PREPARED STATEMENT

Senator HILL. And your full statement will be in the record. (The statement referred to follows:)

STATEMENT BY PARKE M. BANTA, GENERAL COUNSEL, ON SALARIES AND EXPENSES, OFFICE OF THE GENERAL COUNSEL, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, EDUCATION, AND WELFARE

The Office of the General Counsel performs all of the legal work incident to the activities of the Department. Its workload is represented by requests for legal assistance from the Secretary and her staff, the Commissioners of Social Security, Education, Food and Drugs, the Bureau Chiefs, and other officials or employees of the Department, and by litigation arising from program activities. The 1956 budget estimates request a total of $792,500 to be represented by a direct appropriation of $395,000 plus $375,000 to be transferred from the old-age and survivors insurance trust fund, and $22,500 from fees collected from food and drug certification services. Although this represents an increase of $52,500 over 1955 funds, because of our ever-increasing responsibilities resulting from congressional action, it will enable us to provide only a minimum acceptable standard of legal services during the fiscal year. This estimate will provide us with the services of 78 lawyers and 49 nonprofessional employees, or a total of 127. This represents an increase of 8 attorney positions and 4 nonprofessional (clerk-stenographers). Five and one-half of the new attorney positions requested are to render services in connection with new programs. The other 21⁄2 attorney positions are to enable us to supply badly needed and often requested services which, with our present staff, we have been unable to provide on a regular basis. In certain areas we anticipate a marked increase in the volume of legal work to be referred to our office, and we know from experience already gained that our staff is not sufficient to carry its present load and meet additional requirements.

PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES-HOSPITAL SURVEY AND CONSTRUCTION-TRANSFER OF INDIAN HEALTH SERVICES

One area in which we have already experienced some increase in legal work is in the Public Health Division. Three additional attorney positions are requested for this division, 1 each in the fields of hospital construction, Indian health services, and St. Elizabeths Hospital. As we have been staffed in 1955, we have been unable to meet all of the demands placed upon us by the Surgeon General and the various program representatives of the Public Health Service, to say nothing of the increased load we expect to receive as a result of the many problems which will be presented to us in connection with the transfer of the Indian hospitals and health services under Public Law 568, 83d Congress. In connection with the transfer of the Indian hospitals and health services to this Department from the Department of the Interior, a comparative transfer of one legal position is to be made. The additional position requested here, therefore, will enable us to assign 2 attorneys and 1 secretary to this work.

ADMINISTRATION-ENFORCEMENT FEDERAL FOOD, DRUG, AND COSMETIC ACT

Two additional attorney positions are requested in the Food and Drug Division. One is to be a hearing examiner to enable us to conduct the additional hearings required under the 1954 amendments to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (Public Law 335 and Public Law 518, 83d Cong.) and hopefully to catch up and keep current with the hearings required under the act before these amendments were added. The other position for this division is in the Trial Section. As of December 31, 1954, there were 58 criminal cases awaiting action. In addition, it appears there is a substantial increase in the number of civil cases requiring attention with, of course, a proportionate increase in the number of cases to be handled on appeal.

ACTIVITIES UNDER TITLE II-SOCIAL SECURITY ACT, AS AMENDED (OLD-AGE AND SURVIVORS INSURANCE)

Legal work in matters relating to old-age and survivors insurance is increasing substantially as a result of the 1954 amendments to title II of the Social Security Act, as amended (Public Law 761, 83d Cong.). Two additional attorneys are requested for this increased work. It is important for the Commissioner of Social

Security, the Director of the Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance, and the other administrative officers and employees to have prompt interpretation of the new provisions of the law and assistance in entering into new contracts with States to make disability determinations and in revising existing State and local government coverage contracts, so that all aspects of the law will be applied promptly and uniformly in all jurisdictions.

