Evening star., 1946-03-09
a Million Budget Cut
Indicated Despite DC.
Sales Tax Proposal
By Don S. Warren


despite proposals for boosted Fed.
eral payment and a city sales tax
it was indicated today by the Coffee
Subcommittee of the House Appro-
priations Committee.
Predictions of such action, de-
signed as insurance against munic-
ipal Bankruptcy" were heard to-
day on Capitol Hill, although formal
decisions were deferred for about
a week to await printing of the
transcript.
Committee reaction to burgeonine
budget requests, multiplied at yes
terday's full day consideration of
citizens views, and to the virtual
certainty" of enactment of the
pending Federal pay bill that would
add about 100000 to District
costs, indicated drastic action was
in the offing.
New Proposals Face Cut.
There was belief also that most
all the more recent proposals for
additional outlays would be cut or
rejected entirely.
Sentiment for a balanced budget
that would leave a cushion to add
extra costs, reasonably to be ex-
pected, to next years bill zoomed
yesterday when the Board of Trade
submitted its budget survey report
This warned of prospective addi-
tional financial burdens and recon-
mended both higher Federal pay
ment and adoption of a sales tax,
though legislative authorization
would be needed for both.
The report was submitted for the
trade body's board of directors and
its Municipal Finance Committee
by L. H. Parker, tax consultant,
formerly for II years a member of
the staff of the Congressional Joint
Committee on Internal Revenue
Taxation.
Exempts Food for Homes.
In recommending a sales tax
exempting medicines, food purchased
for home consumption and all sales
under Is cents, he said this was
considered the "one sizeable source"
of increased tax revenues that could
be adopted without doing injury
to the economic structure"
Mr.. Parker recalled that the Board
of Trade and the Commissioners
had recommended such a tax in
1889. 1T was suggested to round out
possible addition revenues along
with proposed heavy increase in
the Federal payment.
On this point, he said 1t was be-
lieved quite likely" there is a legit-
innate requirement to increase the
l947 budget to figure greater than
revenues anticipated for next year
The primary responsibility" to pro-
vide the increased funds, the trade
body holds. he said, rests with the
Federal Government for reasons
recently outlined in the fiscal study
report by Representative Stefan, Re-
publican, of Nebraska, ranking
minority member of the District
Subcommittee.
I'VE desire to remind the commit
tee," Mr.. Parker continued, that
the steady decrease in the Federal
payment, which in 1920 amounted
to $23.04 per capita, but in 1916 tc
but $6.38 per capita, obviously i'm
poses a severe strain in this COM
munity. Here, the per capita
general-fund costs OF operation have
increased so per cent in rs years
and the per capita general-funo
receipts have more than doubled
while the per capita Federal pay
ment has shrunk by more than rs
per cent"
Cites General Fund Increase.
General fund budget requests fol-
the next fiscal year, he said, repre-
sent an increase of more than g.
per cent since 1910. Voicing concern
over rapidly increasing costs of oper.
alton, he anticipated there would he
a further increase in estimates fol-
the 1948 fiscal year.
Congress, he added, should recog-
nize that the tax burden in the
District on residents who pay taxes
is now slightly heavier than the
burden placed on residents of the
surrounding Metropolitan Area"
Granting this, then Congress
should acknowledge that the "eco-
nomic stability of the District will
be harmed, because of a resultant
movement of homes and businesses
into surrounding Maryland and
Virginia" if there is an appreciable
increase in the tax load on District
residents.
In other words, the trade body
holds, he said, that there is a prac-
tlcal limit on taxes which can be
assessed here and that expenditures
necessarily must be held within
that limit.
Would Defer Construction,
The trade body also urged that
every capital improvement not "ab-
solutely essential to health and
welfare" should be postponed so as
to leave construction materials
available for construction of homes
the greatest need" in view of the
housing shortage.
This view of the budget was in
sharp contrast to most of yester-
days testimony. Most civic wit
nesses gave no outward considera-
ton to the budget totals or reve-
nues, but argued for increased funds
for various services.
Among these were DELEGATIONS
from the Federation of Churches,
the Council of Social Agencies, the
American Automobile Association,
the American Association of Social
workers and the group of working
mothers pleading for funds for con-
tlnuation Of the Districts child-care
centers.
An exception was Mrs. Ernest w
Howard, speaking for the Public
Welfare Committee of the Fedora
ton OF Citizens Association. who
supported all requests included in
the pending presidential" budget
and advocated that, it be kept 'bal-
anced" against revenues. She won
commendation from Chairman Cof-
fee for her reasonable approach. >
More Employees Asked.
Representatives of the Voteless
D. G. League of Women Voters
called for considerable expansion o1
the budget to provide for mon,