Evening star., 1940-04-08

prescribe a uniform procedure in
many Government commissions,
boards and agencies. From a read
ing of the press it will be inferred
that the President is opposed to,
and would veto, the Logan-Walter
bill and that he opposes the move
ment which has led to the pressure
for the passage of the measure.
1t would be a matter of great
surprise if the President who is so
interested in liberalism were to slam
the door on one of the most con-
structive pieces of liberal legisla-
ton that has ever been proposed. It
would mean that some of the eX-
tremists who gain his ear every now
formed him about the Logan-Walter
BILL for it seems incredible that the
President would champion the cause
Of administrative absolutism' and
freeze upon the American system of
government a series of arbitrary
procedures that deny the citizen a
fair hearing
The Logan-Walter bill was re-
ported to the House of Representa-
tives last July. 1t was passed by
the Senate and is on the calendar
with a motion to reconsider. Mean
while the President took such in
terest in the alleged abuses which
are sought to be cured that he
authorized the Attorney General to
appoint a committee to study the
whole subject and make a report
as to the remedies available in con-
nection with the reviews and orders
Of various governmental depart
nsnts. The President made it clear
he was impressed with the need
of some procedural reform in the
field of administrative law.
American Bar Approves.
Concurrently, too, the American
Bar Association after three years
of study approved, through its
Board of Governors and IT'S House
of Delegates. certain principles en-
bodied in the Logan-Walter bill and
approval has also been given by
State bar associations in California,
Colorado, Illinois, Nebraska, Ohio
and oregon and by city bar associa-
tions in Boston, Chicago, Cleveland,
Dallas, st. Louis and several others
In his discussion with the press
the other day the President was re-
ported to have made two main
points. One was that the Federal
Trade Commission was exempted
and he wondered why. Another was
that the proposal would afford op-
portunities for delay to the rich.
Now an examination of the Logan
Walter bill will disclose that not
only has the Federal Trade Com
mission been exempted, but also the
Interstate Commerce Commission
and several others, and the reason
Is that these agencies already have
equitable systems of procedure and
the courts and Congress have care
fully delimited their functions.
This, however, is not true of other
agencies of the Government. Even
Representative Celler, Democrat, of
New York, who presented the minor
ity report of the Judiciary Commit
tee, stating that the Logan-Walter
bill goes too far, made these sig
nificant comments at the time:
Some of the activities in the rul-
ings of the interagency bureas and
independent establishments have
been-to say the least-'bad.'
''To be specific: believe the Ma
tiOnal Labor Relations Board has
shown an utter disregard of Con-
gress. 1t has on several occasions
overridden the plain intent of the
basic statute creating it. 1t has
sought to legislate and replace Con-
gress.
Cites F. C. C. Case.
"The Federal Communications.
Commission some time ago issued
an order concerning international
broadcasts wherein it was stated
that there could be no broadcast ad-