WELFARE EDUCATION-VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION

The lawyers in this division serve the Social Security Administration (Bureau of Public Assistance, Children's Bureau, Federal Credit Unions), the Office of Education, and the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation. As a result of the additional responsibilities imposed by the vocational rehabilitation amendments of 1954, together with an ever increasing demand for legal services due to the problems arising from these other program a tivities, the 1 additional attorney position requested for this division is an absolute minimum if these offices and bureaus are to have reasonably acceptable legal services in 1956.

The Office of the General Counsel suffered at least four successive drastic reductions of annual appropriations and consequent reductions of force. In this operation it was natural and doubtless necessary to retain the older and more experienced employees, but it left the office somewhat out of balance according to grade structure and without the desired number of younger lawyers to acquire experience for greater responsibilities as required in the natural course of events. The new positions requested are, therefore, except in two instances, at the lower grades— GS-7's and GS-9's. The additions requested, if approved, should give us a well balanced professional staff, capable of providing at least an acceptable standard of legal service to the Department.

RECRUITMENT OF ATTORNEYS

Mr. BANTA. The breakdown of how it was requested, as well as how it was provided by the House, is broken down in the full statement.

Senator HILL. Do you have much trouble recruiting attorneys, Mr. Banta?

Mr. BANTA. Well, the trouble lies in the fact that if we can call it trouble, we get applications from people who think we can pay large salaries.

I have sought to add to the staff young men who have had not more than 1 year's experience in the practice, or men who rate very high scholastically, who come out of the good law schools, and I have had fairly good luck getting some 7's and 9's, and I have a group of young men who, with a little more experience will be able to take over when these older ones are of retirement age.

ATTORNEYS' SALARIES

Senator HILL. Refresh my recollection. What is the salary of 7 to 9?

Mr. BANTA. In round figures $4,200 to $5,000.

Senator HILL. About $5,000?

Mr. BANTA. $5,000 for a GS-9; $4,200 for a GS-7. Of course, if we get a good young man, as we have had some good ones, we cannot keep him at GS-7 very long. And, of course, we cannot promote him if we do not have funds. And what has happened, Senator Hill, is that over the years, the General Counsel's Office has had its appropriation reduced, so that whenever a reduction in force comes, the younger men and those with shorter service and least experience are the ones that are separated. So that you leave only the highly experienced men. And it was a little amazing to me, in taking over the Office, to

find the number of men, the small number of men, that we had, and the necessity for them to do overtime work in a great many of the fields. In a great many of the fields in which we operate, the demands on them are such that being willing to work, and with the questions that we are asked to answer, we prepare hundreds of letters, in order to see to it that the statements made in them are legally correct. And, of course, we advise all of these constitutent units, the Public Health Service, the Social Security Administration, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Office of Education and their questions are many and varied, and they really require good legal talent. We have it, but not enough of it.

Senator HILL. Thank you, sir. We are very much obliged to you gentlemen.

Mr. BANTA. Thank you, Senator Hill.

SURPLUS PROPERTY UTILIZATION

STATEMENTS OF ROBERT J. DE CAMP, DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF FIELD ADMINISTRATION; WILLIS T. FRAZIER, CHIEF, DIVISION OF SURPLUS PROPERTY UTILIZATION, AND JAMES F. KELLY, BUDGET OFFICER, HEW

APPROPRIATION ESTIMATE

Surplus property [disposal] utilization: For expenses necessary for carrying out the provisions of subsections 203 (j) and (k) of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, as amended, relating to disposal of real and personal excess property for educational purposes and protection of public health, $400,000.

Amounts available for obligation

(Balances for June 30, 1954, are as certified under sec. 1311, Public Law 663)

Senator HILL. Now, the Office of Surplus Property Utilization. Are you going to testify on this, too, Mr. deCamp?

Mr. DE CAMP. I have an opening summary statement that, to save time, I would be very glad to submit.

Senator HILL. Put your statement in the record, and summarize it, then.

