TO AUTHORIZE THE COMMISSIONERS OF THE DISTRICT OF CO LUMBIA TO CLOSE STREETS, ROADS, HIGHWAYS, OR ALLEYS IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA RENDERED USELESS OR UNNECESSARY JUNE 21, 1930.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr. ZIHLMAN, from the Committee on the District of Columbia, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. R. 11013] The Committee on the District of Columbia, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 11013) to authorize the Commissioners of the District of Columbia to close streets, roads, highways, or alleys in the District of Columbia rendered useless or unnecessary, and for other. purposes, having considered the same, report back to the House with the recommendation that the legislation do pass. Under the provisions of this bill the Commissioners of the District of Columbia are authorized to close all or part of any street or highway in the District which has been rendered useless or unnecessary by reason of change in the highway plan, or by reason of provision for adequate service of neighboring property and of the traveling public by some other street, road, highway, or alley facilities, or by reason of the acquisition of the District of Columbia or the United States of America for school, park, playground, or other public purposes of all the property abutting on the portion of the street, road, highway, or alley proposed to be closed. The interests of the property owner are safeguarded in that the written consent of the owners of all property abutting on the street or road proposed to be closed shall be first obtained. Provision is also made for the serving of notice upon the owners of all property by the publishing of notice in a daily newspaper for a period of 14 consecutive days and a public hearing granted and held at a given time and place, at which time all persons interested and affected shall be given full opportunity to be heard. Under the provisions of the bill no street, road, highway, or alley or part of a street, road, highway, or alley which has been actually open to travel, shall be closed, and it is further provided that no changes shall be made in avenues or important lines of travel. An area affected, under this bill reverts to adjoining property owners, under the findings of the District surveyor and approved by the Commissioners of the District of Columbia. This committee has had before it numerous bills closing certain streets, roads, and alleys, which are a part of the permanent highway plan of the District of Columbia, not included within the old limits of the cities of Washington and Georgetown, and this general bill granting this power to the Commissioners of the District of Columbia is proposed in lieu of these various measures. The committee submitted a similar measure, H. R. 6594, to the Commissioners of the District of Columbia, who reported that they had a number of objections to same and proposed the bill we are now reporting, H. R. 11013. The commissioner's letter transmitting the draft of the bill (now numbered H. R. 11013) is appended hereto and made a part of this report. COMMISSIONERS OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, Hon. F. N. ZIHLMAN, House of Representatives, Washington, D. C. " MY DEAR MR. ZIHLMAN: In accordance with the suggestion_made at the recent hearing on H. R. 6594, entitled "A bill to authorize the Commissioners of the District of Columbia to close certain streets, roads, or highways in the District of Columbia rendered useless or unnecessary, and for other purposes, the commissioners transmit herewith a draft showing amendments to the bill which they desire to have incorporated in the legislation if passed. In the draft submitted, matter in the original bill that is proposed to be omitted is inserted in black brackets, and new matter is in italics. The purpose of the proposed amendments is in general to remove the objec tions of the commissioners to the pending bill, as stated in the commissioners' letter of March 14, 1930. In detail, the reasons for the more significant changes are as follows: Section 1 is amended to provide for the closing of streets or highways acquired in accordance with the permanent highway plan, and roads, minor streets, or alleys otherwise acquired. Both section 1 and the title are amended to include alleys, as the need for closing alleys under the circumstances indicated in the bill not infrequently arises. The second proviso on page 2 for a public hearing has been restated more clearly and at greater length in a new section. The third and fourth provisos on page 2 have been stricken out, and in lieu thereof a proviso has been added to this section requiring the written consent of the owners of all abutting property in all cases. This change is made for the reasons stated at some length in the commissioners' letter of March 14, 1930. A new section 3 has been added to clarify the status of existing streets, roads, or alleys that have been actually opened to travel, requiring that such traffic ways be not closed until other adequate arrangements for traffic have been made. This section also provides that under the authority conferred by the act, no changes shall be made in avenues or in important lines of travel. This proviso is regarded as a judicious limitation on the power conferred by the act, and is designed to allay apprehension as to the extent to which the power might be exercised. A new section 5 has been added for the purpose of making it clear that the present law authorizing the commissioners to close certain streets, roads, and highways shall remain in full force and effect, unchanged by the passage of the pending act. At the hearing on this bill on March 14, 1930, a question was raised as to the constitutionality of the provision that the title to land within the limits of any street, road, or highway, or part thereof, closed under the provisions of the act shall revert to the owners of abutting property. This provision has been retained, since it is in accord with the gneral practice in the District of Columbia in street or alley closing legislation. However, because of the question, a new section 6 has been added containing the usual saving clause. The commissioners recommend the passage of this legislation with amendments as shown. Very sincerely yours, BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, A BILL To authorize the Commissioners of the District of Columbia to close [certain] streets, roads, [or] highways or alleys in the District of Columbia rendered useless or unnecessary, and for other purposes Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Commissioners of the District of Columbia be, and they are hereby, authorized to close all or [such] part[s] of [streets, roads, or highways] any street or highway in [said] the District[] of Columbia which has been acquired in accordance with the plan for the extension of a permanent system of highways over all that portion of said District not included within the limits of the cities of Washington and Georgetown, or of any road, minor street, or alley that has been dedicated or otherwise acquired for public use for street, road, or alley purposes, [as may] when, in the judgment of said commissioners such street, road, highway, or alley, or