Evening star., 1949-11-13
Senator'S Study
$1,000 Income
Fan1i|ies' Plight
$500, 900 Would Aid
Prosperity If Able
To Purchase More
ByJ. A. O'Leory

~ - -. ~ ICoty
More than 15,500,00O families
and single individuals whose in
comes were under $4,000 last year
offer an untapped source of
American prosperity if their needs
were backed by ability to buy, a
Senate subcommittee was told yes
terday.
Since the low purchasing
power of these families retards the
economic progress of this nation,
their circumstances and the effect
Of their status on the national
economy, are now being studied,
said Senator Sparkman, Demo-
crat, Of Alabama, chairman of a
special subcommittee of the Joint
Economic Committee.
The senator made public a mass
OF information gathered by sub
committee staff in preparation for
public hearings the week of De-
cember IL on the low-income
family problem.
Senator O'Mahoney, Democrat,
OF Wyoming, chairman of the Joint
committee. has three other sub
committees working on investment
problems. fiscal policies and un-
employment. The fiscal policies
will start its public hearings
Wednesday. The joint committee
was created by the Full Employ
ment Act of 1916 to keep Congress
advised on the economic outlook
from year to year.
Highlights of Report.
Highlights of yesterdays staff
report were:
1. There were 9.600,000 families
and 5,920.000 single individuals
with incomes under $4,000. The
family groups represent 80 .O0O, ,00O
persons and include one fifth OF
the nations children.
2. OF the 9,600,0 low-income
families, 100000 were in cities
and the remainder on farms.
3. The report suggested that
mot all the families, and certainly
not all of the individuals, having
incomes under $4,000 can be con-
sidered as being in financial dis
tress. Many farm families could
have gotten along quite comfort
ably on $4,000 cash income, where
as q family living in high-cost
city like washington. D. c.. or New
York. and having the same in
come might have felt the pinch
severely"
No Remedies Proposed.
The staff which prepared the
report emphasized ut indorses no
prescriptions for improving the
lot of the low-income groups.
That is for the subcommittee to
decide after the hearings. The
report, however. suggests some of
the specific questions that may be
developed. For example:
l. In 1916, the report shows,
100000 city families were living
in houses without running water.
2. In 1948 there were 100000
urban families with incomes un-
der $4,000, headed by persons 65
or more years of age. Three
fourths of these families were eld-
erly couples. and 100000 were
headed by widowed persons.
Although IS is the age limit at
which persons may retire under
the Social Security old-age an
nuity program, the subcommit-
tee staff said, Many such people
are able and want to continue to
work, either on a full-time or
part time basis. And in highly
specialized economy such as ours
it must be possible to find ways
Of prolonging their productive
life; there seems to be no essen
tial reason that worthwhile tasks
cannot be found for these people
in an industrial economy, as were
found for them in the simpler
agricultural economy of former
times"
1T is suggested that the SUBJ
committee consider ways and
means of helping these people to
find a productive niche in our
complex industrial system"
Food Major Expenditure.
Referring to the low-income
group as a whole, the report said
they "have been left behind in
the economic progress of America. y
They do not have many of the
products considered symbolic OF
the American standard of living y