Evening star., 1941-08-03
Member of the Associated Press.
Price Control Bill

Price Control Bill
The administration price control
bill, as introduced in the House and
Senate, is a makeShift of political
compromises which does not augur
we'll for the future.
In it's statement of objectiveS the
bill is admirably phraSed. There can
be little question that the country
already is confronted with the eco
romic dangers inherent in an ex-
cessive general price advance. nor
Is it apt to be seriously contended
that effective and equitable price
control measures are not desirable.
But there is no reason to believe
that the administrators bill con-
forms to either of these require
mentS.
The bill gives the President very
broad powers to regulate rents in
defense areas and the prices of vir-
tually all commodities, but it is ex-
pressly provided that nothing in the
wording of the act shall be construed
as granting any authority to regu-
late wages Thus, the question OF
wage control, an important cost fac
tor affecting commodity prices, is
left on the voluntary basis which the
President proposed in his price con-
troll message. 1t remains to be seen,
of course, whether labor will volu-
tarily refrain from insisting on wage
increases which would nullify all
price control efforts under the bill,
but experience of the past few years
affords no basis for optimism in this
respect
The farmers. who, like labor, have
exceptional political power, also re-
ceive special and extraordinary con-
sideration under the terms of the
bill. AS introduced, the measure
prohibits the fixing of any price for
any farm product which is under
10 per cent of the parity price. 1t
has been reported that the bill as
originally submitted specified that
the agricultural ceiling should not
be less than 100 per cent of parity,
but as a last-minute concession to
the farm bloc this was raised ten
percentage points, and some of the
farm spokesmen in Congress are in
sisting that the limit should be fixed
at 120 per cent of parity.
Even if the 110 per cent figure
stands, however, this means that the
farmers are to be placed in Spe-
cially privileged category. AS a re-
suit of legislation adopted during
this session of Congress, the farmers
already are assured of receiving ap-
proximately 100 per cent of parity
for their products. The parity price
Is not measured in terms of dollars,
but In terms of the purchasing
power of the farmers income, and,
for most products, is based on the
period 19O9-1914, considered to be
the time in which the farmer en-
1oyed his greatest prosperity.
In other words, this means that
Congress, under the spur of the
powerful farm bloc, already has
endeavored to provide legislative
guarantee-at public expense-that
the farmers real income shall not
fall below that which he received in
the most favorable period that could
be selected. And now, under a price
control bill which certainly will work
hardships on many other segments
of the population, Congress asks the
public to foot the bill-in the form
of higher food and other coSts-for
an additional 10 per cent boost in
farm prosperity.
The inequity of such legislative
device is too obvious to require elab-
grafton. But it may well be won-
dered whether any bill as politically
distorted and as economically un-
sound as this one could serve any
useful long-range purpose if finally
enacted into law.