Evening star., 1940-03-21

IL q Lew VIII A~""ichScs
voted for the statutes had the re-
motest idea the laws would be as
far-reaching as they are.
Under system of representative
government, elected officials make
the laws and the power to make
regulations is given to boards and
tribunals within specific limits. But
these regulations" are sometimes
based on broadly written language
in the law and the commissions
flguratively shrug their shoulders
and say, We'll, that's the law Con-
gress gave us to administer"
The theory back Of delegation of
power originally was that commits
sions and boards would use author
ity cautiously and with an idea of
carrying out the intent of Congress.
But who is judge of what that in
tent really is?
Claim of Superior Judgment
The other day the general coun-
sci of the S. E. G. was testifying
before a House committee and he
fatty told the members that he
thought he was better judge of
what Congress intended to say in
certain statute which the S. E. C.
enforces than were the members of
the committee in question. The
statement was subsequently denied
and stricken from the official record,
but that it was made is corroborated
by members of the House who
heard it.
Again and again governmental
commissions are claiming powers
that are not to be found in the
statute authorizing them in the first
instance. Thus Senator Wagner in
urging the labor relations bill which
bears his name told his fellow Sena-
tors that the law would not require
an employer ito sign any agreement
of any kind" But the Labor Board
now has stretched the law to mean
just such a compulsion and one Cir
cult Court of Appeals decision has
upheld the board in Interpreting the
law so drastically.
When the Senate Labor Committee
itself made report on the Wagner
bill, it said:
"The unfair labor practices
are strictly limited to those enumer-
ated in section g. Unlike the Fed
eral Trade Commission Act, this bill
Is specific in its terms Neither the
board nor the courts are given any
blanket authority to prohibit what
ever labor practices that in their
Judgment are unfair"
"Intent" Ignored.
But the Labor Board has ignored
this intent" of Congress altogether,
and yet there are members of Con-
gress now who refuse to allow the
statute to be defined carefully be-
cause they fear the Labor Boards
own bureaucratic power over their
constituents or its political alliance
with the c. I. o.
The Securities and Exchange Com
mission has raised an entirely diff
ferent set of questions. The statute
creating the S. E. c. was designed
to protect investors, but not to regu-
late the flow of capital in industry.
The New Dealers, however, have
managed to interpret the law to
mean that they can actually inter-
fere in management processes. If
Congress intended any such thing,
the record is barren of any such pur-
pose. Some of the regulations and
decisions of the S. E. c. endeavor
to add to what the law says inter-
pretations which Congress could
never have had in mind. That's one
reason why there's movement afoot
to investigate the S. E. C's decisions
and regulations with an idea of
ascertaining to what extent they
have deviated from the original
powers and to recommend a restric-
tion of such regulatory powers.
Political Tendencies Creep In.
1t is most unfortunate that the
s. E. G. has begun to answer attacks
in the manner in which the Labor
Board recently did, namely, by
attributing wrong motives to those
who are seeking a clarification of
the law. 1t is easy but not per-
suasive to contend that persons who
want the laws changed want ire
sponsibility to return to the world
of finance and investment. There
was a time when liberal element.