Evening star., 1940-03-27
House Insists
On Wage-Hour
Fund Cuts
148- lis Teller Vote
UphoIds Committee,
Retains SIushes
BY the Associated Press.

6y tne ASSOClateQ fIeSS.
The House stood squarely behind
Its Appropriations Committee to-
day and insisted on slashing Pres
ident Roosevelt's recommendations
fer wage-hour law administrative
expenses.
It defeated on a teller vote of lis
to 14S, an attempt by Representative
Casey, Democrat, of Massachusetts
to restore a $1,035 900 cut in budget
estimates for wage-hour salaries for
the fiscal year beginning July /. That
would have raised the total for SAL
aries to $5,865 ,OO0
The Appropriations Committee
had asked the House to cut a total
of $1,080,000, including the salary
item-from the Presidents total re-
quest for $6.185 900 for the wage
hour administration because of
confused administrative problem"
and because the law needed amend
ments. The proposed total was
81 SAB 300 more than the current ap-
preparation.
Fleming's Position Described.
Col. Philip Fleming, wage-hour
administrator, was represented in
= the House earlier as believing that
IT Congress failed to provide ade-
quate funds for enforcement of the
wage-hour law the law should be
repealed. Col. Fleming's position
was described by Representative
Casey.
Representative Casey quoted Col.
Fleming as saying, IF the law isn't
effectively and efficiently enforced,
1T ought to go off the books"
Representative Casey said that,
while Government departments
usually could adjust their operations
to fit their pockets, the situation was
different with the Wage Hour Ad-
ministration.
This is vote for the wage-hour
law or against it, he asserted.
Army Of Inspectors.
Replying, Representative Houston.
Democrat, of Kansas said that if he
thought the cuts would impair
efficiency OF Tie act, he would sup
port Mr.. Casey's proposal.
But I don't think it is necessary
to send out an army of inspectors
when only per cent of industry is
complained against" Mr.. Houston
said.
Representative Cochran, Democrat,
of Missouri said he did not believe
in destroying" law by failure to
appropriate money, and Representa-
tive Marcantonio, American Labor,
of New York accused the Appropria-
tions Committee of creating "dic-
tatorship" over funds.
Administration supporters of the
National Labor Relations Board and
the Wage-Hour Division had rallied
forces in an uphill battle to restore
cuts in appropriations for the be-
leaguered agencies.
Cut Restoration Loses.
On a test vote late yesterday,
friends of the Wage-Hour Division
lost their first attempt to restore
proposed cuts for that agency. The
House rejected, 126 to 78, the re-
quest of Chairman Norton of the
House Labor Committee to add
$4,000 to the Labor Departments
travel expense fund.
Other fights were brewing over
the Appropriation Committees $685.
100000 proposal for the National
. Youth Administration - SIS ,O0O, 900
below the fund for the current year
and its move to eliminate 273
C. c. c. camps and save about one
fourth of the current 1894 ,955, 900
expenditure for that purpose.
The House voted yesterday, 800
to 10, in favor of a special parlia-
mentary rule permitting considera-
tion of the N. Y. A. appropriation.
The decision was viewed as an in
dication that the chamber would
authorize funds for the agency.
Representative Fish, Republican,
OF New York described Aubrey Will
1iams, National Youth administra-
tor, as "one of the pinkest men in
the country" He objected to N. Y.
A. assistance for a proposed Latin
American tour by a youth orches-
ira directed by Leopold Stokowski,
whom Representative Cox, Demo-
(See APpROPRTATTON pooo A-9