Evening star., 1950-01-01
Probe Of Crime
To Feature
OF New Session
| Davis Committee
Stoff Completes
Preliminary Work
By Harold B. Rogers

A1FCoOISoClO1l VI VI 1AliC dllO pun
ishment here promises to be an
outstanding feature of Congress
sional action on District affairs in
the new session.
The inquiry. authorized by Con-
gress last fall shortly before ad-
journment, will be conducted by
House District subcommittee head
ed by Representative Davis, Demo-
crat. of Georgia.
A special subcommittee staff
has been doing preliminary work
during the recess, but the next
steps to be taken will be consid-
cred by the Davis group as soon as
it can get together for this i'm
portant task.
Many other important District
issues are pending in the last ses-
sion of the 81st Congress.
Suffrage Issue Pending.
Proposals for suffrage here, both
local and national, are pending
in the House and Senate.
A home rule bill to give Wash
ington an elected and reorganized
city government passed the Sem
ate last session and has been
tabled by the House District Com
mittee. A discharge petition to
take the measure out Of commit
tee and bring it to a vote on the
floor is pending on the Speakers
desk, awaiting more signatures.
To make it effective 218 are
necessary.
The perennial attempt to get
national representation for resi-
dents here is before the Senate
Judiciary Committee in the form
of a Senate Joint Resolution.
introduced by Chairman Nicely
of the Senate District Committee.
it calls for an amendment to the
Constitution empowering Congress
to grant Washington residents
representation in Congress and a
vote for President and Vice Presi-
dent.
The Judiciary Committee has q
heavy schedule of national legis-
lation on its calendar. It Is head
ed by Senator McCarran, Demo-
crat, of Nevada, who has shown
much interest in District affairs.
In the past he has favored home
rule but opposed national repre-
sentation.
Nominations to Be Studied.
The Senate Judiciary Commit
tee will have before it for approval
the nominations of six new Fed
eral judges here-three for the
United States Court of Appeals
and three for District Court. Be-
fore adjournment of Congress last
October, the committee fixed jan
uary 3 as the day for considera-
ton of many judicial nominations,
including those for the District.
The judges, already on the
benches here, by recess appoint
ment of the president. are:
Court of Appeals: Charles Fahy.
former Solicitor General; David
L. Bazelon, former Assistant At
torney General; George T. WASH
ington, former Assistant Solicitor
General.
District Court; James r. Kirk
land, former counsel to- the
Senate District Committee;
Charles F. Mclaughlin, former
member of the House from
Nebraska; and Mrs. Burnita Shell
ton Matthews, Washington attor-
ney.
President Truman has yet to
appoint three new judges for
Municipal Court here as author
lied by the last Congressional
session.
Budget Is Early Item.
One of the first new problems
to be laid in the lap of Congress
will be the District budget for the
coming fiscal year ending June 80,
1851. It will reach Capitol Hill
as a part Of President Truman's
national budget, probably some
time early next week. Reports
from the District Building indi-
cate 1t may be around $118,00o.-
600. a record breaker for size.
OF Importance to the entire
Metropolitan Area of Washington
is the bill now pending in the
House District Committee for o.
special commission to study the
problem of better coordination
among the various political juris-
dictions involved.
Representative Sasscer, Demo-
crat, of Maryland. says he will ask
the District Committee to hold an
early hearing on his measure, to-
study its possibilities for the good
of the whole area.
District rent control will expire
June 80, but there have been no
definite indications so far as to
how much of a move will be made
to extend it. Opinion on Capitol
Hill is widely divided on the ne
cessity for further extension Of
such controls throughout the
country. The issue probably is
headed for a lively legislative
fight.
Daylight Saving Is Issue.
If Washington is to have day.
light saving again this coming
summer new legislation will be
necessary. Congress has author
lied the District Commissioners in
the past to, establish fast time for
only one year at a time. A bill
to continue the Commissioners
authority is pending before the
House District Committee, headed
by Representative Mcmillan, Dem
ocrat, of South Carolina.
Congress probably will be called
again to try to solve the compli-
Gated problem of what to do about
slum clearance and redevelopment
here.
With several agencies involved
in complex network of legisla-
tion, there is no definite indica-