief appropriation that
year was s4,o00,O00, 900. the remainder
being allocated to various other Gov
eminent agencies engaged in work.
creating activities) 1t was in March
OF 1895 that F. e. r. A. reached its
peak load with 5,493,0l3 cases on re-
lief. Then came gradual drop in
straight relief cases from March to
December. as the transition was made
from F. E. r. A. to the newly-created
w. P. A. The theory of w. P. A.
was to create projects on which en-
ployables could be given work and
gradually return the unemployables
to the care Of the States
In January of 1886 there were o.
929,630 persons employed on w. P. A.
projects. The number varied from
month to month, with the final week
of December showing 2,187,944. Last
year Congress appropriated s1,425,-
100000 for work relief and this was
augmented by s789 10000 deficiency
appropriation in February of this year,
making total of 2l4000,OO0 for
the current fiscal year. Some OF this
total went to other agencies, however.
the w. P. A. allotment being s1,751,-
264, 1897. AS March drew to a close
the w. P. A. rolls showed 2,11l,833
persons employed on projects.
(The foregoing figures on relief
cases and expenditures from year to
year are confined to the direct relief
and work relief activities of F. E. r.
A. and w. P. A. They do not cover
work created by emergency funds that
were allotted to various Government
departments, to p w. A. or other new
agencies)
Although the 10 per cent mandatory
cut in regular appropriation bills for
next year, together with specific re-
ductions Congress already has made
in the estimates of the various de-
partments, would save enough to meet
the anticipated budget deficit of $4l8,-
100000 next year; these savings, it
was indicated Yesterday, will not deter