The challenge that faces America today is unique in the annals of our history. We, as a people, are facing a backward step in educational programs. While progress in our knowledge of the sciences and other disciplines has been expanding at a phenomenal rate, so has our understanding of adequate methods of teaching our young people in the field of education.

While our schools are faced on the one hand with greater responsibilities toward society, they are faced on the other hand with reduced effective financial support. Thus, the problems of the large school districts are even more demanding and pressing because of the tremendous impact of urbanization. This leads inevitably toward a deterioration of programs by school systems as they attempt to prepare the next generation to meet their emerging responsibilities.

The problems created by urbanization are numerous and varied. Providing equal educational opportunities within the limitations of a large school district with its ever-expanding and demanding responsibilities without additional sources of revenue to provide the compensatory programs needed to meet the new challenges of our changing communities, poses special problems of tremendous magnitude. In our own Los Angeles school districts we face this problem by several ways. We are in a vice. The school district is at a tax ceiling. We have been there for 2 years. Voters have rejected increases. Our State legislature is giving us on a decreasing percentage less money in relation to the local contribution, and the amount of Federal funds we receive is less than 1 percent of our total budget.

In the past, the Congress, in its wisdom, has seen fit to offset, at least in part, the problems created for school districts because of Federal activities.

Because of your extensive field studies and hearings on the subject of Federal activities, Public Law 874 was first enacted in 1950. I am sure you are aware that this act deals with the problem which has persisted for many years; namely, that of financing the educational services for children who reside on or have parents employed on tax-exempt Federal property. This problem will remain as long as the Federal Government continues to own a large part of the land area of the United States. It now owns approximately one-fifth of the Nation's total land area, and approximately 47 percent of the land area in the State of California.

The Los Angeles city school districts had been aware of the provisions of Public Law 874, and had long considered the possibility of entitlements that might be available if the district were to qualify. The school district's first application, following the results of an initial survey conducted in the fall of 1958, failed to produce the required percentage of federally connected pupils. The survey evidenced 18,436 federally connected in the elementary district; 5,215 federally connected in the high school district; and 565 federally connected in the junior college district, making a grand total of 24,216 federally connected pupils within the three Los Angeles city school districts at the time of the survey. The elementary and high school districts, being above 35,000 in average daily attendance, were required to establish a 6 percent on the "old three-count survey" procedure. The total federally connected was 5.06 percent in elementary and 4.55 percent at the high school level; and it was the decision of the Federal repre

sentatives, as well as the local governing board and staff, that the additional surveys could not produce enough federally connected pupils to qualify the district for entitlements under Public Law 874.

With no appreciable change in Federal activity in this area since 1958, the districts have not attempted to establish a survey and to consider their qualifications under the law. However, if we were to apply the same 1958 percentages of impact to our present enrollments, it is estimated that there would be a total of 27,342 federally connected within the Los Angeles city school districts. Therefore, we wish to recommend for your serious consideration, once again, the reduction of the 6-percent requirement for large school districts to the same 3percent requirement as now permitted for all others, and we urgently request that you give every consideration to including this amendment during the current session of Congress.

I have just given you a brief explanation of how the Los Angeles city school districts have been concerned and interested in Public Law 874 up to this time, and since the original enactment in 1950. Because of this interest and concern we have had over the years, we have maintained our contacts with Members of Congress and with representatives of Federal, State, and local governments, in order to keep apprised of any subsequent changes to see if our school districts would be eligible to again make application for Federal entitlements under Public Law 874.

It was, therefore, with great renewed interest and concern for us to learn of the proposed amendments to Public Law 874 now under consideration by your committee. The addition of two new categories to Public Law 874(1) to include children of needy families, and (2) to include children residing in areas of substantial unemployment with unemployed parents, appears to be categories that would allow this school district to participate in the entitlements, if the bill is enacted

into law.

When we first heard of the pending legislation, we made contacts with the local agencies responsible for these two categories of children and received estimates that we can present to you this morning, which may give you some idea as to their effect upon the Los Angeles city school districts; that is, the schoolchildren and taxpayers of our school districts.

