Evening star., 1942-10-04
By WILL P. KENNEDY.

by WILL r. hENNED1s
Both Senate and House are ex-
pected to pass during the coming
week the bills sponsored by Chair
man McCarran of the Senate Dis
trict Committee and Chairman John
F. Hunter of the House District Sub
committee on Fiscal Affairs to re-
store to tax exemption the proper
ties of many charitable. religious,
educational and scientific institu-
tions which have been declared tax
able by the Commissioners during
the past 18 months.
Other legislation of great import
ance to District residents is in the
works with the probability that 1t
will be passed before this Congress
closes. Leaders are also looking for
ward to strengthening both Senate
and House District Committees IN
the incoming Congress because 1t IS
realized as never before that these
committees will be called upon to
put through legislative measures,
which cannot now be foreseen, to
meet any emergencies that may arise
during these critical times, affecting
the District as the War Capital.
The bill for restoring tax exemp-
ton was favorably reported by the
Senate District Committee and is
to be taken up in the Senate just
as soon as possible without inter-
fering with national and war legis-
lation. The House will probably ac-
cept this same bill, because 1t en-
bodies recommendations considered
at hearings before the Hunter sub
committee in the House, and which
committee members apparently ap-
proved.
= It specifically exempts from real
estate taxes by name eight national
scientific, educational, research and
humanitarian associations: The Ma
tional Geographic Society, the
American Pharmaceutical Society
the National Academy of Sciences
the Brookings Institution, the Car
negie Institution, the American For
estry Association, the American AS
sociation for Teaching Speech to the
Deaf and the American Chemica
Society.
The question of how much abut-
ting land shall be taX-exempt Il
settled by allowing all such prop.
erty held on July l, 1912. to con.
tinue exempt until such time as any
portion of it may be sold for othel
purposes, when taxes would be col.
lected up to so per cent Of The ne
profit.
Another provision is that Build.
ings belonging to religious corpora
tions or societies primarily and reg
ularly used for religious worship
study, training and missionary &C
tivities' shall be exempt. This il
supplementary to exemption granted
to parish churches and rectories
and is intended to settle the con
troversy regarding exemption of tn
Franciscan Monastery and varioa
houses of study conducted by re
ligious societies, auxiliary to tn
Catholic University.
Other provisions are ,worded tt
guide the Commissioners with re
gard to libraries, art galleries, hos
pitals, schools, cemeteries-princi
pally that they are not operated TO
profit and are open to the public
The hospital provision is of specia
interest: Hospital buildings be
longing to and operated by organi
cations which are not organized 0
operated for private gain, includin
buildings are structures REASONABLE
necessary and usual to the opera
ton of hospital"
The Commissioners recommen
dation that all such institutions b
required to file a statement annual
| ly by March l showing the use t
which exempt property was pu
during the preceding year is car
ried in the bill.
A special House District subcom
mittee headed by Representativ
Dan r. McGehee of Mississippi ha
been comforting with District, civi
and business organizations and wit
social security officials relative t
reducing the so-called payroll tax
on employers from 2.7 per cent t
y of l per cent, since there is al
ready an accumulated surplus {
upward of $30,0O0,000 in the reserv
fund lying idle. Coupled with thi
is the proposal for establishment {
efficiency ratings. There has bee
considerable pressure for passage {
this legislation before Congress ad
journs, and this includes not onl
District interests, but many mem
bers of Congress whose home State
are facing a similar situation.
Within the next 30 days Congress
has been pledged to take action o
the question of overtime pay for a
Government employees as a perma
nent policy. Present action has ez
tended for another 60 days-a tot;
, OF a five-month period-time and
, half overtime for some 100000 en-
ployes, principally in the War an
Navy Departments. the Coast Guar
Maritime Commission and Isthmia
: Canal Commission. Chairma
Ramspeck of the House Civil Ser,
ice Committee has promised
bring the new measure setting
: permanent policy of overtime pa
for all Government workers, no
t numbering upward of 100000, bt