Evening star., 1943-07-07
Price Violations
Found in 54%
OF 646 Stores
Results Of Survey
Given ut Meeting
Of New Panels

here early last week were found to
be charging more than legal ceiling
prices for at least one commonly
bought food. Robert K. Thompson,
District Office of Price Administra-
ton director, disclosed last night.
Prices of IL selected foods were
surveyed, with the greatest number
OF ceiling violations being reported
in sales of meats, Mr.. Thompson
said. Forty-three per cent of the
stores were listed as charging too
much for pork chops, and 80 per
cent for round steak.
Sixty-two per cent of the estab-
hshments checked were discovered
to have made one error or more in
the posting of maximum prices on
the dozen selected food items.
Price Panel Personnel Attends.
Mr.. Thompson made his report
on results of the survey at an OPA
meeting in the Chamber of Com
merce building, where members OF
the Districts Is newly
price panels gathered to learn their
roles in helping to obtain compliance
with maximum price regulations.
The OPA director emphasized that
the survey figures showed violations
existing at the time the volunteer
workers who made the store-to-
store check called the retailers at
tention to his failure to comply with
posting and pricing rules.
Compliance Is now much higher
than these figures indicate" Mr..
Thompson said. He explained that
in large majority of cases." the
retailer made changes toward COM
pliance while the volunteer worker
was still in the store.
The survey was conducted by
about 200 volunteers. acting as price
panel assistants. 1t extended to
nearly all the 1900 food retailers in
the District, but only results of the
first SAG store visits have been tap-
ulated, Mr.. Thompson said.
Percentage of Compliance.
Food items covered in the survey
and the percentage of the 646 stores
found to be observing ceiling prices
were listed as follows:
Bread, SO per cent complying; cof-
fee. 95; spaghetti. 95; sugar, 81; lard
and shortening, 90; poultry, 90; but
ter, 80; eggs, "a; tomato juice. 78:
canned corn, rs; round steak, 10; and
pork chops, 81.
The percentage Of stores that had
properly posted prices were as fol-
lows:
Bread. so: coffee, S3: spaghetti 80;
sugar. So; lard and shortening, "a:
poultry, 81; butter. So; eggs, 81; to-
mato juice, 80; canned corn, 81;
round steak, Al; and pork chops. sc.
Sherwood Dodge, associate price
executive in charge of the District
OPA's new price panel program. ex-
planned the widespread failure to
post and observe price ceilings
on pork chops and round steak was
largely due to the fact that the
meat price charts, which OPA
planned to distribute to dealers two
weeks ago, did not arrive in time
from the printers. Though the CELL
ings have been in effect for several
| weeks, the charts are just now being
delivered to the retailers, Mr.. Dodge
said.
Praises Work of Assistants.
Mr.. Thompson praised the price
panel assistants for the manner in
which the survey was carried out.
The volunteer workers in all cases
introduced themselves to the store
keeper and pointed out to him any
violations they noted, he said. add
ing that only one retailer complained
about the manner in which a price
panel assistant made her investiga-
| ton.
In addition to making the price
check, the volunteer workers deliv-
cred cards to be hung in stores to
designate them as class l, 2, 3, or 4
establishments for price ceiling pur-
poses.
Reports Of violations gathered in
the survey will be turned over to
the new price panels, which will
hold their first meetings within the
next week at the call of their tenn
porary chairman. Mr.. Dodge told
Tic pdllei members.
Each panel will select the retailers
who apparently were the most fla
grant violators, and then can ar
range for the volunteer assistants to
make another check soon to see II
the violations reported have been
corrected, Mr.. Dodge said. Where
these violations have been corrected
by the time of the second investiga-
ton, no action will be taken against
the retailer.
Persuasion Method First.
If the violation continues, how
ever, the retailer will be summoned
before the panels, which will at
tempt. in neighborly fashion, to per-
suade him to comply. Storekeepers
who still violate price laws despite
these persuasive efforts will be re-
ported to the enforcement division
of the District OPA. John L. Lasky,
chief attorney for the local OPA,
outlined to panel members last night
the various legal steps that can be
taken against persistent violators.
c. w. Berueffy, enforcement at
torney for the Office, explained that
the enforcement division expects to
guide the new panels in their work.
M. l.. Egert, District OPA price ex-
ecutive, predicted that operation OF
the panels will give us effective
price control for the first time" Mr..
Egert said he hoped the more than
300 complaints about prices that are
now received daily by the local OPA
will be funneled through the price
panels.
He explained the panels also will
distribute information to retailers,
and later may organize clinics in
some cases to explain new price
regulations to the dealers.
The first meeting of the paid price
clerks who will handle routine work
for the panels will be held at 8 am.
Saturday at 1740 Massachusetts ave-
nue. NV, it was announced.
Five persons remain to be ap-
pointed as price panel members, be-
fore organization of the Is three
n, ep,har. no y,olc will ha coyor1eta