In consideration of the first category, the Los Angeles County Bureau of Public Assistance has estimated that approximatly 65,124 children in the Los Angeles city school districts, between the ages of 6 through 17, are children of needy families receiving aid for dependent children. Had this provision been included in Public Law 874 during the 1963-64 school year, this number of students would have represented approximately 10 percent of the total average daily attendance of the Los Angeles elementary and secondary schools.

Senator MORSE. That is a remarkable figure. If people would just pause to consider the implications of that figure, I do not think we would have so much difficulty on this committee, and you would not have so much difficulty in your school administration work in getting a public recognition that all of us have a responsibility to come to the assistance of the school district that is carrying that kind of a load. Ten percent.

Mr. LAWRENCE. I believe that is a conservative estimate, too, Senator.

Senator MORSE. Please proceed.

Mr. LAWRENCE. In considering the second category, that of children who reside in areas of substantial unemployment with unemployed parents, the task of estimating the number of students within the Los Angeles city school districts becomes quite difficulty. We have contacted the Los Angeles metropolitan area office of the California State Employment Service in an attempt to get the most recent esimate of the number of individuals receiving unemployment compensation insurance benefits. The area manager supplied a total of 315,783 persons who drew at least 1 week of unemployment insurance benefits during the 1963 calendar year; and of this number, approximately 214,125 were estimated to be within the Los Angeles city school districts. One week of unemployment compensation we did not feel was a measure of what this bill was directing itself to. So we asked for some other criteria, and we used one that would consist of a person who had exhausted his benefits, more than over half the year. So using additional figures supplied by the Los Angeles metropolitan area office of the California State Employment Service, we have estimated that approximately 20,399 persons living within the Los Angeles city school districts received unemployment insurance benefits for a major portion of the year. And using your criteria of 2.6 children. per family, it would indicate, then, 53,037 children residing with unemployed parents.

We recognize that these figures are based on estimates, and that procedures would have to be developed in order to more accurately determine the numbers of such families within the districts, provided this bill is enacted. Further, we are aware that an area must be designated by the Secretary of Labor as one of substantial unemployment in order to qualify under this category. The Los Angeles area has not been so designated since April of 1962 and is presently considered an area of moderate unemployment.

In reference to both of the new categories, as proposed in the bill now under your consideration, the Los Angeles city school districts will lend support and cooperation in any way possible to develop the procedures or mechanics for a practical application of these provisions should they be included in Public Law 874.

In closing my remarks, and in an attempt to be brief, I am sure the subcommittee is more aware than I that the future of this great Nation rests in the quality of education that we provide our young people. It has also been said that the future of this Nation rests in the struggles being waged in our great cities. Can we then also say that the kind of education provided the young people in the great cities of this great Nation is the thing that will undoubtedly move this Nation forward?

Thank you, once again, for this opportunity to appear before your subcommittee, representing Dr. Jack P. Crowther, superintendent of the Los Angeles city schools, and the schoolchildren of Los Angeles. Senator MORSE. Well, Mr. Lawrence, you made your case as far as the chairman is concerned.

The Senator from Texas?

Senator YARBOROUGH. Thank you for that very concise statement, Mr. Lawrence. There is a great deal of thought in it, particularly the statistic on which the chairman has previously commented that the 65,000 or more children in the Los Angeles city school districts are children of needy families receiving aid to dependent children, and that is approximately 10 percent of the average attendance of the schools there. That is an astonishing figure. I do not mean that it is high. There may be big cities where that figure is higher. There probably are, judging from the dynamic growth of the West, other great cities in the country where the figure would be higher, but it is food for a lot of thought in the overall problem we have in this country.

Thank you for this contribution here.

Senator MORSE. Thank you very much.

