Evening star., 1942-01-23
Price Bill Agreement
Reached; Final Vote
Expected Today
Senator Sees Compromise
Measure Less Popular
Thon New Toxes'

Measure Less Popular
Thon New Toxes'
~ the Associated Press.
An neutrality-suspicious. war
time price-control easure
which some sponsors said may
prove more unpopular than new
taxes" was ready for final con-
Eressional action today.
Weary Senate House conferees
agreed on its terms last night after
nearly two weeks Of legislative
blanket pulling which ended in ad-
justment of wide differences be-
tween the two chambers of Congress
and the White House.
Representative Steaga1l, Democrat,
Of Alabama, who teamed with two
Democratic colleagues to break the
conference deadlock, predicted the
House would accept the bill as
amended In conference because
.there were compromises on both
sides."
Senate approval likewise was
ioreseen by Senators Brown, Demo-
crat, of Michigan, and Bankhead,
Democrat. of Alabama.
Food Cost Rise Predicted.
Senator Brown, who said the meas
nre might prove even less popular
than taxes, estimated that food costs
might rise as much as II to Is per
cent under the compromise measure
because of restrictions placed on
farm price ceilings.
Even so, think this Is a good
workable BILL" he said. at has the
mechanics for halting imitation and
uncontrolled price rises"
Senator Bankhead, who sponsored
the amendment to give the Secre-
tary OF Agriculture virtual veto
over price ceilings of farm products,
was jubilant over conference accept
ance of this provision. President
Roosevelt openly opposed the re-
striction. Ofdcials noted that the
Chief Executive had an ace in the
hole because both the Price Admin
istration and the Secretary OF Agr1-
culture serve only at his pleasure.
Asked Law Last July.
Mr.. Roosevelt asked for a price
control law last July in a special
message warning against the dan
gers of imitation and added costs to
the armament program. The House
passed q price control bill IN No
vember, before war broke out, and
the Senate passed its widely diner
ent version three weeks ago.
The compromise set prices during
the period october l to Is, 1941. as
standards for the price ceilings with
the exception of farm prices. In this
field the price administrator could
not fix ceilings or order reductions
below the highest of these: Average
farm prices on october l or Decem-
ber IS of last year; average farm
prices for the period 1919-29; or ITO
per cent of parity prices determined
by the Agriculture Department.
Senator Brown predicted the last
restriction would soon be the only
one because parity price levels-in-
tended to give a fair exchange value
to farm products-rise as the costs
of things the farmer buys increases.
Parity prices in most cases are based
on the ratio prevailing between
prices of farm. products and other
goods in the year 1909-14.
OMahoney Plan Eliminated.
Eliminated from the compromise
version was Senator OMahoney's,
Democrat, Of Wyoming amendment
which would have tied farm parity
prices to industrial wage levels.
President Roosevelt protested that
such a move would compel imitation.
Also eliminated was a house pro-
vision for a separate appeals board
of five members with powers to re-
view and supersede orders of the ad-
ministrator. This left these broad
powers in the hands of a single ad-
ministrator, expected to- be Leon
Henderson, the present acting ad-
mistrator.
The revised bill included Senate
provision for licensing business af-
fected by price maximums-a stim-
ulation previously rejected by the
House-and broad powers for the
Government to buy and sell COM
modities in order to stabilize price
levels.
The compromise also included au-
thority to fix rent maximums In de
fense housing areas" defined as
places where the war and defense
efforts threaten to increase rents
over the levels of or about April, 1,