Evening star., 1947-07-14
DC. Recreation,
School Officials
House Home Rule Unit
Told Of Opposition to
Reduction of Powers
By HaroId B. ROGERS

\SSASAsSii W VWSFS
By HaroId B. Rogers
Officials Of the District Boards Of
and Recreation today
recommended that in any reorgani-
zation of the city government their
units should retain their present in
dependent and autonomous status.
Also testifying before the House
subcommittee on Home Rule and
Reorganization, Spokesmen for the
Board of Public Welfare urged that
this board should have more auton-
omy than it has now. They opposed
pending legislation to transfer most
Public Welfare power to the District
Commissioners leaving the board as
only an advisory agency.
Lengthy testimony to this same
effect presented recently by Welfare
Board members to another House
District subcommittee handling the
new legislation on the board was
made part of the Home Rule Sub
committee record.
Hearings to Last Rest of Month.
The bill, which would curtail the
powers of the present board, has
been approved by the full House
District Committee and is now on
the House calendar awaiting action.
The Home Rule Subcommittee this
morning launched its second week
Of considering many questions on
both home rule and reorganization
Of the District government. 1t will
continue hearings daily, Monday
through Friday, the rest of this
month.
No bill is before the Home Rule
group, but it is seeking testimony
from Federal and District officials
as well as individuals as a back
ground for writing proposed
charter for the District government
to be presented to Congress at its
next session in January.
For the Board of Education, DR..
Robert A. Maurer, it's vice president,
appeared to present the testimony
OF Mrs. Henry Grattan Doyle, its
president.
Urges Citizen Board.
He urged that citizen board
responsible for policies and admin
istration was preferable to any ad-
ministrator directly responsible to
the head of any District govern
ment A Board of Education, rep
resents, he said, cross-section Of
the community" and speaks for
public opinion.
Congress intended that education
in Washington should be entirely
removed from the influence of parti-
san politics, DR.. Maurer insisted.
Boards of education in most munich
palities, he pointed out. are not only
free of political supervision, but also
have certain powers over the financ-
ing and control of schools.
A board of education with nothing
but advisory powers, he predicted,
would be out of line with the prac-
tice in most cities. In several
municipalities and school districts,
he told the committee, the education
board has taxing powers which the
board here does not have.
He praised the system of appoint
ment of board members here by
judges Of the District Court as a
further guarantee of freedom from
politics.
Deane Expresses Intentions.
Representative Deane, Democrat,
of North Carolina, commented at
this point that the Home Rule Sub
committee is not thinking of any
political move which in any way
would lessen the efficiency of Dis
trict Government administration"
AS member of the minority party
on the House District Committee
presiding at the hearing, he declared
the committees desire was to ex-
plore the complex structure of the
city government and its extreme
need for consolidation and more
efficient administration.
DR.. Maurer said the present board
exercised administrative, quasi legis-
lative and quasi judicial powers. In
this last function, he said. the board
handled appeals from school en-
ployes which gives a feeling Of
comfort and security to all school
personnel"
Morris and Kogod Testify.
If reorganization of the District
government should set up Depart
ment of Education, he recommended
that the head of the department
should certainly be the superintend-
ent of schools.
Edgar Morris, chairman, and Fred
S. Kogod, vice chairman of the
Board of Public Welfare, reiterated
the testimony they had previously
given congressional committees fa-
voring Department Of Public Well
fare under a citizen board "respon-
sible for policies and the administra-
ton of the department"
The board believes, they told the
committee, that such citizen par
ticipation is peculiarly needed in
the field of public welfare where
policy and procedures in handling
Gllc ilUIIlhll clCIilCiI dAC lCoo
formalized than in the professional
fields of health. sanitation, police,
fire and other departments.
Doubts They'd Resign.
Asked If the present Welfare
Board would resign If the pending
legislation relegating it to an ad-
visory capacity were enacted, Mr..
Morris told the committee he
thought the members would not re-
sign. Their interest, he said, was
Ito do something for the under
privileged"
Harry S. Wender, chairman of the
Recreation Board, presented a COM
prehensive argument for independ-
ent status for his group. He cited
several surveys here and elsewhere
to support his contention.
No objection to Recreation Board
here had come from any source, he
told the committee, until he learned
to his surprise that the District
Commissioners had recommended re-
Gently that 1t be one Of the agencies
transferred to the Commissioners
Jurisdiction under any reorganiza.