Evening star., 1939-02-25
Commissioners Urge
Bill Allowing Cut in
D. {. Pay Roll Taxes
Heed Boards Contention
Of Unneeded Revenue;
Act on J Other Measures

Authority to levy pay roll taxes
on employers, or to adjust them up
or down within maximum limit Of
3 per cent, would be conferred on
the District Unemployment Com
pensation Board under the terms of
a proposed bill forwarded today to
the Budget Bureau by the Com
missioners.
This measure, under which the
District board foresees possibilities
OF cutting the present per cent
pay roll tax in about half, was one
OF eight upon which the Commits
sioners took action late yesterday.
The measure. which would amend
both the District Unemployment
Compensation and the Federal Social
Security Acts, would provide for
complete separation of the District
board from the Federal Social Secur-
ity Board.
Employers covered under the
terms of this bill would no longer
have to pay taxes under Title TX
OF the Federal act, the local board
to be given authority to fix rates Of
contributions by employers so as to
maintain the benefit payment re-
serve in the unemployment trust
fund in the United States Treasury
at approximately $4,000, 900, roughly
its present size.
Cite Storing of Surplus.
The District board has announced
several times present pay roll taxes
are very much greater than needed
to meet benefit payment demands.
The proposed measure also would
permit the District board to obtain
its administrative expenses from its
balance in the Treasury, subject to
limit of S500,000 per year. Nu-
merous more or less technical
changes also would be made in the
District unemployment compensa-
ton plan.
The Commissioners also asked
Budget Bureau approval for intro
auction of m }asure to establish
a lien for monies due hospitals for
services rendered victims of auto
mobile and other accidents. Hos
pltal authorities had advised the
Commissioners they frequently are
unable to collect bills in such cases,
even though the accident victim COL
lects damage payments from insur-
ance companies.
Would Extend Parking Meters.
Another proposed bill, previously
approved informally by the Com
missloners, provides for continued
use and extension of installation of
parking meters, They declared the
experiment with the meters along
some downtown streets had i'm
proved conditions and aided police
IN enforcing parking regulations.
The Commissioners also favored
amendment of the District adoption
laws to extend from so to % davS,
the time allowed the Board of Pub
lie Welfare to investigate adoption
cases referred to it for report by the
District Court. They also disap-
proved bill to re-enact section
821, chapter 4. part 7, Title Xxx, of
the Code of Laws of the District and
to include special assessments
among meanings of the words "all
| taxes"
Disapproval was voiced of q bill
to forbid the using of a part Of
the Farmers Market for one of the
automobile testing stations, now
under construction. Because of the
present study of proposals to re-
organize the District government,
the Commissioners withheld COM
ment on bill providing a Terri
torial form of government here.
A bill pending in Congress for re-
peal of the old 60-4O fiscal relation
ship was found by the Commission
ers to the unnecessary, inasmuch as
this provision was repealed nearly
! a year ago,