Mr. BROWNELL. I would say that we do not have information from the State agencies in reference to the needs within the several States. I think part of the reason for that is that the law as written calls for the applications to come from the district directly to the Office of Education. I think in our total situation that is an important point to consider as we try to work through the States.

Senator COOPER. How do you work through the States? Do you work with the State agency in the administration of this law? What function does the State perform?

Mr. BROWNELL. They have very little to do with it, actually, in connection with the administration of the law. The application is filed by the local community with our School Assistance Division and our field service men work there. I would say that they work cooperatively with the State agencies, but the State departments of education are not responsible for the program, except pretty largely in a cooperative way. I think they do have to approve.

The application has to be filed with the State. I am corrected in that matter.

Senator COOPER. Do you have any comments you would like to make on this absorption feature of 3 percent?

Mr. BROWNELL. When you say, do I have any comments I would like to make.

Senator COOPER. Do you want to state a view on it?

Mr. BROWNELL. I would make just about two brief comments. One is that if you look at the problem as the law was originally written and passed by Congress a year ago, I can see no particular changes that have taken place that were not in the picture at the time the law was passed. So that if the law was proper and it was passed at that time, it would be very difficult to justify a change on the grounds of changed conditions.

Secondly, the problem looked at from the standpoint of the individual community means that, as I recall the figures, there will be considerable variation between the communities as to the particular impact that this 3 percent absorption will have on communities.

In general, overall, it means that the Federal Government will be reducing by about one and a half percent of the total school budgets, the amount of Federal money that goes in. That is of the total budget. That is an overall. In some communities it will be much more than that.

The amount of the Federal money that is withdrawn from a district would be a good deal higher than that. You see they receive money locally and they receive money from the States in all of these communities. So that the point I am trying to make is that, from the standpoint of the total impact on school budgets generally, the reduction looks not too great, one and a half percent.

From the standpoint of individual communities, it may be a pretty serious proposition for two reasons: One, some of these communities have a higher percentage than others of the Federal money that they receive. I am unable to find that the States have taken any particular steps, looking forward to the fact that this amount was going into effect this next year. It means that the local communities in most instances will have to make up that difference.

They have had a year's time in which to anticipate that, and I think we just have to look at that situation from that point of view. I don't know whether that answers your question or not.

Senator COOPER. You say that the Department would favor an extension of this act?

Mr. BROWNELL. Of 815.

Senator COOPER. Yes.

Mr. BROWNELL. Yes; we would go along with an extension of the act for year or two until we have the further facts and further permanent recommendations to make.

Senator COOPER. I would like to say this, Mr. Brownell: I remember when you and Mrs. Hobby testified before our committee upon the bills which were proposed in conferences. There was a great deal of talk about them and criticism and some fun poked at them. I must say that in our discussion, even of this bill, that the Federal schools construction bill, we ran up against questions all of the time which indicated that there is a lot of information needed in this field and pointed up, I think, very much your insistence and your energy in having these conferences in the States and at the White House level to attempt to get better information and better facts on many of these school problems.

I would just like to say now for myself that that has certainly appeared to me more and more in our discussion of these bills, and I would like to express my little appreciation for your wisdom and foresight in the Department for suggesting those bills.

Mr. BROWNELL. Thank you very much. I really wish we had all that information now because these problems are pressing ones.

Senator UPTON. Mr. Chairman, reference has been made to the list of the districts in which there are likely to be increases in the coming year, increases in enrollment. This study is limited in scope, as I understand, to the years 1953 and 1955?

Mr. BROWNELL. Yes; that is correct.

Senator UPTO . And you haven't been looking beyond 1955, as I understand it, as to probable increases in enrollment due to Federal projects?

Mr. BROWNELL. That would be very difficult for us to do, Senator. Senator UPTON. I noted in your statement that no reference is made to the possible effect on New England and the adjacent communities by the air base.

Mr. BROWNELL. That is right.

Senator UPTON. This situation there wasn't included in your study or survey?

Mr. BROWNELL. No. We wish we had more information in regard to the plans of the Defense Department, but obviously, they can't always disclose those things ahead of time.

Senator UPTON. I mentioned the air base, because it is a local but very important problem in relation to the communities there. Senator COOPER. Thank you very much, Mr. Brownell.

Mr. BROWNELL. Thank you, Senator.

Senator COOPER. Mr. Sulo Tani, State Planning and Development Commission State of New Hampshire.

STATEMENT OF SULO TANI, STATE PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION, NEW HAMPSHIRE

Mr. TANI. I am Sulo Tani, planning director with the New Hampshire Planning and Development Commission, in Concord, N. H. Senator COOPER. What is the function of the State Planning and Development Commission? I am sure I could ask Senator Upton. Mr. TANI. Well, the function is both a promotional and planning agency. The planning arm, with which I am connected, one of their large responsibilities is to be concerned with the forward planning on the part of municipalities in the State trying to foresee difficulties or problems which might arise in their case, and that is our particular association with this problem at the present time.

We are particularly concerned with the problems in the communities that are affected by defense installations. Where those installations create population impacts, which are usually spelled out in heavy costs for provision of municipal facilities and services, the State and we have a real concern. We are seeking to find cushions for some of these impacts, and I will try to outline in a general sense what the impact in this particular instance is.

Southeastern New Hampshire is the area with which we are primarily concerned. This is a real defense area, we feel, a vital defense area. In it are located the Portsmouth Naval Base, which has been there for many years and has a large force of both civilian and Naval personnel. The area also includes a very large power installation which is not connected with national defense, but upon which to a large measure the power production in the State depends.

There is also recently located there a large submarine cable manufacturing plant, who are producing underwater cable for communications for Navy purposes principally, and also here are located several electronics plants, who are producing equipment for vital electronics devices.

