Evening star., 1943-04-23
Ickes Widens Powers
OF West Coast Office
To Spur Oil Output
Gives Regional Director
Authority to Deal With
Problems in Thut Area

The latest step toward decentral-
izng the Federal Government was
revealed today in the announcement
by Petroleum Administrator Ickes
that administrative authority to
deal with oil problems on the Pacific
Coast has been delegated to Herbert
r. Gallagher, Los Angeles, director
Of Region 5.
According to the PAW, this is the
FIRST in series of projected plans
to place greater power in the hands
of regional officials to facilitate the
greater production of oil throughout
the country. Region comprises
the States of California, Oregon,
Washington, Arizona and Nevada
and the Territories of Alaska and
Hawaii.
New Drilling Procedure.
At the same time, a. new stand
ardized procedure for drilling new
wells in the region was established
by the PAW. Under the new regu-
lations, it was said, about 80 per
cent of the wells drilled on the West
Coast will become automatically
eligible for licenses.
The new powers granted the Pa
cific Coast regional director were
described by PAW spokesman here
as giving him final authority within
certain limitations" The same off,
cial said this policy constituted
precedent so far as the PAW was
concerned at least.
Whether or not the new powers
given the Pacific Coast PAW re-
gional director 90 further toward
establishing sectional autonomy
than has been the practice in Fed
eral field relations could not be
readily determined without a COM
prehensive comparison of Mr.. Gal
lagher's new powers with those of
other field representatives, accord
ing to Oscar Cox, assistant United
States Solicitor General.
Mr.. Cox pointed out that Army
Ordnance field men have for some
time had the power to make con-
tracts without obtaining approval
from Washington and that area
representatives of other Federal
agencies have been given varying
degrees of limited authority in their
respective districts.
Can Make Exceptions.
Mr.. Gallagher's new powers en-
brace the right to make exceptions
to the regulations in certain cases
where he believes such exceptions
will be desirable to increase the total
output of oil in the United States.
He is also authorized to redelegate
some Of his powers to other PAW
officials in the region.
The PAW spokesman said this del
egation of authority to field rep
resentative was part of a general
process of decentralization being
carried on by the PAW" He pointed
out that most of the oil-producing
areas of the country have problems
peculiar to themselves and that
these questions can be handled bet
ter by some one in the area than by
some one in Washington.
The California oil industry, he
said, has alway been an entity en-
tirely apart from other oil fields.
Normally, he pointed out, almost no
oil is shipped from the West Coast
to the East, with the result that
the industry in California has grown
away from that in other parts Of
the country and has developed its
own special problems.
The new procedure, the PAW
hopes, will greatly simplify the
licensing of newly drilled wells and
will permit oil producers in Califor-
MIA and other Far Western States
to chart their course" for many
years ahead.