Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-12-02
Trend Will CONTINUE
To Big Government,
NAN Farley Told
BY Francis P. Douglas
Sfor Staff Correspondent

NEW YORK, Dec. 1.-THE Ma
tional Association ont Manufac-
turers had before it today a
statement from the head OF the
Commission on Intergovernmen-
tai Relations that it is pretty
clear we have to have a big gov
eminent.
Commission Chairman Meyer
Kestnbaurn said the size of the
government is dictated by the
| problem Of defense and other ma
tional policies. He was a speaker
before the seth annual conveIl-
ton Of NAM.
The organization. which is in
tent on cutting down the size
and power of the Federal Gov
eminent. found little to encour-
age it in the speech by Mr..
Kestnbaum, who was appointed
chairman of the commission by
President Eisenhower last April.
Explains Organization.
Mr.. Kestnbaum explained in
his speech and at a press con-
ference that the commission was
established in response to the
feeling there was too much CEN
tralization in Washington. that
the Government was too big and
that the States were losing some
of their rights and prerogatives.
| He indicated the commissions
report, due March /, will not blue
print any plan for unrave1ing the
Federal Governments function.
II expect we can make only a
preliminary attack on the prob
lens which are bound up with
basic social issues" he said.
Mr.. Kestnbaum is president Of
Hart Schaeffner and Marx and
has been active in the committee
for economic development.
Tax Program Set Forth.
The meeting of nearly 5000
induStrialists also received yes
terday the MANS new tax pro-
gram. It calls for reductions in
tax rates on upper-bracket in
come taxpayers to IS per cent in
five years. The, corporate tax
rate would also be reduced to IS
per cent. The tax rates on in
dividual incomes now rise
progressively to a top of 81 per
cent. The combined normal and
surtax rate for corporations has
a top Of almost So per cent.
Fred Maytag II, an NAM di-
rector and chairman of it's Taxa
ton Committee, said the organi-
zation intends to push it's pro-
gram and he hopes consideration
of it by Congress will transcend
party lines"
Those who look on the ex-
panded Government in WASH
ington as a result of a New
Deal plot for Selling power also
had little satisfaction in Mr..
Kestnbaum's speech.
Power Given by Default.
"The so-called drift to central
ization did not happen mali
ciously," he said. 1.-THE problems
of the depression and of the
events since then contributed to
1t. To some degree the Federal
Government acquired it's ex-
panded responsibilities by de-
fault when the States and local
governments could not meet
them.
1.-THE commission has wrestled
with terribly complicated prob
lems,' he said. One large issue,
he explained, is to what extent
Government shall intervene in
the economic life of the country.
He said the commission has come
to no conclusion on that. But
he pointed out that Congress, in
the Employment Act of 1916,
made it a national policy to
maintain high employment.
Mr.. Maytag, who presented the
tax program, is president of the
Maytag Co. of Newton, Iowa. He
argued that from the point of
view of Government revenue the
program is entirely feasible,
Federal revenues are running
at about $50 billion year. Mr..
Maytag said that without any
change in tax laws this would
increase in five years to $50
billion because of the country's
economic growth.
He advised the industrialists
to stake out claim to the tax
reduction opportunities" which
come from this SO billion in
crease.