Mr. LAWRENCE. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Senator MORSE. Some years ago this chairman decided that members of the subcommittee ought to undergo a seminar on some of our educational problems. So I initiated the type of hearing that we are now going to devote the rest of the morning. We are having a group of experts come and serve as our professors for a period of time and conduct a panel seminar on the problem before the subcommittee. This morning the leaders of our seminar will be Mr. Oscar V. Rose, superintendent of schools, Midwest City, Okla.; Mr. B. F. Minor, assistant superintendent of schools, San Diego city schools, Calif.; Mr. Richard Taylor, superintendent of Widefield School District, Colorado Springs, Colo.; and Mr. Bennie Steinhouser, suburban superintendent of schools, San Antonio, Tex.

If you gentlemen will come forward and take over the classroom, we will do our best to educate ourselves under your direction.

STATEMENT OF OSCAR V. ROSE, SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, MIDWEST CITY, OKLA.; ACCOMPANIED BY B. F. MINOR, ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, SAN DIEGO CITY SCHOOLS, CALIFORNIA; RICHARD TAYLOR, SUPERINTENDENT OF WIDEFIELD SCHOOL DISTRICT, COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO.; AND BENNIE STEINHOUSER, SUBURBAN SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, SAN ANTONIO, TEX.

Mr. ROSE. Senator Morse, we want to thank you for referring to us as experts. I think that may be putting it a little strong.

Senator MORSE. Well, I am going to stand by my statement. We are going to learn from you. If we can learn from someone, our teacher is an expert in my book. We will turn the interrogating over to you now, Mr. Rose. We have had Mr. Rose before this subcommittee before, and he knows what our needs are. You go ahead and conduct the hearing.

Mr. Rose. I think three of us have written statements. The other gentleman wants to make some comments verbally off the cuff, and then we will be happy to discuss any points that you might wish to bring up from this testimony.

Since we do not have any clear order, I believe I will ask Richard Taylor to give his, and then Mr. Minor, and then Mr. Steinhouser, and I will conclude the testimony.

Senator MORSE. Fine.

STATEMENT OF RICHARD TAYLOR, SUPERINTENDENT OF WIDEFIELD SCHOOL DISTRICT, COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO.

Mr. TAYLOR. Thank you. I have a report prepared that I am sure you have copies of. I have attempted in this to point out an area of true Federal impaction under existing laws of Public Laws 815 and 874. Perhaps to read from it, I might start by saying I represent the Widefield School District of Colorado Springs, Colo., which had an enrollment of 5,000 students in the last school year. And 55 percent, or 2,750 of these, were connected by their parents' employment to Federal property, military installations, primarily.

Ten years ago, the student body numbered 24 in a one-room schoolhouse. The growth has been due to military bases such as Fort Carson, North American Air Defense Command, and the U.S. Air Force Academy, and American Air Defense Command, and a couple of minor airfields.

While the installations have added much to the general economy of the area, they have been a large burden to the school districts. Educational programs could not have been maintained without the support available through Public Laws 815 and 874.

Like most areas adjacent to military installations, industrial wealth per school pupil is quite low. The assessed valuation is $2,890 per student. This is not adequate for support of schools and requires that the balance of moneys necessary to educate these youngsters be obtained through the provisions of Public Laws 874 and 815.

The present growth rate of 10 to 12 percent each year makes it most necessary that these laws be extended to avoid curtailment of the educational program.

I am sure that the subcommittee is aware of school budgeting procedures, and these require that to adequately plan an educational program requires knowledge of available funds being obtainable some time prior to a new school year.

Senator MORSE. I want to interrupt. I am so glad you made that point because some of the rest of us have been dwelling on that point. There was a dry run this year, I should tell you, to extend it only for a year. I said, "How do you expect these school districts to budget and plan their program with part of the year already gone if you give them only a 1-year extension?" We certainly ought to have at least 2 years so that they can plan for 2 years. Some of us felt that 3 years would certainly have been appropriate, but we compromised on 2.

I want to see these two impacted area laws strengthened, not weakened. The best way to strengthen them, or some of the ways to strengthen them, is along the lines of this legislation and also eliminate any basis of criticism because that is what worries me. In my own State, for example, they found one school district that was getting Federal impacted area money because it had a half dozen families that traveled some 75 miles away to Portland, Oreg., to work in a Federal