Evening star., 1938-02-15
DISTRICT HEADS
REVISING PLANS
FOR REORGAN|z|NG
Each Commissioner Would
Have Executive Secretary
Under Proposal.
POLICE MERGER TO BE
ONLY ONE SUGGESTED
Will Follow Recommendation of
Citizens Committee for Sep.
arate Budget Office.
By NELSON SHEPARD.

~ ANHA<SOA$ ANIL
The Commissioners are beginning
to make drastic revisions in some of
the major proposals for reorganiza-
ton of the District government sub
mitted some time ago by the Citizens
Committee, of which e. Barrett Pret-
lyman was chairman.
Chief among the new recommended
tions that will be forwarded to Con-
gresS, Commissioner Hazen explained,
is an entirely new plan to create
under each Commissioner the post
Of executive secretary. To each Of
these executive secretaries. three in
number, would be assigned duties as
the Commissioners saw fit. They
would be empowered, furthermore, to
act in the absence of the Commits
sioners.
This plan is recommended in place
of the proposal Of the Citizens Com
mittee to consolidate the various de-
partments of the local government
under eight directors, with one over
each department. This was one of
the arch stones of the former report,
and by completely ditching the plan
the Commissioners believe they have
hit on something that would ex-
pedite and facilitate governmental
functioning.
Only Seek Merger of Police.
I'VE don't want to combine any
of the District departments, as for
merly proposed, except the metro
politan and park police" Mr.. Hazen
said.
I'VE feel that three executive sec
retaries would be more efficient than
the idea of having eight directors"
Each Commissioner now is assigned
to various departments, over which
he is in effect the director. They
could see no advantage in setting up
new directors when the present sys-
tenn could do the work just as well
if not better, they felt.
Mr.. Hazen explained that the pro-
posed executive secretaries would be
able to relieve the Commissioners of
many routine duties which now take
up much of their time at board
meetings. Such questions as the re-
vocation of licenses. for instance,
could be entrusted to them.
The Commissioners began taking up
the draft of the reorganization bill
as a result of criticisms Of delay
When the revision is completed 1t
will be forwarded to the Senate and
Lo,,co D;ctr;o+ Co,, roittaoc Nv uo,on
did not indicate when that would be,
except sometime during the present
session.
Separate Budget Office.
They will follow the suggestions of
the Citizens Committee by recon-
mending a separate budget Office for
the District.
Mr.. Hazen said it is their intention
to recommend that the report Of the
budget officer be sent to the Presi-
dent with request that he forward
it direct to Congress without referring
it to the Federal Budget Bureau for
hearings In that event the hearings
would be conducted solely at the
Capitol.
The proposal, if it proves accept
able, would give the District better
opportunity to present its budget
needs. The District budget officer
would be clothed with sufficient power,
it was said. to go into eevery depart
ment and ascertain the actual
amounts necessary for the fiscal year.
1t would be entirely representative in
that way of the needs Of the local
government.
Mr.. Hazen said there Is no inten-
tion to disturb the present status of
the Board Of Education or the Board
of Public Welfare.
Following the suggestion Of the
Citizens Committee, they will rec
ommend a merger of the United
States park police with the metro
politan police. The park police are
now under the Jurisdiction Of Sec
retary of the Interior Ickes. In throw
ing down this guage the Commis-
sioners perhaps have picked . lively
fight.
Seek Smaller Park Control.
Under the Commissioners plan the
smaller parks of the city would be
turned over to the supervision and
care of the District government. Al.
parks, even the small triangles al
street intersections, now are under the
Office of National Capital Parks
which in turn is under Secretary
Ickes.
I'VE don't propose to take over
Jurisdiction of Potomac Park, Rock
Creek Park. the Mall and Anacostia
Park, which are also under the Ma
tional Capital Parks ONCE" Mr.. Haz-
en- said.
Other proposals which the Com
missioners are planning TO recon-
mend, he said, would place the re-
corder of deeds under the Commis-
sioners and provide for one additional
Police Court judge.
It also was decided to relieve the
District government Of the burden
of defraying the entire maintenance
Of the National Geological Park. The
cost would be shared equally between
the Federal and District governments
Under the nlqn