7 1 during the last full fiscal year prior to the occurrence of such 2 major disaster. The amount, if any, so provided for the 3 second, third, and fourth fiscal years following the fiscal year 4 in which the President determined that such area has suf 6 5 fered a major disaster shall not exceed 75 per centum, 50 per centum, and 25 per centum, respectively, of the amount so provided for the first fiscal year following such determi8 nation. 7 9 13 "(b) In addition to and apart from the funds provided 10 under subsection (a), the Commissioner is authorized to 11 provide to such agency an amount which he determines 12 to be necessary to replace instructional and maintenance supplies, equipment, and materials (including textbooks) 14 destroyed or seriously damaged as a result of such major 15 disaster, and to lease or otherwise provide (other than by 16 acquisition of land or erection of facilities) school and cafe17 teria facilities needed to replace temporarily such facilities 18 which have been made unavailable as a result of the major 19 disaster. 20 "(c) There is hereby authorized to be appropriated 21 for each fiscal year such amounts as may be necessary to 22 carry out the provisions of this section. Pending such appro23 priation, the Commissioner may expend from any funds 24 heretofore or hereafter appropriated for expenditure in ac25 cordance with other sections of this Act, such sums as may 1 8 be necessary for immediately providing assistance under this 2 section, such appropriations to be reimbursed from the appro3 priations authorized by this subsection when made. 4 "(d) No payment may be made to any local educa5 tional agency under this section except upon application 6 therefor which is submitted through the appropriate State 7 educational agency and is filed with the Commissioner in 8 accordance with regulations prescribed by him. In deter9 mining the order in which such applications shall be ap10 proved, the Commissioner shall consider the relative edu11 cational and financial needs of the local educational agencies 12 which have submitted approvable applications. 13 "(e) Amounts paid by the Commissioner to local edu14 cational agencies under this section may be paid in advance 15 or by way of reimbursement and in such installments as the 16 Commissioner may determine. Any funds paid to a local 17 educational agency and not expended or otherwise used for 18 the purposes for which paid shall be repaid to the Treasury 19 of the United States." Hon. LISTER HILL, EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, BUREAU OF THE BUDGET, Washington, D.C., July 29, 1964. Chairman, Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: This is in response to your request of April 20, 1964, for the views of the Bureau of the Budget on S. 2725, a bill to amend Public Laws 815 and 874, 81st Congress, to provide financial assistance in the construction and operation of public elementary and secondary schools in areas affected by a major disaster. The Bureau of the Budget fully recognizes the need for furnishing prompt Federal assistance in restoring community facilities, including schools, where these have been damaged or destroyed by natural disaster. We believe, however, that actions under the Federal Disaster Act provide Federal assistance of appropriate scope and duration. The restrictions of the Federal Disaster Act and related regulations would seem to be no more limiting than the conditions for assistance which would be established by S. 2725, unless the provisions of section 2, "Assistance for current school expenditures," should result in eligibility for substantial aid. However, such aid would be conditional on the inability of the local community to finance such expenditures from normal sources. The information available to us indicates that the tax base of communities struck by major natural disaster is impaired only very briefly because of the active efforts of citizens to restore property values and because of various forms of public aid. It may be that a disaster of the magnitude of the recent earthquakes in Alaska has more lasting effects on revenues. However, we believe such highly extraordinary circumstances must receive special consideration by the Federal Government as recent legislation and appropriations to assist the State of Alaska indicate. In summary, we do not believe that S. 2725 is necessary to deal with the problems for local school authorities created by disasters of the frequency and severity which it appears to contemplate. Accordingly, we recommend against enactment of the bill. Sincerely yours, PHILLIP S. HUGHES, Assistant Director for Legislative Reference. REMARKS OF SENATOR MORSE ON THE Floor of the Senate, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1964 ASSISTANCE TO CERTAIN LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES-AMENDMENTS TO PUBLIC LAW 874 Mr. MORSE. Mr. President, I send to the desk for appropriate reference a bill to amend Public Law 874 to provide payments to local school districts based upon two additional categories of public school pupils who have a relationship to Federal programs and activities. The bill would also amend existing law to provide the Commissioner of Education with authority to phase out payments in connection with termination of existing programs over a 3-year period, instead of the present 1-year period. If enacted, the bill would recognize the Federal connection for school district payment purposes of first, children of school age on whose behalf parents are currently receiving payments under the aid for dependent children welfare program, and second, children in families receiving unemployment compensation benefits in those areas which have been designated by the Secretary of Labor as areas of substantial unemployment. It is estimated that there are currently some 2 million school-age children in families receiving aid for dependent children payments. The bill provides that if the number of children in a school district is 3 percent or more of the total number of children who were in average daily attendance during the year that the district could receive for each child a payment equal to 25 percent of the payment made under Public Law 874 for a child whose parent both lives and works on Federal property. The cost of this portion of the amendment would thus be under $140 million a year. The second category for which payment would be made relates to areas designated by the Secretary of Labor as areas of substantial unemployment. In January there were 39 such areas throughout the country. