Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1944-02-11
After Peace Comes, What? Committee for Economic
Development Seeks Ways TO Maintain Employment
Survey of Community's
Postwar Business
Prospects Is Urged
BY ELLIOTT PINE

Released by western Newspaper Union.
Within a year, and perhaps
much sooner, the war in Europe
will end, according to most ex-
perts, both political and mill
tary. Immediately the prob
lens of reconverting wartime
America to peacetime produc-
ton will begin. Factories that
have been running day and night
will slow down and perhaps
close. Many thousands of men
will be released from the armed
forces. Labor shortages will
disappear, and before long, the
specter of unemployment will
be back.
1t was to try to devise ways for the
orderly return to peacetime produc-
ton, and to try to avoid the mass
unemployment that usually follows
war, that the Committee for Eco
nomic Development was organized,
little more than a year ago. This
committee is group of the ma
TONS foremost business executives,
bankers, economists, and other tech
meal experts. Chairman is Paul C.
Hoffman, president of the Studebak-
er corporation. The vice chairman
is the vice president of the Univer-
sity Of Chicago. Presidents of sew
eral nationally known corporations
serve on the committee.
The committee is not connected
with the federal government in any
way, although its office is in Wash
ington, D. C.. Its activities are split
into two major branches: Research
division, and Field Development d.
vision. The research division has the
task of investigating all policies of
business, labor and government that
retard expanding employment and
production. After finding out what
and where the trouble is, the re-
search division presents recommen-
dations for suitable changes.
The field development division
"has the responsibility of stimulat-
ing and helping individual enter
prises to plan now for high levels
Of productive employment and prof
table distribution in the postwar
period"
There are IL regional chairmen, l
for each Federal Reserve district,
who supervise the field development
divisions work in their sections. Un-
der the regional chairmen are state
chairmen, who in turn appoint
chairmen of county committees. FL
nally, the county committees super
wise the survey work Of the COM
munity committees.
How Albert Lea, MIMI, Does It.
A typical survey by community
committee is one conducted in Al
bert Lea, a city of 1920 in Free
born county, Minnesota. Freeborn
county is on the southern edge Of
the state, adjoining Iowa, so the
trading radius of Albert Lea includes
part of three northern Iowa coun-
ties. Nearly $4,000 people in the
agricultural region about the munic-
ipality trade at Albert LEAFS stores.
There are II major industries in
Albert Lea, and 442 businesses
classed as secondary employers.
There is a stove factory, a gas ma
chine factory, a creamery, a meat
packing plant, a food products MAX
er, and several specially products
manufacturers in the city. The cleo
trio power company is located there.
being county seat, ulere IS con-
siderable legal and clerical activity.
Keeping all these matters in mind,
the local economic development
committee began its survey of
postwar business and employment
possibilities. It's first ster IS to
set up two questions, the answers to
which were to be the solution of
its problem. Beginning with the
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