Evening star., 1943-05-17

Interior Department
$11e,eee,475 Reduction
Requested by House
Appropriations Group
BY the Associated Press
A so per cent slash in the m
terror Departments funds for
the fiscal year starting July l
was recommended to the House
today by its Appropriations
Committee.
The committee asked that the
department headed by Secretary
Ickes, who had suggested economies
himself. be held to $72,S61,3l6. a
reduction Of s119,999,475 from the
current years appropriation.
The total was $9,372 ,260 less than
recommended by the Budget Bureau
and the committee said it had re-
duced the appropriations for every
activity except that for the Grazing
Service, which was given an increase
OF $50 900 to take over work formerly
handled by the Civilian Conservation
Corps.
WPB Criticized.
The committee criticized the War
Production Board for having stopped
work on irrigation and power projects
IN the West and urged that orders
halting work on % reclamation
projects be rescinded to permit them
to be used to increase food produc-
ton.
Money for the projects was ap-
propriated last year but the WPB
order prevented using it.
Undersecretary of Agriculture
Grover B. Hill testified at hearings
on the bill that the food shortage
was serious and the committee said
1t was deeply impressed by the
frank statement"
Regardless of how much food we
Will produce, it will not be enough. i"
Mr.. Hill told the committee. Even
though we could produce twice as
much food as we will be able to pro-
duce, we could use it all. However
l don't think we are going to 20
hungry. We will conserve our food.
We will only divide with our Allies
to the extent that we can still have
food to eat; but, for the prosecu-
ton OF the war 1t would be i'm
possible for us in this country to
produce as much food as we could
use in this war"
Reconsideration Suggested.
Mr.. Hill told the committee the
food stortage was possibly more
acute on the West Coast due to the
influx of war industries and work.
ers.
The committee said that in view of
Mr.. Hills statement it hoped the
WLB would "reinvestigate and seri-
ously consider allowing priorities to
permit resumption Of work on the
% reclamation projects"
while. justification may have
existed for the issuance of the stop
orders in October, 1912, when the
food shortage was not so apparent,
the committee is strongly of the
opinion that the time for optimism
and complacency on the part Of re-
sponsible officials has passed. These
stop orders have involved serious
delay in development Of 877 500
acres of new land and 2,085 900
Nf nvictioo 1oyol S@x uy13tnI1
supplemental water supply is need
ed"
The report added that in view Of
the necessity OF feeding the civilian
population, the armed forces and
aiding our Allies consideration
should be given to Inauguration Of
new and supplemental list Of irri-
CATION projects.
Ickes Testified.
Secretary Ickes told the commit
tee, In testimony also made public,
that his department, in urging sharp
reduction in appropriations for next
year, had made efforts to increase
food production. Production on
land under the departments juris-
diction, he said, could be increased
next year to provide meat rations
for 100000 persons, fish for an
additional 100000, milk products
for about 100000, beans for almost
100000 and potatoes for T.
100000.
"We are under obligation to in
crease food production, and substan-
tial increases can be obtained
through completion of % irrigation
projects of the Bureau of Rechma-
ton that were under way but which
are now halted" Mr.. Ickes said.
THE bureau Is prepared to initiate
construction on new projects-39 in
all-which by l945 could supply
water to 1,678,877 acres in Is States"
j. A. Krug, vice chairman of the
WPB, defended the orders hating
the irrigation and power work, but
said they were being reviewed to de-
eide whether the projects should be
revived.
'The reasons for stopping not
only the Federal hydro developments
but also other projects were to save
material, labor, equipment and con-
struction plant for more essential
purposes" Mr.. Krug said, adding 1t
was done on ''the assumption that
all the material we had was needed
for something directly related to
the war"
The amounts recommended by the
committee for the various branches
Of the department and cuts COM
pared to the present years appro-
priations were:
aecretarva of1lca. A.02a. 40: da.