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that at this point in my remarks a listing of these areas and the number of families receiving unemployment compensation benefits be printed. (There being no objection, the statement was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:) Areas of substantial unemployment as of mid-January 1964 All the foregoing areas with these exceptions have had substantial unemployment for a period of at least 9 months. NOTE. Total number of benefit payments, 449,100. Average number of children per unemployment compensation benefit families estimated at 2.6. Number of children on whose account school district payments by virtue of unemploy ment compensation benefit relationship is 1,167,660. Estimated cost based on 25 percent of local contribution rate (average payment made by Federal Government to school districts under category A of Public Law 874 for children whose parents are both employed on and who lives on Federal property), $78,815,050. Mr. MORSE. Mr. President, Senators will note that the geographical distribution ranges from Fresno, Calif., and Seattle on the west coast through the MidwestMinnesota and Indiana are on the list-to the east coast and Southern States of Florida, Tennessee, and Texas. It is estimated that the school district would receive payments based upon 2.6 times the number of unemployment compensation benefits. The rate of payment in this category would also be set at 25 percent of the payment made for a child whose parent both lives and works on Federal property. I am currently in the process of deriving cost figures for this portion of the program, but, in my judgment, the total cost of the program initially would not exceed $200 million annually, or less than is being appropriated for category A and B payments under Public Law 874. The important point, however, is that this money would be funneled directly into those areas by these twin standards having a great need for additional school funds. Every large metropolitan center would receive help from the Federal Government to educate these youngsters for whom the Federal Government through the twin programs of aid to dependent children and unemployment compensation benefits has already assumed a responsibility. I want to make it perfectly clear that I am not wedded to the precise language of the bill. It would be my hope that hearings upon it could perfect the detail and the langauge. I suggest to Senators that the bill has certain adanvtages in its approach. These include: First, the decision as to which school district the aid shall go, and the amount is automatically determined by objective verifiable factors associated with depressed areas whether rural or urban The ACTING PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE. The time of the Senator has expired. Mr. MANSFIELD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senator from Oregon may have an additional 10 minutes. The ACTING PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE. Without objection, it is so ordered. Mr. MORSE. Second, the certification to the school district from local welfare offices and unemployment compensation offices of the numbers of children in each category could be accomplished with a minimum of clerical expense, and in addition, such a program should not increase Federal employment perceptibly; Third, under the procedure no question of Federal control of local education is raised; Fourth, all metropolitan areas and many additional school districts, particularly in areas such as Appalachia, could qualify for assistance, thus adding significantly to the political support for the program; Fifth, since this is not a general aid bill but rather it is a pinpointed assistance to economically distressed school districts bill, I would hope that it could escape the church-state and racial issue controversies; and Sixth, it possesses a philosophy or logic for the aid given-the children in the two new categories are already related to Federal programs. The Federal Government is contributing to their housing, clothing, and food through the AFDC and the unemployment compensation programs. These children and their families are not in economic brackets whereby the local tax base is enhanced by their presence. By adopting these amendments we would be recognizing that the Federal Government has a responsibility, in part, to help to educate the children so that in the future, through education, perhaps these cycles of poverty could be broken. School districts which have large numbers of children from very low income families have costs which are greater in many instances than high income suburban school districts-yet far too often they do not have the revenues to finance the types of program which are needed if the native talent and ability of the child is to be developed. The additional $200 million or more annually that this program might cost is justified if it serves to reduce the ranks of the future unemployed. One thing we can be sure of, unless we strive to find ways to meet the problem of poverty, we will serve only to perpetuate it. Education may not be the only key to the door of opportunity, but without education that door will remain locked. The bill has two main sections. The final section of the bill is designed to guard against the disruption of an ongoing program in the event of a cancellation of the military or defense activity. At the present time the phaseout of Federal assistance would take place within a year. I am suggesting that the Commissioner be given authority to stretch out the termination of this impacted area program for 3 years when he finds this to be appropriate. I can foresee that the elimination of a defense activity in an area can cause just as great or greater problems for a school system as the establishment of such a program. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill as introduced be printed at this point in my remarks. I also ask unanimous consent that the bill be held at the desk for additional cosponsors until the close of business, February 28. |