Evening star., 1961-06-29
Impocted' Aid Becomes
Pawn in School Battle

Sional battle over broad Fed
eral aid to education.
The key section of the i'm
pacted area program-author-
izing payments to school dis
tricts for children whose
parents either live or work on
Federal property-expires at
midnight tomorrow.
The Washington area sub
urbs received about $12 million
under the program last year.
School districts in more than
300 other Congressional dis
tricts received $500 million.
An extension of the impacted
area program is part Of the
general school aid bill passed
by the Senate last month but
now mired in the House Rules
Committee.
Cool to 3O-Day Plan
Senate Minority Leader Dirk
sen Of Illinois suggested yes
terday that Congress pass an
emergency 30-day extension of
the impacted area program
today.
But his idea met with a cool
reception from Democratic
leaders. Tying in the popular,
10-year-old impacted area pro-
gram with broad school as
sistance is a basic part Of their
strategy for passing President
Kennedy'S education measure.
House managers of the ad-
miniStration easure are
counting on pressure from
Congressman whose areas re-
ceive the "impacted aid" to
break the present logjam in
the Rules Committee, where a
dispute over aid to private and
parochial schools has kept the
public school bill from reach
ing the floor.
A separate bill extending the
National Defense Education
Act and providing loans to
private and parochial schools
was sent to the Rules Com
mittee yesterday by the Edu-
cation and Labor Committee.
The Rules unit is not ex-
pected to meet on the educa-
ton bills until after the July
4 holidays.
Officials at the Department
Of Health, Education and We'll
fare said a 30-day delay in
extending the impacted area
program wouldn't make too
much difference" in its opera
ton. Delay beyond July 80,
they said, might cause admin
istrative problems in next
year 3 pTOST all.
Eventual Approval Seen
Actually, there is little doubt
that Congress will keep the
impacted area program alive.
But as long as its fate is tied
to the broad school assistance
bill, school boards that count
on the impacted area money
will have some nervous
moments.
Meantime, House Repub-
lican Policy Subcommittee to-
day wound up a major study
Of American educational needs
by concluding there was no
justification for broad Federal
aid to elementary and secondary
schools.
Representative Frelinghuysen,
Republican Of New Jersey, the
groups spokesman, said its re-
search did not even support the
type of emergency school con-
struction program former Presi-
dent Eisenhower and the Re-
publican platform of 1860 recs
commended. E
He said it was "very unlikely"
that any Republican would
offer the old Eisenhower pro-
gram during floor considera-
ton of the school aid bill. 1T
would be a futile gesture" he
said.
The report from the Repub-
lican study group said, "The
advocates of Federal aid to ed
ucation have failed lamentably
to justify Federal aid on the
basis of need.
"The proposals now before
the Congress would curtail tho
very factors now promoting a
healthy and sound educational
system. Incentive would be
lost and with it would go the
decision-making powers of par
ents, communities and legisla-
lures"
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