[S. 4126]

An Act Authorizing the National Capital Park and Planning Commission to acquire title to land subject to limited rights reserved, and limited rights in land, and authorizing the Directo of Public Buildings and Public Parks of the National Capital to lease land or existing buildings for limited periods in certains instances.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the authority of the National Capital Park and Planning Commission, established by the Act approved April 30, 1926 (Statutes at Large, volume 44, page 374), is hereby enlarged as follows:

Said commission is hereby authorized to acquire, for and in behalf of the United States of America, by gift, devise, purchase, or condemnation, in accordance with the provisions of the Act of June 6, 1924 (Statutes at Large, volume 43, page 463), as amended by the Act of April 30, 1926 (Statutes at Large, volume 44, page 374), (1) fee title to land subject to limited rights, but not for business purposes, reserved to the grantor: Provided, That such reservation of rights shall not continue beyond the life or lives of the grantor or grantors of the fee: Provided further, That in the opinion of said commission the permanent public park purposes for which control over said land is needed are not essentially impaired by said reserved rights and that there is a substantial saving in cost by acquiring said land subject to said limited rights as compared with the cost of acquiring unencumbered title thereto; (2) permanent rights in land adjoining park property sufficient to prevent the use of said land in certain specified ways which would essentially impair the value of the park property for its purposes: Provided, That in the opinion of said commission the protection and maintenance of the essential public values of said park can thus be secured more economically than by acquiring said land in fee or by other available means: Provided further, That all contracts for acquisition of land subject to such limited rights reserved to the grantor and for acquisition of such limited permanent rights in land shall be subject to the approval of the President of the United States.

SEC. 2. The Director of Public Buildings and Public Parks of the National Capital is authorized, subject to the approval of the National Capital Park and Planning Commission, to lease, for a term not exceeding five years, and to renew such lease, subject to such approval, for an additional term not exceeding five years, pending need for their immediate use in other ways by the public, and on such terms as the director shall determine, land or any existing building or structure on land acquired for park, parkway, or playground purposes.

Approved, December 22, 1928.

[H. R. 12897)

An Act To provide for the acquisition of a site and the construction thereon of a fireproof office building or buildings for the House of Representatives.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That there is hereby authorized to be appropriated the sum of $900,000, or so much thereof as may be necessary, for the acquisition of a site embracing one or more of the squares bounded by B Street southeast and B Street southwest, C Street southeast and C Street southwest, New Jersey Avenue southeast, and Delaware Avenue southwest, as the commission in control of the House Office Building shall determine.

Upon the acquisition of such land, buildings, and structures, all of the land, buildings, and structures contained in square numbered 689 and square numbered 636 in the District of Columbia, as such squares appear on the records in the office of the surveyor of the District of Columbia as of the date of the passage of this Act, shall become a part of the New House of Representatives Office Building site and be under the control of the Architect of the Capitol, subject to the direction and supervision of the House Office Building Commission.

SEC. 2. There is hereby authorized to be appropriated the sum of $7,500,000, or so much thereof as may be necessary, for the construction, on the site selected, of a fireproof office building or buildings for the House of Representatives, to include necessary office rooms for Members, including committee rooms, folding rooms, and such other rooms as may be necessary and proper. Such building or buildings shall be constructed substantially in accordance with plans prepared under the direction of the Architect of the Capitol in accordance with the provisions of an Act of Congress approved March 4, 1925, with such modifications as may be necessary or advantageous. For any part or all of the sum authorized to be appropriated by this section, contracts are authorized to be entered into. The construction of such building or buildings and the letting of contracts, including the necessary traveling expenses, advertising, purchase of material, supplies, equipment, and accessories in the open market, and the employment of all necessary skilled architectural and engineering personnel and other services, without reference to section 35 of the Act approved June 25, 1910, and purchase of necessary technical and other books, shall be under the control of the Architect of the Capitol, subject to the direction and supervision of the commission in control of the House Office Building. SEC. 3. The commission in control of the House Office Building shall, within thirty days after the date of the enactment of this Act, determine which part or parts of the area described in section 1 shall be acquired and used for a site for the building or buildings

herein provided for and shall proceed to acquire such site by purchase or by condemnation, and in the latter event, the condemnation proceedings shall be conducted in the same maner as provided in the Act entitled "An Act making appropriations for sundry civil expenses of the Government for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1899, and for other purposes," approved July 1, 1898, for the acquisition of a site for an addition to the Government Printing Office. The appropriations made pursuant to this Act shall be disbursed by the disbursing officer of the Department of the Interior, such officer being designated by law as the disbursing officer of the Architect of the Capitol.

Approved, January 10, 1929.

