Evening star., 1939-03-01
First THINGS First

No great harm may result from
starting House hearings on the Dis
trict reorganization plan without
waiting for the draft of bill to show
exactly what powers and character
istics the new government would
possess. But it is hard to see either
benefit or time saving in what must
be a preliminary discussion.
In announcing that hearings will
be started, Chairman Kennedy of the
House subcommittee expressed fear
that postponement might prevent
congressional action at this session.
The chairman is of course actuated
by a sincere desire to improve the
District government and to do it
eXpeditiously. But under present
plans, Washingtonians must go be-
fore a committee tomorrow or the
next day and give opinions on
proposed new plan of government
without knowing the specifications.
And the specifications are of para
mount Importance.
While the experts have submitted
an eighty-siX-pa report, outlining
the structure of plan, by its own
terms the report leaves some of the
questions most vital to the local COM
munity unanswered, to be filled in
later by Congress.
If the members of Congress have
In mind merely a regrouping of
municipal agencies into seventeen
departments to achieve greater eff
cheney and economy, then the report
could be regarded as definite and
complete. 1t goes beyond that OBJ
jective, however, and suggests an
entirely new form of government,
with legislative governing body of
five or seven members replacing the
Board of Commissioners, and all ad-
ministrative authority concentrated
in a single administrator. Unfortu-
nately, it is in this most important
phase Of the subject that the experts
stopped short of sufficient detail to
show exactly what the scope and
powers of the new government would
be.
Would the new governing body be
made up of bona fide Washington
mans? How would it be selected?
How much power would Congress
delegate to it? Would the delegation
include the power of making appro-
priations? Would the legislative
council select the District admin
istrator or would the President ap-
point him? Would he be resident
Of Washington or brought in from
the outside?
These are vital questions to Wash
ington, not answered as definitely
in the report as they would have to
be in the draft of the enabling legis-
lation. How, then, can Washington
discuss them, or present constructive
testimony for or against them?
Two excerpts from the report will
demonstrate the need for a bill of
particulars. Speaking, in one place,
of the new governing body, the report
states:
ITO the extent that the governing
authority is to exercise the delegated
powers purely by means of legisla-
ton, its form and status do not come
within the scope of this report, which
has to do entirely, as already noted,
with administrative structure"
Again referring to the new govern
ing body, the experts say: "The COM
position of this body-a.id the
method of selection of it's members
has little or no bearing on the plan
Of administrative organization sug-
gested in this report"
That may be true as far as it goes,
but If the whole plan is to be carried
out, the composition of the body and
its method of selection as well as the
selection and qualifications of the
administrator is of deep concern to
the 100000 residents of the District.
Bearing in mind that any new form
Of government would replace an Or
ganic act under which the city has
been governed for more than sixty
years, 1t is not unreasonable to sug-
gest that citizens be permitted to see
the specifications before passing final
Judgment on the design.