[H. R. 10789, 85th Cong., 2d sess.]

A BILL To amend the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 to permit the donation and other disposal of property to tax-supported public recreation agencies

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That (a) paragraph (1) of section 203 (j) of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, as amended (40 U. S. C. 484 (j)), is amended by inserting "public recreation," immediately after "public health,".

(b) The first sentence of paragraph (3) of section 203 (j) of such Act of 1949, as amended, is amended

(1) by striking out "or public health," and by inserting in lieu thereof "public health, or public recreation,";

(2) by striking out "and (B)" and inserting in lieu thereof "B": and (3) by inserting immediately before the period at the end thereof the following: "and (C) tax-supported public recreation agencies of any State, or of any political subdivision of a State".

SEC. 2. (a) The first sentence of paragraph (1) of section 203 (k) of such Act of 1949, as amended (40 U. S. C. 484 (k)) is amended by inserting before the period at the end thereof a comma and the following: "or for use in the promotion of public recreation".

(b) Paragraph (1) of such section 203 (k) is further amended—

(1) by redesignating subparagraphs (C) and (D) as subparagraphs (D) and (E);

(2) by striking out "subparagraph (A) and subparagraph (B)" in the subparagraph so redesignated as subparagraph (D) and inserting in lieu thereof "subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C)"; and

(3) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following new subparagraph: "(C) Subject to the disapproval of the Administrator within thirty days after notice to him by the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare of a proposed transfer of property for use in the promotion of public recreation, the Secretary, through such officers and employees of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare as he may designate, may sell or lease such real property for public recreation purposes to tax-supported public recreation agencies of any State or of any political subdivision of a State." (c) Paragraph (2) of such section 203 (k) is amended by striking out "or" at the end of subparagraph (D), by striking out the comma at the end of subparagraph (E) and inserting in lieu thereof "; or", and by inserting immediately after subparagraph (E) the following new subparagraph:

"(F) The Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, through such officer or employee of the Department as he may designate, in the case of property transferred pursuant to this Act to tax-supported public recreation agencies of any State or of any political subdivision of a State for use in the promotion of public recreation.".

SEC. 3. Section 203 (o) of such Act of 1949, as amended (40 U. S. C. 484 (0)), is amended by striking out "educational or public health institutions" and inserting in lieu thereof "educational or public health institutions, or public recreation agencies,”.

STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN F. BALDWIN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

Mr. BALDWIN. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the opportunity to appear before this subcommittee. I introduced H. R. 543 at the beginning of the 85th Congress at the request of the California State Director of Recreation, and also as a result of a great deal of interest in the measure by a recreation district at Vallejo in my congressional district in California, and since introducing it, I have received a tremendous amount of correspondence from public recreation districts throughout the United States, one of them from the recreation board of the District of Columbia, one of them from the North Carolina Recreation Society and a great number of others.

This bill would simply add the words "tax supported public recreation agencies," to the groups that are now covered, that is educational facilities are covered, and health and civil defense, and this would add tax-supported public recreation agencies.

And I would like to say, Mr. Chairman, that the city of Vallejo in Solano County is a typical county where this would be of benefit.

Vallejo is where the Mare Island shipyard is located. The tax base is very limited because the shipyard is not on the tax base and yet the great number of people employed there have families and youngsters that are taken care of during the school hours by the schools. But then when the school hours are closed the need of providing them with proper recreation facilities continues, and it is especially true during the summer months.

It seems to me if we recognized in the bill we passed dealing with education that there was some benefit to be gained through this program it would apply not only to the hours the youngsters are in school but to the hours they are not in school but still in need of proper guidance and proper training.

And in Vallejo we have a recreational district. They are in need of equipment that would be available in the way of surplus from the Mare Island Naval Shipyard and Benicia Arsenal and other installations that would be of great help in providing an adequate recreational program for these youngsters.

They also are in need of real property upon which to put their recreational facilities, and in the city of Vallejo at the present time there are several hundred acres of surplus property which came from war housing or other Federal activities which has not been disposed of but is still in process, and legislation of this type would make it possible for tax-supported public agencies without funds to acquire at least sufficient surplus property to develop the recreational facilities they need.

