Evening star., 1944-06-18
A Timely Inquiry

A Timely Inquiry
The Senate Subcommittee on Dis
trict Appropriations has chosen an
appropriate time to order an inves-
tigation of the whole field of fiscal
relations between the Nation and
the District of Columbia. The value
of that investigation would be en-
hanced If it could be jointly con-
Quoted by the two committees, of
House and Senate, which control
local expenditures. But an investi-
cation by the Senate committee
alone should accomplish desirable
results.
There has been much recent dis
cussion of postwar development of
Washington. The appropriation bill
just reported contains funds ear
marked for postwar public works.
Out of the present confusion over
slum reclamation there probably
will emerge some legislation for
urban redevelopment in Washing
ton, in line with current national
thought. And the Budget Bureaus
recent report for reorganization of
the National Capital Park and Plan
ming Commission envisioned, a
stronger and more powerful agency
to direct and to control the antici-
pated future growth of Washington.
But it is in sense idle to make
all these plans until there is estab-,
lished some basic understanding as
to the source Of the necessary funds
and the division of obligation
between the exclusively controlling
Nation and the local taxpayer-to
furnish them. The adoption of
some fixed formula to measure the
extent of this obligation, on both
sides, would represent the most ef-.-
fective step in postwar planning
that could be taken at this time.
The present balance sheets on
District revenues are highly mis-
leading. Like most of the States
and municipalities throughout the
country, the District is collecting
more money than 1t can spend and
shows substantial surplus after
meeting the revenue demands of a,
record appropriation bill. But this
condition is induced solely by war;
time restrictions. With peace, the
District will be hard put to make
both ends meet or to provide the
bare essentials in municipal serv-
ices which the release of materials
and availability of manpower will
compel.
A. study of fiscal relations, under
taken during the current year, will
reveal that many of the prewar
inequities. under which the District
was charged with disproportionate
share of Capital City expenses, have
been magnified by the war emer-
gency. The House Subcommittee on
District Appropriations was i'm
pressed by this fact, and it was
made the subject of comment in
House debate both by Chairman
Coffee and Representative Stefan,
ranking minority member, Senator
Overton has emphasized the need
for immediate remedy. For, unless
these inequities are corrected, they
will continue, after the war, to af-
feet adversely every single step
taken in National Capital develop
ment.
The source of these inequities, al
though the results are widely scat
tered throughout municipal services,
lies in the inadequate Federal pay
ment in the District bill-the lump
sum. While the total municipal ex-
pense continues to increase, the
lump sum is relatively smaller than
it ever has been. Until it's size is
fixed in some definite relation to
the National Governments own OBJ
liga-on, no permanent or worth
while plan for Washington develop
ment can be expected to materialize.