Hearings, Reports and Prints of the Senate Committee on Government Operations

FEDERAL ROLE IN URBAN AFFAIRS

TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 1967

U.S. SENATE,

SUBCOMMITTEE ON EXECUTIVE REORGANIZATION, COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS, Washington, D.C. The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 10 a.m., in room 1114, New Senate Office Building, Senator Abraham Ribicoff (chairman) presiding.

Present: Senators Ribicoff, Kennedy of New York, Harris, and Javits.

Also present: Paul Danaceau, staff director; Robert Wager, general counsel; Esther Newberg, chief clerk; Richard Bowen, professional staff member, Subcommittee on Executive Reorganization. Senator RIBICOFF. The subcommittee will be in order.

STATEMENT OF SENATOR RIBICOFF

Today, we begin a summing up.

At two previous sets of hearings each lasting 3 weeks-we have addressed ourselves to the proposition that America stands on the threshold of a new way of life-a way of life we call urban.

A total of 80 witnesses have contributed their views to these proceedings. The record of this dialog fills more than 3,100 pages of public transcript and represents an examination in depth of the American city.

As a subcommittee, we are concerned with establishing the best possible organization of the Federal Government to deal with the problems of our society. But no congressional committee can operate in a vacuum. If we are to meet our responsibilities, we must obtain a clear understanding of the problems we have set out to solve.

This subcommittee has attempted to survey all our national resources both public and private-because we felt the problems of urban America were far too large and far too complicated for any single institution-governmental or private-to solve by itself. Those hearings were instructive and productive.

TWO THEMES OF HEARINGS

Our hearings sounded two separate themes-one old-the other

new.

The old theme was the familiar litany of the great problems we face as an urban nation-problems of employment, housing, education,

health, social services, crime, poverty, recreation, transportation, local government, public and private financing, open spaces, land development and use, and poverty. For the city has as many problems as there are ways of looking at it.

The new theme was the dramatic possibility of bringing to bear on our urban problems the same kinds of resources, techniques, and vision that served us so well in our space program.

But before we can apply the techniques of one area to the problems of another, we must understand why we succeeded in that first area. Our achievements in space were only partly due to technology. We succeeded in space primarily because we established a goal and because we had a strategy and a timetable for achieving that goal. We succeeded in space because we set both short-range and long-range goals and because we organized our efforts in terms of the problems we faced.

In short, we were organized to conquer space and we are organized to reach the moon.

ORGANIZING GOVERNMENT TO DEAL WITH CITY PROBLEMS

But are we organized to eliminate the slums of today and build the city of tomorrow?

To be sure, we have programs and goals-and they are good programs and goals. For the immediate future, we are trying to prevent another summer of riots and violence. The Department of Housing and Urban Development, for example, has a 14-city plan. The Department of Labor has a 19-city plan.

We also have longer range goals. We are told that by the year 2000-which is only 33 years from now-we must totally rebuild urban America. We must put up more structures than we have built in our entire history-and these structures will be the physical foundation of our new society.

But these programs and goals often seem to lack a framework. They do not appear to be part of any strategy. They focus more on universal truths than on specific problems around which we can orga

nize our resources.

Who can quarrel with the need to prevent riots and violence? Who can quarrel with the purpose of model cities-to reclaim forgotten neighborhoods? Who can quarrel with the importance of planning an orderly growth into the 21st century. There is no debate here. There never has been.

URBAN PRIORITIES MUST BE ESTABLISHED

And so we come back to the question this subcommittee asked when it first began this inquiry 8 months ago: How is the Federal Government organized to develop, manage, and sustain the healthy growth of an urban nation?

Coordination among agencies is part of the answer. But it is not the whole answer. For we do not need coordination as much as we need to establish urban priorities. We need to focus on tangible goalsspecific projects.

And that is what we plan to do this week.

We have invited some builders and some philosophers of the American city to discuss specifics with us to discuss the kinds of hard problems we ought to be thinking about and to discuss the manner in which we ought to approach them.

We must learn how we can lower these barriers and how long it will take.

HEARINGS HELD IN CONSTRUCTIVE SPIRIT

We conduct these hearings-as we have conducted past hearingsin a constructive spirit. Our purpose is not to fix blame. For we prefer solutions to scapegoats. And the urgency of our problems demands that we bend all our efforts to solving them.

