Evening star., 1954-10-01

lVIu utVVHuV
District Heads Find
Witnesses in Unison
Against New Taxes
With the advice of three scor'
Washington citizens ringing II
their ears, the District Commits
sioners today faced the chore o1
pruning $3.50 million of budget
requests to At about S176 mil
lion of anticipated income in ths
next fiscal year.
In a five-hour hearing at the
District Building yesterday, wit.
resses asked the Commissioner,
to grant everything requested by
department heads for schools
welfare, recreation, public health
and parking-but insisted thai
no new taxes be imposed.
The Commissioners. mean
while, are trying to get theil
version Of the District budget
for the fiscal year 1856. which
begins next July 1, to the Fed
eral Budget Bureau by October
Is for inclusion in the Presi-
dents annual message to Con-
gress next January.
To Quiz Officials. !.
Preparing for some wholesale
cutting, Commissioner Camaliel
planned to get the advice Of de-
partment officials under his su-
pervision next week as to where
their budgets can be trimmed
with the least impact on the
public.
He asked his special assistant
Richard Townsend, to work up a
schedule and call in the depart
ment officials. The sessions will
begin Monday or Tuesday.
Budget studies must include
not only cuts in funds but, more
important, internal reorganiza-
ton to bring about permanent
reductions, Mr.. Camalier said.
While needs of the city are great,
there must not be overlapping in
handling them and unnecessary
or declining services must not
be perpetuated, he noted.
Let us apply the blue pencil
before some one else, with possibly
less information and data avail
able, takes that same pencil and
by an unintentIonal use cripples
or abandons or prevents serv-
ices we are endeavoring to
supply" he said.
More Taxes Opposed.
Testimony opened yesterday
with demands from the Fedora
ton OF Citizens Associations and
the Washington Board of Trade
that the Commissioners hold the
line on taxes and cut budget re-
quests to about the level Of the
current year.
1t droned through hour after
hour to close with pleas that the
Commissioners grant everything
requested by the departments In
which the witnesses were in
terested.
A proposed new. elementary
school near the 1900 block Of S
street NV. ran into opposition,
however, from spokesmen for ad-
jacent businessmen along "au-
tomotive row."
Henry r. Berger, attorney,
who said he spoke for nine
wholesale automobile parts and
supplies dealers in and near the
1900 block of Fourteenth street,
opposed a $720,650 school board
request for the school:
This construction, he said
would deprive automotive row OF
off-street parking spaces on the
site, which are leased from the
District government.
Tax Revenue Cited.
Robert E.. Phelps. general
manager of the Phelps Roberts
Corp, said that losing the prop.
erty would cause automotive row
to move away. He pointed tt
q business volume from S. te
81 million a year by firms ir
the section, paying about $75.-
900 q year In taxes to the Dis.
trict.
II the automotive supply firm.
move, and some satellite bust.
nesses follow suit, 1t would "seri.
ously dry up" Fourteenth stree
as a good taxpaying center. ht
said.
Mr.. Berger pointed out dis.
advantages in the location as &
school site, including its inclu'
sion In the proposed Northwes
urban renewal project, which
could be expected to affect tn,
need for it.
The proposed school also drew
criticism from John L. C. Sulli
van, president Of the Contra
Business Association. He sait
the construction would not onl!
wipe out parking spaces for tn,
businessmen. but would Great.
Q serious problem for their bust
ness because Of the proximity O
large numbers Of children.
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