Evening star., 1948-02-07
Home Rule
Continued From First Page)


cent instead of an 871a per cent
application of the District tax rate
against the appraised value of Fed
+eral holdings here. He also sug-.
gested that the value of foreign
embassies and legations should be
included In the calculation.
s. The witness also recommended
that members of the Public Utilities
Commission should be appointed, as
now, by the President, instead of by
the mayor; that the membership on
the zoning advisory board should
not consist of ex-officio members;
and that, while the board of tax
appeals should consist of board
of three, its service should not be
limited to 40 days of service as
measured by pay of $25 day up to
a maximum of $1,000 a year.
Wins Committee Praise.
Miss Bernice NJ Lee, representing
the Young Democrats of the Dis
trict, won praise from the committee
and applause from the audience
when she placed her group on record
as unanimously in favor of the gen.
eral framework of the charter bill.
Chairman Auchincloss of the
joint committee said I'VE thank you
very much-we wish the Republi-
cans would show up as well-I. al
ways knew there were some good
Democrats around here"
Representative Deane, Democrat,
of North Carolina, said he certainly
wanted Ito show our colors" and
made statement of appreciation
of vital interest shown by the good
ladies of the District"
Dan Crystal, speaking for the Ma
tional Lawyers Guild, commended
the general objectives of the charter
measure while suggesting some
changes and made sharp attack on
the present District administration.
The Commissioners, he declared
have demonstrated to a shocking
degree that they are unresponsive to
the will of the people"
ID. C. Government Assailed.
In statement he submitted, he
added that the District government
is inefficient, wasteful. cumbersome,
confused, complicated and fagrantly
outmoded." He said the Commits
sioners have ignored important
issues which concern all of us, in
cluding: Police brutality. racial
determination. the highest living
CO.. S in the country and shocking
conditions in municipal health and
welfare institutions, such as the
Receiving Home for Children and
Gallinger Hospital
They have proposed adoption of
q sales tax as means of revenue
which, lif adopted, will place further
economic burdens on the low-in-
come groups Mr.. Crystal said.
The Negro population, comprising
one-third of the city's population,
has been consistently Disseminated
against and has suffered along with
the remainder of the city from the
inefficient and undemocratic gov
ernment which has led two special
presidential committees within re-
cent months to condemn the District
as having failed miserably in deal
ing with the problems of civil rights,
health and higher education
Benjamin Sigal. president of the
Washington chapter, Americans for
Democratic Action, took sharp issue
with previous witnesses who had
objected to the home-rule plan.
"It is with some amazement that
we witnessed the spectacle of some
people and some Government off,
cials who demonstrated their i'll
concealed opposition to the BILL" he
said.
No Sound Argument.
Mr.. Sigal said he had heard no
sound argument against Washing
ton home rule.
Taxation without representation
brought no declaration of horror