As I say it seems to me this ties right in with the theory under which we enacted the law to make it possible for school districts to take care of surplus property because the schools take care of the youngsters only 6 or 7 hours a day and then there are many additional hours not only on school days but weekends and 3 months during the summer, that a tax supported public recreation district has the burden of providing a program for these youngsters living in fairly populated areas and keeping them occupied to avoid diverting their energies to things that are detrimental to the community, and that is the reason I introduced this measure, Mr. Chairman.

It has received a great deal of recognition from recreation agencies throughout the country, and I hope very much that the subcommittee may give it favorable consideration.

Mr. McCORMACK. Any questions, Mr. May?

Mr. MAY. The only question that came to my mind, Mr. Chairman, was this recreation apparently is apart from the school system. Í know in many towns the schools and their schoolyards have recreational facilities there and that the children use after the school is over for the day.

Would not it be possible for the recreation needs to be developed through the school system in a case like that?

Mr. BALDWIN. Well, this is a public recreation district. It coordinates with the school system but it has found that there is a need for

additional facilities beyond those that are available in some of the schools in this particular community, and I think that is true in many communities throughout the United States.

Mr. MAY. Thank you. I see.

Mr. McCORMACK. Any further questions?
If not, thank you, Congressman Baldwin.

Mr. BALDWIN. Thank you.

Mr. McCORMACK. Anyone else appearing in support of the legislation?

Well, thank you very much.

I see Congressman Herlong.

You are here in support of H. R. 10010, Mr. Herlong?

Mr. HERLONG. That is right.

Mr. McCORMACK. And 10118 and 9522, related bills.

(H. R. 9522 appears on p. 29, H. R. 10010 and H. R. 10118 follow :)

[H. R. 10010, 85th Cong., 2d sess.]

A BILL To amend the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 to authorize the disposal of certain surplus property to public health agencies of a State, its political subdivisions and instrumentalities

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That paragraph (3) of subsection (j) of section 203 of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (40 U. S. C. 484), is amended by inserting immediately after "tax-supported medical institutions, hospitals, clinics," the following: "public health agencies of the State, and its political subdivisions and instrumentalities."

SEC. 2. Subsection (j) of section 203 of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 is further amended by adding at the end thereof the following new paragraph:

"(7) As used in this subsection the term

"(A) 'public health' includes but is not limited to sanitation activities generally, including sanitary land fill programs, mosquito and insect control programs, malaria control programs, and drainage programs; and

"(B) 'public health agencies of the State, and its political subdivisions and instrumentalities' includes but is not limited to malaria control districts, mosquito and insect control districts, sanitary districts, and drainage districts."

[H. R. 10118, 85th Cong., 2d sess.]

A BILL To amend the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 to authorize the disposal of certain surplus property to public health agencies of a State, its political subdivisions and instrumentalities

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That paragraph (3) of subsection (j) of section 203 of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (40 U. S. C. 484), is amended by inserting immediately after “tax-supported medical institutions, hospitals, clinics," the following: "public health agencies of the State, and its political subdivisions and instrumentalities."

SEC. 2. Subsection (j) of section 203 of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 is further amended by adding at the end thereof the following new paragraph:

"(7) As used in this subsection the term—

"(A) 'public health' includes but is not limited to sanitation activities generally, including sanitary land fill programs, mosquito and insect control programs, malaria control programs, and drainage programs; and

"(B) 'public health agencies of the State, and its political subdivisions and instrumentalities' includes but is not limited to malaria control districts, mosquito and insect control districts, sanitary districts, and drainage districts."

Mr. McCORMACK. We will be very glad to hear from you, Congressman Herlong.

STATEMENT OF HON. A. SYDNEY HERLONG, JR., A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF FLORIDA

Mr. HERLONG. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

First, I have handed the clerk a letter which I received from Dr. Sowder who is the head of the Florida State Board of Health, expressing the need for enactment of this legislation or legislation similar to this as far as Florida is concerned.

There is a great need and I would like permission to include that letter in the record.

Mr. McCORMACK. Without objection, it is so ordered.

(The letter follows:)

FLORIDA STATE BOARD OF HEALTH,

Jacksonville, January 7, 1958.

Hon. A. SYDNEY HERLONG,

Congress of United States,

House Office Building, Washington, D. C.

DEAR CONGRESSMAN HERLONG: The assistance of Florida's congressional delegation is requested in amending the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949.