Last August, when these hearings began, the country was restless and concerned. The country still is restless and concerned. In the past 8 months, we have learned to talk about our urban problems with a sense of great urgency. The question we now face is whether we have learned to organize and act upon these problems with an equal sense of urgency.

We are honored today to have with us the leaders of the building and construction trades in this country. You are the practical men who have such a major role to play as to whether or not we succeed in solving the problems and fulfilling the needs of the cities of the future as well as the present.

And I want to thank you gentlemen for coming here today and being with us.

As I understand it, Mr. Haggerty, you are going to make a statement on behalf of the building and construction trades?

STATEMENT OF C. J. HAGGERTY, PRESIDENT, BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION TRADES DEPARTMENT, AFL-CIO; ACCOMPANIED BY M. A. HUTCHESON, PRESIDENT, UNITED BROTHERHOOD OF CARPENTERS & JOINERS OF AMERICA; PETER FOSCO, SECRETARY-TREASURER, LABORERS' INTERNATIONAL UNION OF NORTH AMERICA; GORDON M. FREEMAN, PRESIDENT, INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS; PETER T. SCHOEMANN, PRESIDENT, UNITED ASSOCIATION OF JOURNEYMEN & APPRENTICES OF THE PLUMBING & PIPEFITTING INDUSTRY OF THE UNITED STATES & CANADA; HUNTER P. WHARTON, PRESIDENT, INTERNATIONAL UNION OF OPERATING ENGINEERS; FRANK BONADIO, SECRETARY-TREASURER, BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION TRADES DEPARTMENT, AFL-CIO

Mr. HAGGERTY. With your permission, Senator, yes.

Senator RIBICOFF. Yes, sir. My suggestion would be that when we start the questioning, that anyone, or as many as you want, could respond to the questions. Whoever would like to answer might indicate by raising their hand or nodding their head, and we will try to recognize them.

I wonder if you gentlemen would identify yourselves for the purpose of the record, from left to right, starting with you, sir.

Mr. BONADIO. Frank Bonadio, secretary-treasurer of the Building & Construction Trades Department, AFL-CIO.

Mr. Fosco. Peter Fosco, general secretary-treasurer of the Laborers' International Union of North America.

Mr. FREEMAN. Gordon Freeman, president, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.

Mr. HAGGERTY. C. J. Haggerty, president of the Building & Construction Trades Department, AFL-CIO.

Mr. SCHOEMANN. Peter T. Schoemann, general president, United Association of Journeymen & Apprentices of the Plumbing & Pipefitting Industry in the United States & Canada.

Mr. HUTCHESON. M. A. Hutcheson, president, United Brotherhood of Carpenters & Joiners.

Mr. WHARTON. Hunter P. Wharton, general president of the International Union of Operating Engineers.

Senator RIBICOFF. Mr. Haggerty, will you please proceed.

Mr. HAGGERTY. Senator, may I first, just for the record, make a correction of the statement you made with respect to those who are here this morning in attendance?

These are not all the officials of the Building & Construction Trades Department. These are six members of the administrative committee of the department, and also members of the executive council of the department. I just want the record straight with respect to that. Senator RIBICOFF. Perfectly all right, sir.

Mr. HAGGERTY. Mr. Chairman, if it is agreeable with you, I would like to read a prepared statement touching on several points which we feel are important to your deliberations, and are relevant to your purpose in holding these most important hearings. We will then be available to answer any questions or to elaborate upon any particular point or subject which we have touched and which may be of particular interest to any of the committee members.

I might say at this point that we are here as construction men, not as social engineers.

PROBLEMS TO BE FACED IN REBUILDING CITIES

We respect the opinions of those appearing previously before your subcommittee. We recognize the tremendous problem facing us if we are to rebuild, rehabilitate, and rejuvenate our urban areas our great metropolitan centers. We know, as you well do, that there are many problems housing, transportation, education, medical care, water and pollution control, air pollution control, vermin control, open space control, environmental adjustments, and so many other factors which must be considered if we are to accomplish the task of making our cities relivable and providing the basis for a well adjusted and contented urban society.

My staff has carefully read and followed prior testimony given before this subcommittee, and we are sure that you are fully and completely aware of the conditions and the problems which are so imminent in all of our urban centers, as they have been well covered by persons previously appearing before this committee.

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