Evening star., 1949-01-06
D.C.HeadsBack
$3.50 Raise for
City Workers
To Submit Bill to
Cover $1,000; Take
Up Revenue Tomorrow
By Jerry O'Leory, Jr.

Wy SStby ~ @SS'yF ~s'
A $3.50 pay raise for District gov"
ernment employees was one step
closer to reality today, with an
nouncement that the Commission.
ers have decided to sponsor a bill
granting the salary increase to all
city workers, retroactive to last
July l.
Commissioner Guy Mason dis
closed the city heads decision late
yesterday after a conference with
Budget Officer Walter L. Fowler,
Corporation Counsel Vernon E. West
and other officials.
Mr.. Fowler said the bill would
cover $4,000 District employees, in
Guiding firemen. policemen, school
teachers and per-diem workers. The
pay raise, if approved by Congress-
would cost the District about $5,-
100000, Mr.. Fowler estimated.
Employees of the District govern
ment were left out in the cold at
the last session of Congress. when
the $3.50 pay raise was granted to
all Federal workers. The raise
granted Federal classified workers
was denied District employees be-
cause no revenue was provided by
Congress to meet the cost.
Blocked on Revenue Issue.
Senator Cain, Republican. Of
Washington, who was then chair
man of the Senate District Fiscal
Affairs Subcommittee, insisted that
the pay raise be withheld, because
he did not want to impose deficit
on the city. The revenue problems
arose, in turn, when Senator Johns
ton, Democrat, of South Carolina,
killed combination per cent sales
tax-high exemption income tax bill
that would have provided the money
to grant the wage increases.
This congressional impasse killed
chances for the pay raise in 1948,
but a few hundred workers in
fringe" agencies were allowed the
increase by the controller general.
Mr. Mason said the Commission
ers' feeling that the $3.50 annual
raise should be granted their work
ers will be translated into bill for
submission to Congress by the Cor
poration Counsels Office.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner
will meet tomorrow to iron out de-
tails of the new revenue bill they
expect to send to Congress soon.
Mr. Fowler, Mr.. West and Tax AS
SCISSOR Edward A. Dent will present
the city heads with rough draft
of the measure at tomorrows meet
ing.
Same Sales Tax Proposal.
The 2 per cent sales tax portion
of the bill that will be presented
to the Commissioners will be the
same as that killed by Senator
Johnston at the last session. The
proposed new income tax, however.
will contain a $1,000 basic exemp-
ton. instead of the $4,000 exemption
in the last bill.
The District now has $1,000 ex-
emption each for husband and wife,
with a $500 additional exemption for
each dependent. Now, a l per cent
tax is imposed on the first $1,000
of taxable income. The proposed
legislation would raise this to III
per cent.
The tax authorities also will pro-
pose to the Commissioners tomor-
row that the unincorporated busi-
ness tax exemption be reduced from
$4,000 to $4,000. This tax levies
$40 annually from businessmen
whose revenues exceed the exemp-
ton.
Meanwhile, the Federation Of
Businessmen's Associations issued a
statement opposing the reduction Of
basic exemptions for either incorpo-
rated or unincorporated businesses.
The statement, Ky Benjamin
Striner president of the association,
particularly attacked the unincorpo-
rated business tax.
The federation" the statement
read, lis opposed to the reduction
of the present $4,000 exemption in
the unincorporated business tax to
$4,000. The unincorporated busi-
ness tax is ambiguous, poorly ad-
ministered and should be repealed
when the sales tax becomes law.
The small retail businessman is
slowly being strangled with book
work and taxes"
Sl1O.1sS,64S Sought.
Budget estimates handed the
Commissioners for fiscal 1850 last
autumn by the department heads
totaled $110,l88,648, exceeding the
anticipated revenue of 500 SAC, ,141 by
about $l3,500,000. Just what econ
omy cuts were made in these esti-
mates by the Commissioners will
not be known until the Presidents
budget goes to Congress next Mon
day.
Budget Officer Fowler, however,
said, before the slashing began, that
proposed expenses for the year be-
ginning July l would have to be cut
about $14,000,000, unless new reve-
nue. sources were provided.
Assessor Dent estimates the 2 per
cent sales tax would yield about
$13,500,000 a year, but the District
could not expect this entire amount
the first year.
The fate of the proposed raise for
District employees and many other
projects within the municipal gov
ernment hinges on congressional re-
action to the pending revenue legis-
lation.