Evening star., 1937-07-07
BY ]. RUSSELL YOUNG.

In his determination to balance the
budget during the current fiscal year.
President Roosevelt has directed heads
Of Federal departments and inde-
pendent establishments and agencies
to figure on a saving of 10 per cent
in the amount Of money appropriated
for their use.
To work out details of this economy
program, the President has sent out a
letter inviting the heads of these de-
partments and agencies to meet with
him in the next day or so to talk over
matters
In announcing this program yes
terday. President Roosevelt said it
would apply principally to the emer-
gency agencies. adding he did not ex-
pect it to be reflected to any extent
in lowered pav-presumably through
furloughs-or personnel reductions.
Under the circumstances, officials
are inclined to believe that at the
outset it will be directed against any
expansion Of forces and that when
possible. vacancies occurring in the or
dinary course of things will ne left
untitled. Eventually it was felt, it
might serve to halt promotions.
Supplies and construction will be
other items in which administrators
will seek to save.
Discussing this subject at a press
conference, Mr.. Roosevelt predicted
that if he can bring about an average
10 per cent saving in this years ap-
preparation he will be able to impound
in the Treasury at least s40O, 900 900.
He said he realized this will be i'm
possible for some of the executive de-
partments. In this connection, he
mentioned the Army and Navy. He
added that he hopes to effect the
greatest saving in the emergency
agencies and some Of the inde-
pendent establishments.
The Presidents letter, dated June
% last, as made public at the White
House yesterday, follows:
In preparing the apportionment of
funds available for the fiscal year
1888. as called for by Treasury De-
partment circular No. 494, revision
No. of June IL, 1887, it is my desire
that there be set up such reserves as
will amount in the aggregate to not
less than 10 per cent Of the total
amount of all funds that are properly
susceptible to the establishment of re-
| serves for that fiscal year.
1T will not be possible, of course,
to establish reserve in such an ap-
preparation as the one for payment of
interest on the public debt, and there
will be numerous appropriations where
it will be impracticable to establish a
reserve as much as 10 per cent.
Sees Activity Curtailed.
"1n the aggregate, however, the
reserve should equal that percentage
of all apportioned funds susceptible to
the establishment of such reserves
and l have asked the acting director
of the Bureau of the Budget to see
that the apportionments for the fiscal
year reflect that accomplishment"
The present retrenchment move *
| the second that the President has
made in the past few months. In
April he called on the executive estab-
lishments to hold up what they could
out of the appropriations allotted for
the fiscal year 1887, producing saw
ing of approximately $95,000,000
In the meantime there were two
incipient economy waves in Congress,
neither of which attained any force.
Senator Byrnes, Democrat, Of South
Carolina proposed fat 10 per cent
cut in all appropriations, and Repre-
sentative Cannon, Democrat, of Mis-
souri, recommended legislation to give
the President power to impound Is
per cent Of the funds voted for 1888.