Evening star., 1943-09-17
ID. {. Heads Stiff
Proposals for
Budget Funds
Citizens Groups Ask
Schools, Fairgrounds;
Lusk Urges Tax Cut
By DON S. WARREN.

tions they received at yesterdays
public hearings on the proposed 1945
funds requests of municipal depart
ments. and shortly they will mark
up their own plan for the next fiscal
year.
Presentation of views of organized
groups brought the public hearings
to close in midafternoon yester-
day, although it had been planned
to continue hearings through today.
Rufus S. Lusk, president of the
Washington Taxpayers Association,
proposed the use Of any general
fund surplus above a reasonable"
working balance in the fiscal year
for reduction of real estate and per-
sonal property taxes.
Would Revise Tax Philosophy.
He said:
when the war ends, Washington
will be many millions in arrears in
its program for needed capital i'm
provements. What the lag will be is
hard to tell, but it is likely to run
to between $4,000, 900 and $50, 0,0O0,-
600. This will require a larger
budget. Where is the additional
money to come from? With our
present tax setup it could come only
from one place, the realty and per-
sonal tax"
Mr.. Lusk added that one reason
why Washington is in excellent"
f1nanial condition is that realty
taxes are not confiscatory, stating
that such conditions exist in a num-
Der Of other cities.
Mr.. Lusk urged general revision
OF the whole philosophy" OF taxing
real estate. He recalled that agents
OF the Treasury have proposed an
occupancy tax and that others be-
heved real estate should be taxed,
as in England, on the basis of in
come, and asserted that our present
realty taxing method Is unfair"
and sometimes disastrous" on
cities.
Funds Asked For Taft High.
Funds for completion of the Taft
Junior High School, including a
gymnasium and swimming pool,
were urged by John l.. Fowler, rep
resenting the Rhode Island Avenue
Citizens Association. Consideration
also should be given possibilities of
q combined senior Junior high
school use for the completed build
ing, or to construction of separate
senior high. for the area. he said.
Purchase Of land for an elementary
school near Fifteenth and Hamlin
streets NE, and provision of lights
and other improvements for the
Langdon playground and the Taft
Recreation Center also were urged,
An appropriation of $25,O00 was
sought by the Progressive Citizens
Association Of GeorystSWn for
draining "stagnant" water in the
old Chesapeake 4 Ohio. Canal, in
Georgetown. Mrs. Elizabeth T..
Sullivan declared mosquitoes had
been worse than usual this summer.
The Georgetown group also sup
ported requests OF the Board Of
Education for purchase Of sites for
schools to be built after the war,
urged extensive repairs. to Western
High School and asked that the
health and physical education pro-
gram be improved and intensified. !"
$600,O0o Urged For Repairs.
An appropriation of $500 900 for
| repairs to school buildings was
| urged.
Request for some additional en-
ployes for full-time service of CHEVY
Chase sub-branch library was voiced
by Mrs. Frank S. Westbrook for
the Citizens Association of Chevy
Chase, D. C.
Marvin M. Mclean, representing
the Brookland Citizens Association.
| supported plans for purchase of a
site for branch library in Brook
land, saying the area has 5000 ele-
mentary and high school pupils and
many additional students attending
Catholic University.
On behalf Of the Advisory Com
mittee OF the Housekeeping Assist
ance Service of the Health Depart
ment, Dorothy D. Marsh, committee
chairman, urged continuation of the
present outlay of nearly $39 900
as a minimum" for the next fiscal
year.
Municipal Departments.
The 67,000,0 900 budget requests by
the municipal departments was
called the "irreducible minimum"
by Joseph D. Phillips, president,
and Elizabeth Searle, secretary of
the Washington Industrial Union
Council.
Because of the difficulties of the
OPA in enforcement of price CELL
ings here, the council proposed en-
ployment OF six additional inspec-
tors on the staff Of the Department
OF Weights, Measures and Markets,
to devote most of their time to
checking prices on food.
The CIO council urged enlarged
funds for the Health Department,
declaring the basic problem was
one Of housing and asking imme-
diate remedial action.
Similar demands for larger out
lays for welfare institutions and
public assistance were voiced by
Dorothy M. Hayes for Local 81,
United ONCE and Professional
Workers Of America (CIO).
Communities Ask Schools.
The Marshall Heights Civic Asso-
citation, represented by Charles H.
Smith, president, asked for funds
for a school and recreation center
for the community. Ellie S. Hoff-
man, for the Barry Farms Citizens
Association, urged funds for two
school sites, one for replacement
of the Birney School and the other
for a new school at Stanton road
and Bruce place Sc.
A plea for additional school ia
cilities for the area served by the
Walker-Jones and the Douglass Sim
mons School was presented by John
c. Payne and Corrine E. Martin for
the East Central Civic Associa-
tion.
Other representations included
the following:
Federation of Civic Associate tions
DR.. E. F. Harris. For establishment
| of additional recrea tinnal ceptars IL,