Evening star., 1941-02-16
Defense Activities
Expected 10 Be Put
Under One Agency
Elimination of Red Tupe
Likely by Act Of Congress
And Executive Order
By JAMES FREE.

The complicated national defense
responsibilities now divided among
the ONCE of Production Manage
rnent. the Advisory Commission to
the Council of National Defense and
the Once of Emergency Manage
ment, will be simplifled and concen-
trated under single agency, it was
predicted yesterday in authoritative
circles.
This action, it was forecast, will be
IN the form of an act of Congress
transferring certain powers granted
the Council of National Defense Gin
a statute passed in 1870 to the
Office of Emergency Management.
Then will follow an executive order
by the President placing the activi-
ties now under the council under
supervision of the Office of Emer-
gency Management, according to
the prediction
AS the Office of Production Man
agement already operates legally
under the Office of Emergency Man
agement, created in 1889 under gov
ernmental reorganization powers
given the President, the effect Of
these moves would be to centralize
defense activities under the Office
of Emergency Management.
May Act at This Session.
There was no estimate on when
these steps would be taken, but it
was thought probably they would
come during the current session Of
Congress.
1t was stressed that under the
new arrangement the President
would have no more authority than
at present and that the Office of
Production Management-consist-
ing of William S. KnudSen and
Sidney Hillman. director general
and associate director general, re-
spectively, and the Secretaries of
War and Navy-would continue to
deal directly with the President as
1t does now.
The primary effect Of the pre-
Gicted changes would be to termin-
ate officially the Advisory Commis-
sion's divisions supposedly dealing
with work that has been taken over
by the production, purchasing and
priorities divisions of the o. P M.
And also to shift other commission
functions, now co-ordinated closely
with o. P. M, to an actual legal
kinship of the same creative author
ity-the Office of Emergency Man
agement.
Red Tape Eliminated.
hi m
terms. means elimination Of red
tape and no-longer- r-active paper
agencies.
When the Council Of National
Defense was formed consisting of
the Secretaries Of War, Navy, In
terror. Agriculture, Commerce and
Labor 1t was thought that the ad-
visory powers of the commission
that the council nominated and the
President appointed, would be suf-
ficient to carry out defense needs.
Later, when it developed that
more executive authority was es-
sential. the President created the
o. P. M.
Since Mr.. Knudsen and Mr.. Hill
man were important parts OF the
Advisory Commission before they
were put at the head of o. P. M,
the effect Of the change was to
concentrate mobilization of ma
terials and industry under o. P M.
with other divisions of the Advisory
Commission remaining, legally at
least, where they were. Actually
they are operating, in all except
name and legalistic differences,
under o. P. M.
1t may be argued that the Ad-
visory Commission still functions
under the Council of National De-
fense, rather than the o. p. NJ,
and this is true on paper. But it is
significant that there has never
been a meeting of the council (ac-
cording to high oflciaD, while the
o. P. M. confers often and long.
And it is noteworthy, too, that all
official press releases of Advisory
Commission divisions must be
cleared through the information di-
vision of o. P. M.