Statements-Continued Ghizzoni, John, president, district No. 2, United Mine Workers of Page 378 Gray, Hon. Kenneth J., a Representative in Congress from the State of 97 Greeley, Paul J., manager of the Greater Lawrence Chamber of Com- Harris, Seymour, professor of economics, Harvard University, and Humphrey, Hon. Hubert H., United States Senator from the State of Johnson, Hon. George D., mayor of Duluth, Minn__. Imle, Albert R., Hillsboro, Ill__. Kane, Hon. John F., mayor of the city of Fall River, Mass--- Kelly, Hon. Frank P., mayor of Carbondale, Pa___. Kempf, Karl M., president, Industries for Amsterdam, Inc___ Kennedy, Hon. John F., United States Senator from the State of Kennedy, Thomas, vice president, United Mine Workers of America__ Kilgore, Hon. Harley M., United States Senator from the State of West Lane, Hon. Thomas J., a Representative in Congress from the State of Lawlor, Hon. Francis J., mayor of the city of New Bedford, Mass___. Leader, Hon. George M., Governor of the State of Pennsylvania; accompanied by William R. Davlin, secretary, department of com- merce, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania___ Leberknight, Cecil K., president, Cambria County Burroughs Associa- Martin, George S., Altoona, Pa., president, lodge No. 287, Brother- hood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen... Matheson, Mrs. Min Lurge, district manager of the Wyoming Valley McCloskey, Hon. Eddie, councilman and director of public safety, McDonough, Joseph A., president, Pennsylvania Federation of Labor 341 310 306 396 102 Miernyk, William H., director, bureau of business and economic 143 Previte, Hon. Albert S., Jr., Senator from the Fifth Essex district 338 Reeder, Ransom, subregional director, United Steelworkers of America 385 459 Statements-Continued Riley, George D., Legislative representative of the AFL-CIO, and Page 463 410 387 369, 374 462 Rose, Hon. Walter E., mayor of the City of Johnstown, Pa‒‒‒‒ Smith, Hon. Margaret Chase, United States Senator from the State Sparkman, Hon. John, United States Senator from the State of Ala- Sterling, Ben, Moosic, Pa____ Stetin, Sol, regional director New Jersey-Pennsylvania-Delaware re- Sword, William O., president, Petroleum Service Co., Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Tudor, Dr. William J., area development division, Southern Illinois 447 Vursell, Hon. Charles W., a Representative in Congress from the 284 Walsh, Jeremiah F., member, local 435, American Federation of Labor Wall, Hon. William X., a representative from the Seventh Essex 344 366 443 Weisberg, Hon. Milton, deputy secretary of labor and industry, Com- 370 Weissman, Charles, Northeastern Pennsylvania Industrial Develop- Williams, Hon. G. Mennen, Governor of the State of Michigan---. Wingeard, Irvin F. O., director of research and statistics, Pennsyl- 424 Wurster, Delroy F., executive secretary, Greater Johnstown Cham- 400 Address on Senate floor by Senator Frederick G. Payne, concerning Federal assistance to substantial unemployment areas-- Area classification summary, November, 1955-advance release of Bootstraps of Michigan, article in Nation's Business, September 1950_ Classification as to adequacy of labor supply, major New England labor Classification of labor market areas in West Virginia, December Distressed area: A national problem, pamphlet of the Congress of Industrial Organizations, department of education and research____ Douglas' Depressed Areas Act should be enacted by Congress, article in the United Mine Workers Journal, December 1, 1955. Federal assistance to substantial unemployment areas-Statement on Senate floor by Senator Frederick G. Payne----- Federal Government and the New England Economy, address by Hon. Frederick G. Payne, before annual meeting of Maine Social Scien- tists at Bowdoin College, Brunswick, Maine, November 14, 1955____ Labor force and unemployment in four Massachusetts labor market Labor mobility and regional growth-reprinted from Economic Geog- Brown, C. Arnold, president, Washington County, Maine, Chamber Additional information-Continued Letters and telegrams-Continued Burns, Hon. Arthur F., chairman, Council of Economic Advisers, Lovell, Ralph M., Sanford-Springvale Chamber of Commerce, San- ford, Maine, to Hon. Margaret Chase Smith, December 28, 1955- MacLeod, Robert B., Chairman, Greater New Bedford Foundation, Mitchell, Hon. James P., Secretary of Labor, to Hon. Frederick Page 197 195 367 Payne, Hon. Frederick G., to Hon. Arthur F. Burns, Chairman, Council of Economic Advisers, August 29, 1955_. Payne, Hon. Frederick G., to Hon. Arthur S. Flemming, Director Van Zandt, Hon. James E., to Hon. Matthew M. Neely. Weeks, Hon. Sinclair, Secretary of Commerce, to Hon. Frederick List of State and Federal officials attending sink-or-swim meeting held Message to the 68th Michigan Legislature by Hon. G. Mennen Wil- liams, Governor of Michigan, January 12, 1956_. 