Evening star., 1944-05-10
budgetHedriings
10 Review Need
of 0fWeIfareUn
Committee to Study
Testimony Token by
D'AIesondro Group
BY DON s. WARREN.

Budget needs of the municipal
welfare agencies will be reviewed
by the House Appropria-
tons Subcommittee in charge of the
l945 District supply bill before final
decisions are reached on amounts
to be included, Chairman Coffee
said today.
The welfare estimates recon-
mended by the Commissioners and
the Budget Bureau now total S8,573.-
600, including a recently submitted
request for an additional $4,000 for
child care services.
Among additional data to be
studied by the group are excerpts
from testimony taken at hearings
before the D'Alesandro Subcommit-
tee of the House District Committee
which Is considering the bill to
transfer the powers If the Board of
Public Welfare to tie Commission
ers and make the bard an advisory
body.
Division of Authority"
4 Meanwhile, though reserving
Judgment on the issue of whether
the Commissioners or the Welfare
Board should have unhampered ad-
ministrative control over the well
fare program, leading members OF
the Appropriations Subcommittee
indicated 1t would make recon-
mendations relating to the present
division of authority"-which now
is protested by both groups of city
officials.
Mr.. Coffee and Representative
Stefan, Republican, of Nebraska,
following a round-table debate yes
terday with the Commissioners and
Welfare Board members, concluded
there had been a lack of aggres-
siveness" on the part of the We'll
fare Board in urging improvements
1t found were needed In recent
years. They said they felt the divi-
sion of authority should be settled,
somehow.
They expressed surprise that the
original estimates of the Welfare
Board in the past four or five years
had been cut 100000 a year or
more before they reached Capitol
Hill-without Welfare Board men,
bers raising vigorous protests.
Haven't Put Up Fight"
Mr.. Coffee said: THE Welfare
Board members haven't put up
fight for what they found was
needed. When you are running a
business or welfare program cost
ing $4,000, 900 a year. you can't stop
with one rebuff. / am glad to note
that recently since this issue has
been agitated there has been a con-
siderable increase in action by the
board"
Mr.. Stefan said: "I would like
to see the Welfare Board preserved,
for it has vital place to fill in
this community But there is some
thing here that ought to be straight
ened out. We members of Congress
did not know in these past years
that the welfare budget requests
were cut that deeply. Why haven't
they been up to see us. The door
has been open"
At the conclusion of yesterdays
joint session, Chairman Edgar
Morris and other members of the
Welfare Board urged that a new
study of the whole welfare setup be
made by committee of citizens.
They insisted that the Welfare
Board should be given final author
ityn' subject to action by Congress
and availability of revenues, over
preparation of the welfare budget,
and full power to hire or fire well
fare administrative personnel.
Would Put Letter in Record.
Mr.. Morris also put into the record
letter from Conrad H. Van Hyning
at the time of his resignation as
welfare director early last year,
which said, in part:
Il think the boards failure to in
stitute machinery in order that it
could discharge its responsibility as
representing the citizens is one of
the reasons why there is not a wide
spread evidence of real support for
the function of the board at the
present time.
by machinery, I mean research
and statistical services in order to
prepare real reports which
would have told the story d" and
probably have resulted in improve
ments in some fields at a much
earlier date.
THE other way l think the board
has failed to represent it's citizens is
that it has not released its own
budget estimates and conducted
public hearings of its own to show
why they were needed. I realize
that to do this would have been in
conflict with the Commissioners, but
at the same time the board was left,
so to speak, holding the bag when
it was criticized for bad conditions
and its recommendations over the
years to improve those conditions
could not be brought to light.
I'm brief, do not think the board
has done enough fighting for the
thinoS ctNNl for