I notice that the House allowed you the budget estimate, did it not? Mr. DE CAMP. Yes. We are not asking for any more money. Mr. Frazier is here, who heads the operation, and if there are any questions about it, he would be glad to answer them.

(The statement referred to follows:)

STATEMENT BY DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF FIELD ADMINISTRATION ON 1956 ESTIMATE FOR "SURPLUS PROPERTY UTILIZATION"

The Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (as amended) assigned to the Secretary three major responsibilities in the field of surplus property: (1) determination of surplus personal property needed for educational and public health purposes and allocation of that property to State agencies for distribution to educational and public health institutions:; (2) disposal of surplus real property for educational and public health purposes, subject to the approval of the Administrator of the General Services Administration; and (3) protecting interests and rights reserved to the United States under the terms and conditions of transfers made for educational and public health services, including recapture of property for use during national emergencies.

The volume of surplus personal property becoming available for disposal has now reached approximately the same volume as that available for distribution by the War Assets Administration immediately following World War II. Allocations to State agencies currently are more than three times the amount allocated prior to the Korean situation. During the fiscal year 1956, the General Services Administration estimates that approximately $2 billion of property will be available for disposal. A large portion of this property must be screened to ascertain its utility for health and educational institutions and for its equitable distribution to the various States and Territories. It is therefore essential that we have sufficient staff so that the material needed will not be lost to the schools and hospitals of the Nation. It is estimated that the Department will allocate approximately $126 million worth of the above total in 1956.

Currently we have on hand 3 times the number of pending deed transactions for real property than we have processed during each of the past 3 years. This tremendous increase is due to the deactivation of military establishments, closing of Public Health Service hospitals, liquidation of public housing projects and to the revaluation of the operation of Government real property facilities. The need within the various States for expansion of school and health facilities is so pressing that several applications are received for nearly every piece of property that becomes available. Each transfer requires the administrative and legal work of a normal real-estate transfer plus the complications of Federal requirements.

In the current fiscal year we have had for the first time sufficient funds to carry on an organized compliance program. Much of the backlog responsibility inherited from WAA donations and transfers will be worked off during the rest of this fiscal year and the next fiscal year. With this backlog eliminated we will then be in a position to assume our normal compliance load of inspections of real property installations, review of State agency operations and to take corrective action where needed.

The approval of the appropriation request will enable this office to retain its experienced personnel and thus insure the receipt by the State institutions of valuable property for health and educational purposes at a time when these facilities, supplies, and equipment are so badly needed and when the tax resources of the States and communities are being severely strained.

SURPLUS PROPERTY FUNCTIONS

Senator HILL. You might, in just a word, Mr. Frazier, tell us what you do. Just sum it up very briefly.

Mr. FRAZIER. Yes, sir. We have three functions. One is the allocation of surplus property for health and educational purposes. Two, is the transfer of real property for health and educational purposes. And three, is the compliance or the protection of the Government's interests in the transfer of the property.

The volume of property has increased tremendously in the last 2 or 3 years. It is now at a volume that approximates the same as that of the War Assets days following World War II.

The Hoover Commission report on surplus property says there will be approximately $2 billion of surplus property disposed of during each of the next several years.

So what we are asking for is the same amount of money that we have now, in order that we can retain our experienced personnel and see that the States and institutions get their fair share of the property that is so badly needed.

Senator HILL. You are not asking for any additional personnel? Mr. FRAZIER. No, sir.

Senator HILL. You are not asking for any expansion of your work at all?

Mr. FRAZIER. No, sir.

Senator HILL. You had $400,000, I believe, this year.

Mr. FRAZIER. That is right.

Senator HILL. The budget recommended $400,000 for next year, and the House gave you that.

Mr. FRAZIER. That is right.

Senator HILL. Thank you very much.

The committee will stand in recesss until 10 o'clock on Friday morning.

(Whereupon, at 5:05 p. m., Wednesday, April 27, 1955, the committee adjourned, to reconvene at 10 a. m., Friday, April 29, 1955.)