Evening star., 1938-11-29
Board Orders
Survey
Brookings Experts
To Begin Study
Within 80 Days

The Montgomery County Board
of Commissioners today retained
the Brookings Institution of WASH
ington to make a survey of the
county government at cost not
to exceed $4,000.
The motion offered by Commits
sioner Richard H. Lansdale, Demo-
crat, and seconded by Commissioner
Paul NJ Coughlan, Republican, was
adopted unanimously, ending a
controversy that has ragged for
several weeks and became an elec-
ton issue.
The action followed conference
last night between the three DEM
ocratic commissioners, Robert D.
Hagner and Commissioners Lans-
dale and Clay Plummer, and DR..
Harold G.. Moulton, president of
the Brokings Institution. and Or.
Lewis Merriam, chairman OF the
department of political research OF
the institution.
DR.. Moulton, who will head the
group of staff members making
the survey. said that work would 5e
started within the next 80 days. The
project is expected to take at least
year, perhaps as long as two years.
Wants Complete Survey.
Mr.. Lansdale, after the resolution
was approved, issued a statement
in which he said that it was the
desire of the commissioners to have
the survey made as complete as the
institution believes will be advan-
tageous to the country. He said:
The recommendations OF the
Brookings Institution are to be III
complete detail concerning all I'M
portant administrative functions
such as assessing, auditing, col
lection of taxes and purchasing.
THE survey and the recommen-
dations are to recognize the existing
constitutional requirements that
duly elected Board of County Com
missioners shall be the admlnlstra-
tive governmental board OF the
county. 1t is agreed that should
the institution, after study, regard
it important to make recommenda-
tions under the charter amendment
to the Maryland constitution that
such recommendations shall be SUD-
mitted in a supplemental report.
ut is mutually understood that
should the supplemental report rec
ommend a change in the basic
governmental structure it will IN
clude not only a definite and de-
tailed plan of the changes rec
commended but also definite
program for the liquidation OF ex-
| isting indebtedness of the county
or any subdivision or governmental
agency thereof in connection with
any such proposed change in gov
ernmental structure.
Recommendations Favored.
Mr.. Lansdale explained that there
would be no attempt to limit the
scope of the survey but he be-
lieved it should carry detailed rec
concentrations in order to be of
the greatest possible use to the
county officials and the Legisla-
/ ture.
The survey was recommended last
! spring by the Montgomery County
Civic Federation, which pressed Re-
publican and Democratic candidates
to adopt it in their platform dur
ing the election campaign. The
project became political issue in
the closing weeks of the campaign
when the board authorized expendi-
ture of $4,000 to make the survey
and the Democratic members twice
voted down motions to authorize
the Brookings Institution to do the
work. The Republican board men,
bers charged the Democrats with
"stalling" until after the election
in order to pigeonhole the entire
project. The Democrats replied that
the project should not be made
political issue in the final days of
the campaign.