Evening star., 1947-07-10
Speed Promised
In Senate on
District Budget
Hearings Moy Begin
Monday; House Votes
Minor Changes in Bill
By Don S. Warren

BY Don 5. WoYen
Brief hearings and prompt action
on the Districts record SOC, ,000, 900
supply bill, passed late yesterday by
the House, were promised today by
Senate leaders.
Senator Dworshak, Republican, Of
Idaho, head of the District subcom-
mittee of the Senate Appropriations
Committee, already familiar with
District problems from his former
House service, said Senate hearings
would be started within few days,
probably by Monday.
Hearings will be brief and prob
ably restricted to items over which
there Is dispute concerning House
grants, it was indicated.
Senators in charge of the bill al
ready have recognized the need Of
speed to avoid payroll crises If the
supply bill is not finally enacted be-
fore July 20.
House Makes Minor Changes.
The bill was passed by the House
by voice vote after nearly two hours
of general debate with only minor
changes being made in its provisions
as it came from the Appropriations
Committee.
This was substantial victory for
Chairman Horan of the District
subcommittee of the funds group,
although he lost out on one Of his
objectives.
With the aid of other members
of the House he succeeded in beat
ing down two attempts to make
major changes in the bill.
One of these was a fight by Rep
resentative Bates, Republican, of
Massachusetts,, one of the principal
authors OF the Districts $12,000,00
new revenue measure-now await
ing presidential signature-to cur
tail the school construction pro-
gram.
Mr.. Bates contended there should
be no expansion of the school build
ing program beyond the level orig
inally recommended by the Com
missioners. He warned that the
District in the next fiscal year would
be faced by tremendous deficit"
if this were done, but his motion
to delete $279 800 from the bill for
three school projects was knocked
down by substantial voice vote OF
the House.
Crowded Schools Cited.
Mr.. Koran, supported by Repre-
sentatives Church, Republican, of
Illinois, and Fogarty, Democrat, of
Rhode Island, and others, said the
expanded funds demanded by the
Horan subcommittee were necessary
If start is to be made at last to
give full-time class instruction to
all pupils. They cited the case of
some 1000 pupils now on only part
time instruction because of crowded
school conditions.
Another major issue arose over
the recommendations of the Horan
subcommittee to put an end to free
tuition in the Districts public
schools for nonresident pupils.
Representative Sasscer, Democrat,
Of Maryland moved to eliminate this
ban, fighting to continue free tut
ton. Adoption of the Sasscer pro-
posal was denounced by Mr.. Koran
as a double -barreled injustice to
the people of the District" and it
was voted down.
If the Horan plan meets with
final approval, it will require nom
resident pupils hereafter entered in
the District schools to pay tuition
costs to be fixed by the Board Of
Education to cover the costs of their
education. 1t would not apply to
nonresident pupils already in Dis
trict schools.
5000 Nonresident Pupils.
During the past school semester
there were more than 5000 nonresi-
dent pupils. If all had paid tuition
on the cost basis, it has been testi-
fled, the District would have re-
ceived about 1926, 100
The one issue Mr.. Horan lost in
the House decisions was his demand
for a legislative rider to the funds
bill to strengthen and make more
independent the position of District
Auditor Arthur r. Pilkerton and
to curtail the powers of Budget
Officer Walter L. Fowler.
This went out of the bill on a
point of order maintained by Rep
resentative Stefan. Republican. of
Nebraska, dean of the District sub
committee.
Curb on Commissioners Feared.
Mr.. Koran had argued the legis-
lative directive was needed to as
sure proper economy and control
in the handling of District funds.
Mr.. Stefan told the House it was
not only improper legislation in an
appropriation bill, but that its re-
suits also probably would be to de-
prive the Commissioners of the con-
trolls they now can exercise over
District funds.
The bill, as passed by the House,
includes authority for the Commis-
sioners to establish and operate a
plant for the production of asphaltic
materials used in street construc-
ton and repair.
The House bill, officials said, also
includes funds for reactivating the