It is in this area that there has recently been projected a major strategic air command air base. We feel it is in every sense of the word a vital defense area. We want to particularly point out that this area of the State in the vicinity of the air base has grown rapidly in the last decade, and in fact, in more than the last decade. It has grown much more so than the rest of the State and that is due to a considerable extent to the various defense factors that are found there. The overall percentage growth in the area as a whole, which comprises anywhere from 21 to 30 communities, depending on how you look at it, has been well over 20 percent in the last decade, but I think it is particularly important to note that in those communities that are close to the naval base and to the new air base, the population percentage growths have been very marked-33 percent, 27 percent, 28 percent and so forth, being quite common.

This growth has placed a burden on the communities of the area, not only in the provision of schools, but all kinds of facilities and services which they must provide. The provision of schools and school programs are probably the most critical at the present time, and we expect that they will continue to be so.

Now, we have projected the normal growth of the school enrollments in the six principal school unions or school districts in the

area which comprises 21 communities. We find that within 5 years we can expect to increase the high school enrollment by 15 percent and the elementary enrollment by 20 percent.

Now, we will add on top of that an additional 1,600 more school children, which are the figures supplied us by the Air Force as the nominal number of school age children that will be located there when the air base is activated. These would increase this percentage growth to 21 percent and 55 percent respectively-that is, 21 percent for high school and 55 percent for elementary. The total school growth in the area as near as we can estimate for the next 4 or 5 years will be about 4,400. This is the additional growth on top of the present school population. More than one-third of this will be attributable to the air base, and although we don't have accurate figures, I think we can safely say that between one-quarter and one-third of this 4,400 will be otherwise attributed to defense activities, either navy base or some other activities.

This, I think, can be interpreted in terms of school facility costs. I think they use the figure of roughly $1,100 per pupil, and 4,400 would be close to a $5 million capital investment, which these communities would have to face.

I think it is important to point out that nearly every one of these communities have added substantially to their school plant since 1946, and some have had to add twice, and most of the communities now have reached or are near their legal debt limit of financing schools. Now, to add to the mounting burden without providing some financial relief is to place these communities in a serious financial strait. So that we from the State level are very urgently urging the continuation of Public Law 815 and 874.

Senator COOPER. Do you have any questions?

Senator UPTON. You have taken as the basis of your projected increased school enrollment an estimate of some 1,600 children, resulting from an increase of strike that. You have told us that the probable increase according to the studies made by you, which include an estimate of an increased enrollment of some 1,600 children due to the air base, and that estimate was your own?

Mr. TANI. No, that estimate was provided us by the Air Forces. Senator UPTON. What do you know about the personnel attached to this air base when it is in operation?

Mr. TANI. Well, the total number of personnel, I recall the figures out of mind-I think they expect to have 6,700 air men and officers, plus 450 civilian people, who are directly employed on the base.

Senator UPTON. How many will be enlisted personnel and how many officers, if you know?

Mr. TANI. I don't have that figure right here. I have got it in my file. It is 1,000 officers.

Senator UPTON. Then there will be an increase directly in population attributable to the air base of between six and seven thousand. Mr. TANI. Those are the people who are directly employed by the air base.

Senator UPTON. And this makes no allowance for families?

Mr. TANI. No, sir.

Senator UPTON. Have you made any estimate of the total increase in population?

Mr. TANI. Yes, with the total number of families, of the married officers and air men, plus their children. Our estimate indicates that the entire contingent will represent about 15,000 people. Senator UPTON. When will this air base be completed?

Mr. TANI. I believe it is scheduled for completion in 1955. Now, the completion date has been changed several times.

Senator UPTON. What is the status of the base at the present time? Mr. TANI. It is under full construction at the present time. Senator UPTON. And do you know the number of men employed there in construction work?

Mr. TANI. I do not have that figure, sir.

Senator COOPER. Where did you get your information as to the total number of military personnel to be stationed there?

Mr. TANI. That information was supplied us by the Department of the Air Force, General Eaton, dated February 17, 1953. We corroborated these figures with the officer in charge, Colonel Andre just the other day.

Senator COOPER. You did ask for information as to the total number of personnel and that information was given you?

Mr. TANI. Yes.

Senator COOPER. By the Department of the Air Force?
Mr. TANI. Yes.

Senator UPTON. I have no further questions.

Senator COOPER. Thank you very much, Mr. Tani.

Mr. Stowe Wilder, chairman of the board of education, Portsmouth, N. H.

STATEMENT OF STOWE WILDER, CHAIRMAN, BOARD OF EDUCATION, PORTSMOUTH, N. H.

Mr. WILDER. Mr. Chairman, Senator Cooper, members of the subcommittee, my name is Stowe Wilder. I am from Portsmouth, N. H., and am chairman of the board of education.

years

I am sure we people from New Hampshire appreciate very much the opportunity to speak with you this morning about the effects of Public Law 874 and 815 and their continuation for the next few as proposed under Senator Upton's bills S. 3629 and S. 3628. Our group here from New Hampshire represents about 20 communities. I just want to make a few general remarks. There is no doubt in our mind that these Federal laws are promulgated to stimulate local communities to be progressive in their attitudes toward education. I subscribe wholeheartedly to what Senator Pastore from Rhode Island said as to great values inherent in our public education system. These bills also provide for Federal funds in lieu of taxable property.

Our community and our neighboring communities under the Federal laws assist these communities on the basis of the fact there are parents of children living on Federal property and also working on Federal property who in no way contribute to the taxable income of the community other than what their pay check contributes to the economic lifeblood of the town.

There is a second category set up by the United States Office of Education, wherein the federally connected individual either lives on