The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1940-09-04
THE
WASHINGTON
SCENE
BY HENRY ION
BY HENRY ION
Federated Press)

The Battle for Britain has little OF
the Battle for Housing going on be
hind the scenes in Washington
Bombs burst in air-and also In con-
gressional committee sessions, USHA
FILA and Natl. Defense Advisory Com.
mission offices, and even, it's said,
in the White House.
The issue is simple: Tens of thou
sands of houses have to be built for
defense workers in industry, army
and navy yards, camps, etc. Shall
they be sold to the workers on a
mortgage and taken away from them
If and when the crisis ends?
Or shall they be built by housing
authorities, rented to the workers at
a normal rent during the emergency
and then rented to low income fami-
lies at the usual USHA s13-a-month
rent?
President Roosevelt, labor, social
workers and many others insist that
USHA fit the defense job into the
whole task of housing low-income
workers. Real estate spectators in
sist on a chance to make housing a
profitable war baby again.
So close is the fight that the fail
ure of Rep. John ]. Delaney 3D., N.Y.
to show up at rules committee meet
ings left that group divided SIS. The
has before it a bill Is. 591) |
passed by the senate by a 2-to-1 vote
which will add $150OOO,O0O to USHA's
loanable funds.
A favorable vote in the house will |
start construction on 10000 houses,
provide s40,O00,OOO in wages, and
bring decent homes to steel towns,
ports and mining COM
where the need is among the
greatest in the land.
Sen. Robert F. Wagner ID, N.Y. l
llso tried to add $1,000 900 to a
laval appropriation bill, at the re
luest of manufacturers having navy
contracts. This plan will be fought
tut in sessions of the joint arpropria-
ions committees of the two houses.
The spectators are playing on the
desire for home ownership,
insisting that the defense workers are /
lot low-income workers because just
low overtime increases their wages, +,
nd are demanding that the FILA in
ure mortgages for these homes. The :
TIC should lend the 1917 down pay ,
lent, they add.
They frankly admit that thousands /,
t these homes will be lost by the pur- :
hasers unless the crisis lasts for the ]
0-year life of the mortgage Ignor- !
lg the loss to the workers, they claim :
ne loss to government will not be =
reater than the cost of low-rent hous- {
lg under USHA.
Middle-of-the-road observers ask ;
'hy ALL Of the housing needed in
MS emergency should be provided
y either the one method or the other
We have built 2,250,000 fewer homes
/ the last 10 years than were built
| the decade before 1917, yet there
as a devastating housing crisis in
,18. The need today is beyond all
of filling.
Why, then, should not every effort
? made to persuade each worker Il
no has had a steady income of $35 o
week before the recent upturn to
ly home of his own on FILA terms, N
ey ask, while the great mass of N
orkers whose experience shows they 81
uld not pay for their own homes tr
depression times are housed by &c
e housing authorities on USHA cc
rms? ne
Perhaps for years no subsidy will We
required on these USHA homes or
d bonds can speedily be paid off by In
rmal rents But If and when the mr.
Tense drive ends, employment falls, IN
al estate values collapse-then in
lad Of furnishing the workers who 4.
ide the guns by taking their homes n,
ray from them, Uncle Sam can read !,
adjust their rents to their real -; -.
lges.
This will save other realty values, 80
event the formation of great new
I'M areas, and purely incidentally ~.
We these thousands of families from o.,
5pair and defeat.