Evening star., 1947-07-24
HouseUnit Votes
II Millions for
Loyalty Probe
Truman Plan Request
SIoshed $13, 900, ,000;;
Rees Bill Shelved
By Joseph Young

By Joseph Young
The House Appropriations
Committee today recommended
$11, 100000 for the Presidents
executive order to conduct loyal
ty investigations of Government
employees and Federal job appli-
cants.
If upheld by the House and Senate,
the committees action will insure a
Federal loyalty investigation this
year.
The committees recommendations
were $13,900,000 below the original
budget request of Mr.. Truman. The
Civil Service Commission was given
only $3,50o,000 of the $16,160,000 it
requested for its part of the pro-
gram. The FBI Jared much better,
getting $7,500,000 of the $5,740,000 it
asked for.
House Passed Rees Bill.
The House committees action to-
day is based on the assumption that
the Rees loyalty bill will not become
law this year. The bill passed the
House last week, but virtually the
last hope it had for Senate action
was killed today when Senate Civil
Service Subcommittee shelved the
measure for further study.
There was a possibility that
Chairman Rees of the House Civil
Service Committee might object to
the $1k000,000 appropriation on a
point of order. Some members of
Mr.. Rees' committee feel that there
is no legislative authority to carry
out the Presidents loyalty program,
and therefore no money can be ap-
propriated for it. Mr.. Rees, however,
has not indicated If he will do any
thing about the situation.
Civil Service Commission officials
said the action of the House Appro-
priations Committee today will not
affect plans to conduct thorough
investigation of employees now on
the Government payroll. They said,
however, that the investigation of
Federal job applicants might have
to be curtailed somewhat as a result
of the cut in budget requests.
Other Plans To Be Drafted.
Also, the Commission will have to
abolish its plans for thorough in
vestigation of applicants seeking to
fill so-called sensitive" Govern
ment jobs. These positions are Of a
scientific and military nature.
Under the Presidents program,
the Commission will conduct pre-
liminary name and f1ngerprint
checks OF Government workers and
Federal job applicants. II any de-
rogatory information Is uncovered
the FBI will conduct a full-scale
loyalty investigation of the persons
involved. The Attorney General Is
authorized to draw up a list of
organizations which he considers
to be Communist or Communist
dominated, or Fascist or other sub
versive groups. Membership in, af-
filiation with or sympathetic as
sociation" by an employe would be
considered grounds for the worker
to be judged disloyal.
+ Considerable criticism has CEN
tered on the fact that accused en-
ployes will not have the right to
ss-examine their accusers, nor
will they have the right to subpoena
witnesses. These employees, however
will have the right to hearing ano
the right to be represented by coun-
sci.
Two Bills Similar.
The Presidents loyalty order is
identical in most respects to the
Rees bill. One of the major diff
ferences is that the Federal Loyalty
Board under the Presidents order
is under the jurisdiction of the
Civil Service Commission, while in
the Rees bill it would be an inde-
pendent agency. The Rees bill also
provided for a more thorough pre-
liminary check of employees.
Recently, Civil Service Commits
sioner Arthur S. Fleming estimated
that preliminary loyalty investiga-
tions would turn up $4,000 cases in
which derogatory information will
be disclosed. A full-scale investiga-
tion of the $4,000 cases will disclose
about 5000 employees who will be
adjudged disloyal or subversive, Mr
Flemming said.
Rees Bill Study Urged.
!. After today's Senate subcommit-
tee meeting on the Rees bill
Chairman LANCER said the sub
committee decided more time was
needed to study the measure. Hear
ings on the bill will be held by the
subcommittee at a date still to be
determined, Senator LANCER said.