Evening star., 1943-05-22
Tax Conferees Look
To Byrnes for Aid in
Abatement Deadlock
George Plan Is Seen
As Possibility for
Eventual Agreement
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
Stabilizatio Director James F.
Byrnes was reported taking a
hand today in efforts to bring
about compromise between
Senate and House conferees in
what appeared to be an almost
hopeless deadlock on pay-as-
you-go tax legislation.
Should the Byrnes diplomacy fail
there was strong possibility that
the House might vote for the fourth
time on the modified Ruml plan to
skip tax year.
Lacking any definite word from
President Roosevelt on what sort of
current collection bill he would sign,
some conferees were reported to
have appealed to Mr.. Byrnes for an
expression of the administration at
titude. Their decision at a meeting
today, whether to abandon or con-
tlnue the conference, may rest on
Mr.. Byrnes' report. one member said
Abatement Big Issue.
The conference has been blocked
on the fundamental issue OF fat
abatement Of full or part OF
years tax on fixed horizontal basis,
or only partial cancellation on a
graduated basis.
The House-approved bill cancel
ling the s per cent normal and 13
per cent first bracket surtax on 1912
incomes apparently is being given
little consideration. All the pro-
posals would put into operation July
l 20 per cent withholding tax on
wages and salaries. above basic eX-
emptions.
If tine conference efforts result in
deadlock. Representative Knut-
son. Republican, of Minnesota, lead
er of the House Republican con-
ferees, said, We will return to the
House and ask for further instruc-
tlons'-thus paving the wav for an
other COP motion for the House to
accept the Senate's modified Ruml
bill. The House last Tuesday re-
fused. 202 to 1874. to instruct it's con-
ferees to accept the Senate-approved
tax bill.
Senate conferees reportedlv re-
Jected yesterday proposal by the
House group to adopt Ways and
Means Committee measure which
would grant greater percentage
abatement to those in the lower
brackets.
This action left still in the run
ming a proposal by Senator George,
Democrat. of Georgia to concel IS
per cent OF the lesser of either 1912
or 1943 taxes instead of the full
abatement on that basis voted bv
the Senate for all persons except
those with windfall incomes.
Senator George told reporters he
had received no word of either the
Presidents or the Treasury's point
of view on this, and when Repre-
sentative Doughton. Democrat. of
North Carolina was asked what the
Treasury's attitude was toward other
compromise proposals he replied
Its attitude is silence"
Mr. Doughton said, however. I'VE
are not approaching the problem
from what the President would do
or would not do. We want to write
bill acceptable to Congress.
Conferees were reported to have
agreed generally yesterday that
there is little to be gained by COM
promising on any measure the
President will not sign-such as the
Senate bill to which he has clearly
opposed-since there is no indica-
ton Congress would override a veto.
Some conferees have abandoned
all hope for compromise, and
Senator George last night said, I'VE
have failed to make progress, but We
haven't abandoned hope. Tomorrow
will be decisive If We are unable
to agree We ought to be able to
determine that Tomorrow