Evening star., 1961-05-21

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The legislation will ma
Corps Director r. Sargent Shl
in keeping their semi-autonom
partment. They have resisted
strong pressure to merge the
new agency into foreign aid
programs administered through
the International Cooperation
Administration.
The legislation has been sent
from Peace Corps headquar-
ters to the parent State De-
Ipartment and Budget Depart
ment for final review. 1t sets
out the organization, proce-
dureS, rates Of pay and budget
for the permanent agency for
the next fiscal year beginning
July 1.
Peace Corps officials say the
first annual budget is now esti-
mated at about $3s million.
Previous studies have placed
the annual cost of each Peace
Corps recruit at between $10,-
900 and $4,000.
President Kennedy first es-
tablished the pilot Peace Corps
project by executive order on
March l and it has been oper-
ating temporarily on money
drawn from his special con-
tingency fund. Director Shriver
came into the State Department
at the level Of Assistant Secre-
tary of State. The proposals
would make that status perm
anent.
Avoided ENHANCEMENT
Present plans call for Senator
Humphrey, Democrat Of Min
nesota, one of the earliest pro-
ponentS Of the Peace Corps,
and Senator Fulbright, Demo-
crat Of Arkansas, Chairman Of
the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, to co-sponSor the
bill in the Senate next week.
Representative Reuss, Demo-
crat of Wisconsin, and Repre-
sentative Morgan, Democrat Of
Pennsylvania, Chairman of the
House Foreign Affairs Commit
tee. are reported ready to in
troduce identical bills in the
House.
Peace Corps officials admit
privately that a major aim has
been to avoid ENHANCEMENT in
the red tape and criticism Of
ICA operations overseas. They
note that the Peace Corps and
the ICA are carrying out quite
different functions.
Whereas ICA officials advise
foreign governments on how
to carry out projects with
American technical and finan-
cial aid. the Peace Corps is
to operate at the grass roots,
carrying out relatively small
projects on its own.
Win Autonomy
Peace Corps leaders have won
their point. The legislative pro-
posals envisage direct commun-
ications between peace corps
men in the field and Washing
ton headquarters, and between
Director Shriver and the Sec
retary Of State.
These officials note, however,
that all American workers In
underdeveloped countries, re-
gardless Of status. work under
the general supervision Of the
American embassy in each
country. The exact liaison be-
tween the new Peace Corps and
embassies remains to be worked
out.
President Kennedy has said
he hopes to have 1000 Peace
Corps recruits overseas by jan
uary /. Upon his return from
an eight-nation tour In Africa
and Asia this week, Mr.. Shri-
yer said in Chicago he he'd re-
ceived requests for volunteers
to fill more than $500 Jobs.
Two projects already have
been announced-one in Africa,
where 28 surveyors, geologists
and civil engineers will map
out roads in the barren bush
country Of Tanganyika, and one
in Latin America, where "a
American volunteers will work
in Colombia on community de-
velopment projects.
Colombia Project Set
Training programs for these
projects are in their final
| planning stage. Peace Corps
inspectors" from headquarters