part of a street, road, highway, or alley, has become useless or unnecessary by reason of change in the highway plan or by reason of provision for adequate service of neighboring property and of the travelling public by other street, road, [or] highway, or alley facilities, or by reason of the acquisition, by the District of Columbia or the United States of America, for [parks] school, park, playground, or other public purposes, of all the property abutting on the portion of the street, road, [or] highway, or alley proposed to be closed, or for other public reasons, the title to the land within the limits of the part or parts of the street[s], road [s], [or] highway[s], or alley so closed to revert to the owners of abutting property: Provided, That the District of Columbia may retain the use of any portion of the street, road, highway, or alley closed in accordance with the provisions of this act which in the judgment of the commissioners is necessary as right of way for sewer, water-supply, or drainage purposes: Provided further, [That no street, road, or highway, or part of a street, road, or highway, which is now on the highway plan of the District of Columbia shall be closed unless and until it shall have been removed from said highway plan, and the property owners affected shall have been given an opportunity to be heard in regard thereto by said commissioners after publication of notice to that effect for not less than fourteen consecutive days, excluding Sundays: Provided further, That in every case where any portion of the section proposed to be closed shall have been actually opened and utilized for travel, the written consent of the owners of all the property abutting on the street, road, or highway, or a part of street, road, or highway, proposed to be closed be obtained: And provided further, That in every other case the written consent of the owners of not less than 75 per centum of the property abutting on the street, road, or highway, or a part of the street, road, or highway, proposed to be closed be obtained, and that such action shall be taken only with the approval of the Commissioners of the District of Columbia and the National Capital Park and Planning Commission.] That the written consent of the owners of all property abutting on the street, road, highway or alley, or part of a street, road, highway or alley proposed to be closed shall be first obtained. Sec. 2. That whenever a street, road, highway, or alley, or part of a street, road, highway, or alley, is proposed to be closed in accordance with the provisions of this act, the commissioners shall serve notice of their intention upon the owners of all property abutting upon the street, road, highway, or alley, or part of a street, road, highway, or alley, proposed to be closed, and shall also cause to be inserted in a daily newspaper, published in the District of Columbia, for a period of 14 consecutive days, exclusive of Sundays and holidays, a notice to the effect that such closing is under consideration and that a public hearing will be held at a given time and place stated in the notice for the hearing of objections, if any, to such closing. At such hearing the property owners affected, and all other persons interested, shall be given a full opportunity to be heard. Sec. 3. No street, road, or alley, or part of a street, road, or alley, that has been actually opened to travel shall be closed under the provisions of this act, nor shall the obligation of the municipal authorities to keep the same in repair be affected, until adequate provision for the service of abutting property and for the use of the traveling public shall have been made by the opening to travel of new streets, roads, or alleys: Provided, That under the authority contained in this act no changes shall be made in avenues or in important lines of travel. SEC. [2] 4. That whenever any part of a street, road, [or] highway or alley is sought to be closed in accordance with this act, a plat showing the street, road, [or] highway or alley, or part thereof, proposed to be closed shall be prepared by the surveyor of the District of Columbia and approved by the Commissioners of the District of Columbia and recorded in the office of said surveyor; and the area to be apportioned to each owner of property abutting on the street, road, [or] highway or alley, or part thereof, closed by the said commissioners, as provided herein, shall be determined by the said commissioners and shall be shown by plats and computations prepared by said surveyor, and said areas apportioned to private owners shall be thereafter assessed on the books of the assessor of the District of Columbia the same in all respects as other private property in the District of Columbia. Sec. 5. That nothing in this act shall be construed to repeal or modify the provisions of Public Act No. 349, Sixty-eighth Congress, approved January 30, 1925, and the powers granted to the Commissioners of the District of Columbia in said act shall remain in effect without the necessity of publication and hearing as required herein. Sec. 6. If any provision of this act is for any reason held to be unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions thereof. ESTABLISH A CODE OF LAW FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA JUNE 21, 1930.-Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be printed Mr. MCLEOD, from the Committee on the District of Columbia, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany S. 4551] The Committee on the District of Columbia, to whom was referred the bill (S. 4551) providing three new sections in subchapter 4 of chapter 18 of the Code of Law for the District of Columbia, relating to corporations, having considered the measure, recommend that the legislation do pass. The measure adds section 639 (b), section 639 (c), and section 639 (d) to the code, without change in any existing provisions thereof. The purposes of the measure are as follows: Section 639 (b) will enable corporations in the District of Columbia to amend their charters so as to add to or diminish the corporate purposes or powers, or substitute other purposes and powers, to change the corporate business, to change the location of the place of business in the District of Columbia, and to make any other changes in their charters to place therein provisions which would have been legal and proper in the original charter on incorporation. By existing law corporations are very limited in their rights to amend charters. At present they are limited substantially to adding to and diminishing capital stock, changing the name or changing the business; and it has been held that to change the business means to go out of one line, as for instance, agriculture, and engage in a different business. This section enables corporations, according to the modern theory of corporations, to provide by amendments in their charters, such powers and purposes as would have originally been permissible. Section 639 (c) authorizes corporations to create one or more classes of preferred stock. Under existing law there is no direct statutory authority for District of Columbia corporations to create preference in any class of stock. Modern corporation laws in the several States make full provision for classification of stock and |