During the past year certain local county health departments were severely criticized through the press for reported illegal use of Federal surplus property used by the health departments for mosquito control and other public health purposes. It is apparent to this office that the difficulties which have been encountered were not violations of the act but in our opinion incorrect administrative interpretations of the functions of a health center as well as what is meant by "public health purposes" in the act.

We have contended all along that mosquito control should be classified as a public health purpose and furthermore that the operation of a sanitary land fill under the supervision and direction of a local health center should also be classified as public health purpose.

In a letter of December 16, 1957, from the Honorable M. B. Folsom, Secretary of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, in response to a resolution from the Florida Public Health Association, he stated that mosquito control work is considered a public health purpose which has cleared up one point. “If these otherwise eligible health centers, for example, are responsible for the mosquito control program in the county, then the health center would be eligible to receive equipment for mosquito control work since this is considered a public health purpose." He further stated, "On the other hand, we understand that the mosquito control program is operated in some areas of the State by independent legal entities known as mosquito control districts whose responsibility may even extend beyond county lines. Under these circumstances, the mosquito control districts would not be eligible to receive property because such agencies are not enumerated in the act and could not qualify as either a hospital, medical institution, clinic, or health center. Similarly, health units, sanitation activities and sanitary land fills mentioned in the resolution do no come within the purview of the law."

We understand the logic as to why a mosquito control district, malaria control district, sanitary districts and similar local agencies cannot be considered for surplus property since they have not been definitely spelled out in the law. We maintain, however, that if a local health center is eligible to receive surplus equipment for mosquito control, then it is also eligible to utilize the equipment for sanitary landfill operations since such operations are performed for mosquito control, housefly control, rodent and flea control which, in our opinion, should come under the classification of pubiic health purposes.

We strongly recommend that Florida's congressional delegation use their influence to have the law amended to straighten out the difficulty that has arisen over the administrative interpretation of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949.

We are enclosing a resolution that was recently adopted by the State and Territorial health officers pertaining to the subject. We are also attaching a suggested amendment to the act which may clear up many of the difficulties which have arisen in the public health field and it is also hoped that should the amend

ment pass that mosquito control districts, sanitary districts, etc., operating under the supervision and direction of State or Territorial health departments would be eligible for surplus equipment.

It is our understanding that you are already looking into the matter of amending the law since much of the difficulty has arisen in your district.

Sincerely,

WILSON T. SOWDER, M. D.,
State Health Officer.

Mr. HERLONG. Mr. Chairman, this bill that I have proposed, H. R. 10010, and its companion bill simply amends the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 to authorize the disposal of certain surplus property to public health agencies of the State, its political subdivisions and instrumentalities.

A report was requested by your committee of the agencies concerned and of course they came back with an unfavorable report stating they did not wish to broaden the agencies which were at this time currently getting the benefit of having this advantage of purchasing or getting this donable surplus property.

I have gone over those reports very carefully and I have written to the chairman a letter which I suppose is in the files, explaining why I thought that the reports of the various departments did not particularly fit our bill.

In my judgment this bill which I have introduced does not expand this program as it is currently being administered. It defines and clarifies the rules for making donable surplus property available to these agencies doing public-health work including mosquito control which is our most important work in that field in the State of Florida. The purpose of the clarification and definition is to avoid such situations as have occurred in the State of Florida, one of which occurred in my own home county where they got property from the surplus disposal groups out of Atlanta and were told it was all right, kept it and used it and wore it out and then were told after having used it for about 2 years they did not have it properly, that they were going to be sued and required to pay some forty or fifty thousand dollars for this property, and they were required to put it up in storage and hold it, what they had, and inventory it all when they knew they had it right, had it properly, had properly obtained it in the first instance.

Now we are simply trying to clarify this. They changed their ruling again and said it was right; we could have it. In other words, they said we could have it, then said we could not and then came back and said we could.

But things like that disrupt a program and all we want to do is clarify it because we think public-health services should have the benefit of getting donable surplus property.

That is all I have to say on it, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. McCORMACK. How long ago did that incident happen?

Mr. HERLONG. It happened last January a year ago, I think it wasno, it happened when I was at home last year when Congress was in recess, because I introduced a bill right after I came back up to take care of it.

It was during October, I believe; a year ago, last October. The ruling was made out of the Atlanta office, incidentally, in that connection.

Mr. McCORMACK. Do you know anything about that matter, Mr. Lund?