(H. R. 5769]

An Act To authorize the consolidation and coordination of Government purchase, to enlarge the functions of the General Supply Committee, to authorize the erection of a public warehouse for the storage of Government supplies, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Secretary of the Treasury, through the General Supply Committee established under the provisions of section 4 of the Act approved June 17, 1910, entitled "An Act making appropriations for the legislative, executive, and judicial expenses of the Government for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1911, and for other purposes," is hereby authorized and directed to purchase or procure and distribute supplies to meet the consolidated requirements of the executive departments and independent establishments of the Federal Government in Washington, District of Columbia, and of the municipal government of the District of Columbia: Provided, That the requirements of the field services of any department or establishment, when request is made by the head thereof, shall be included in such purchase or procurement and distribution of supplies. The supplies to be purchased in this manner shall be designated by the Secretary of the Treasury from those for which he is authorized under existing law to make term contracts or to include in the general schedule of supplies issued annually by the General Supply Committee.

SEC. 2. That each executive department and independent establishment shall furnish from time to time, when called on to do so, estimates of its requirements for inclusion in purchases which it is proposed to have made by the Secretary of the Treasury, and there shall be reserved from proper appropriations sufficient amounts in each case to reimburse the general supply fund hereinafter created. The General Supply Committee shall charge the proportionate cost of supplies, including breakage, shrinkage, transportation, cost of handling by the Treasury Department, and inspection, and bill the same to each requisitioning department; and each requisitioning department and independent establishment shall reimburse said general supply fund out of its appropriation upon proper vouchers.

SEC. 3. That there is hereby authorized to be set aside as a special fund in the Treasury Department, to be known as the general supply fund, such sum as may be appropriated by Congress for the making of payments for supplies to be purchased under the provisions of this Act, including the cost thereof and transportation charges, and reimbursement therefor upon presentation of proper vouchers, shall be made by each requisitioning office, out of any appropriations which may be applicable, by depositing the proper amounts directly to the credit of the Treasurer of the United States for the credit of the general supply fund herein authorized, and duplicate certificates of deposits issued therefor shall be promptly forwarded to the General Supply Committee: Provided, That all such reimbursements

shall be placed to the credit of the general supply fund, and the same are hereby reappropriated for the same purpose as the original fund: Provided further, That there shall be included in each annual report of the Treasury Department a statement of the assets and liabilities of the said general supply fund as of June 30, including as assets any supplies purchased therefrom and on hand, for which reimbursement has not been received: Provided further, That the Comptroller General of the United States shall make an annual audit of the general supply fund as of June 30, and there shall be covered into the United States Treasury as miscellaneous receipts any surplus found therein, all assets and liabilities considered, above the amount appropriated to establish the said fund: Provided, how ever, That payments for supplies procured for a field service may, in the discretion of the head of the department or establishment controlling such field service, and with the concurrence of the Secretary of the Treasury, be made direct to the vendors by the department or establishment.

SEC. 4. That the Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to prescribe suitable regulations to give full force and effect to the purposes of sections 1, 2, and 3 of this Act.

SEC. 5. That the Director of Public Buildings and Public Parks of the National Capital be, and he is hereby, authorized and directed to acquire by purchase, condemnation, or otherwise, such sites and additions to sites, in the vicinity of United States Reservations 17B, 17C, 17D, or 113, as may be necessary, and is authorized and directed to construct, on the sites so acquired or on other land in said District belonging to the United States not needed for other purposes, the location to be subject to the approval of the National Capital Park and Planning Commission, a building or buildings of fireproof warehouse type, with approximately four hundred thousand square feet of floor space, to provide storage space and facilities and the necessary offices connected therewith, for use of the General Supply Committee of the Treasury Department, of other departments or Independent Establishments of the United States Government, and of the municipal government of the District of Columbia.

SEC. 6. That the control of assignment of space in said building or buildings shall be vested in the Public Buildings Commission, established by section 10 of the Act approved March 1, 1919. Compensation for such occupancy, space, and facilities as are utilized by the Commissioners of the District of Columbia shall be on a rental basis on terms to be fixed by a board consisting of the director of Public Buildings and Public Parks of the National Capital, the engineer commissioner of the District of Columbia, and the Supervising Architect of the Treasury.

SEC. 7. That the plans for such building or buildings shall be prepared by the Director of Public Buildings and Public Parks of the National Capital in consultation with the Commission of Fine Arts; and he shall be charged with the custody, protection, maintenance, repair, and operation of said building or buildings.

SEC. 8. Authority is hereby given for closing and vacating such portions of streets as lie between such sites and such alleys as intersect such sites, and the portions of such streets and alleys so closed and vacated shall thereupon become parts of such site.