Evening star., 1937-03-09
UNIFORM SALE ACT
AND I OTHER D. c.
BILLS PASS HOUSE
Approved Measures Include
Detective Classification
and New Building.
ANOTHER INCREASES
FELONY PENALTIES
Regulation of Disposal of Goods
Evokes Criticism of Dis.
trict Committee.

The signature of President Roose-
velt on Senate bill No. 936 is all that
is necessary now to give the District
long-sought uniform sales act, SIM
liar to the one in force under the laws
of "a States.
The bill, which passed the Senate
February 10 last, went through the
House yesterday without amendment,
along with seven other District bills
on its calendar. incidentally, it was
the only one of the eight measures to
provoke any discussion. chiefly be-
Cause members of the District Com
mitee familiar with its details were
not available to give an explanation.
Sale of goods in the District will be
regulated under the bill beginning July
! next.
The District Commissioners rec
commended the legislation. and it came
to Congress with the Endorsement of
the Federation of Citizens AsSocia-
tions and numerous other organiza-
tionS, including the Federal Bar As
sociation, the Womens Bar Associa-
ton of the District and a special
committee of the District Bar Asso-
citation.
House Passes Detective Bill.
Other bills passed by the House, all
of which require Senate action, in
clude those establishing two classes
of detectives in the Police Depart.
ment and authorizing e. appropria-
ton of S500,000 for construction Of a
new building for the recorder of deeds
A third measure would name the
four new streets in the Mall Ohio,
Missouri, Oklahoma and Maine ave-
nues
bill increasing the penalty for
second and third offense felonies also
was passed. as we'll as a measure au-
thorizing an increase from $4,000 to
s25,000 in the appropriation for voca-
tional rehabilitation of disabled Dis
trict residents.
Another bill would authorize the
Board of Optometry to hold an ex-
animation so DR.. Welton B. Hutton
can qualify for license to practice
optometry.
Debate over the uniform sales bill
was initiated by Representative Mich
ener, Republican, of Michigan. who
insisted on an explanation of its vari-
GUS features. Finally Representative
Chandler, Democrat, of Tennessee,
who said he studied the measure, made
the explanation. Chandler, however,
is not member of the District Com
mittee.
Protests "Railr0ading."
eve are passing legislation here we
don't know anything about" Michener
declared. Il protest against the rail-
roading of such legislation through
Congress"
Michener later charged that some
members of the District Committee
had run off the floor" because they
didn't know anything about the bill.
we have lot of trouble getting
District bills through" Michener de-
clared. land this is an Illustration
why. The District Committee doesn't
SCClL w lCdlLHc "lldG ~ ID IOI. IL We
are going to PASS bills like this, why
have committee?
This is District day and it should
be serious day. This House today
is to the District what your State
Legislature is to your State. Your
committee should take things seriously
and not bring in here bills 1t don't
understand"
Representative Dirksen of Illinois,
ranking Republican member of the
District Committee, replied to Mich
ener. after inviting him to serve on
the District Committee.
"It is labor of love-" Dirksen
warned Michener. 1T gets no credit
back home. But all members Of this
committee have rendered yeoman serv-
ice to the country and to the Dis
trict.
When you legislate for the people
here it is quite different than legislat-
ing for the people back home. We
try, as far as possible, to give the
people of the District a measure Of
home rule and let them say what legis-
lation they want"
A.