19 major chronic labor surplus areas.. Problem of employing young people adjudicated delinquent__ Report on recommendations made to the President by the Northeast Pennsylvania Industrial Development Commission, August 10, 1954- Report on the economy of Washington County, Maine. When jobs disappear, article in Business Week, January 8, 1955--. 99 21 223 359 315 73 AREA REDEVELOPMENT WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 4, 1956 UNITED STATES SENATE, COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND PUBLIC WELFARE, Washington, D. C. The subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 10 a. m., in room P-63, United States Capitol, Senator Paul H. Douglas (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Senators Douglas, Neely, Kennedy, and Goldwater. Also present: Stewart E. McClure, staff director; Roy E. James, minority staff director; John Forsythe, general counsel to the committee; Frank Cantwell and Michael Bernstein, professional staff members; and James J. McTigue, consultant. Senator DOUGLAS. We have met to consider Senate bill 2663, which was introduced on the 28th of July by a number of Senators, dealing with the depressed areas of the country, and which was referred to this subcommittee by a letter dated November 10, 1955. I wish to announce that for the purpose of considering S. 2663, Senator William Purtell of Connecticut has been temporarily appointed to the Subcommittee on Labor in lieu of Senator Smith of New Jersey. Last winter the Joint Committee on the Economic Report unanimously declared that even in an expanding economy there were distressed conditions which existed in certain industries and regions, and definite action was recommended to meet this situation. In a supplementary opinion signed by Senator Sparkman, Senator O'Mahoney and myself, and Representatives Patman, Bolling, Mills, and Kelley, greater emphasis was laid upon distressed industries and localities in pages 17 through 23 of the report, in which we declared it to be our opinion that the economic report of the President did not deal adequately with the needs of distressed industries and localities, and we presented the figures drawn from 44 major and 100 smaller labor market areas which had been classified by the Department of Labor as being in group 4 of high unemployment in January of 1955. (See appendix.) There has, of course, been a real economic improvement since that date, which we are all very happy to have had occur, and national productivity and national income are at high levels, but it is still true that in many areas, though not as many as last year, there are depressed economic conditions; tens of thousands of families are suffering acutely from want of earnings, living wholly on relief, with little hope of getting a local job. In these areas, human morale and family conditions are deteriorating. It has always seemed to me that it is proper for the Government 1 to follow up its full employment policy by dealing not only with general conditions, but with specific local conditions. The investment in homes, schools, streets, sewers, water systems, utility systems, is very great, so that if a locality decays there is a great investment which is lost along with it. In addition to that, the sentiments and emotions of people who properly love their homes and communities make them reluctant to leave if employment can be found. Therefore, I believe that it is possible for a government to develop a policy which can bring assistance and hope to these areas. Economic decline in a wide area is of no less a public concern than a flood and a storm, although not as spectacular in its nature. These hearings are intended to assist in developing a sound and reasonable program which will provide economic revival and stability for our distressed areas, though throwing the emphasis properly on individual effort. I am very happy that some months after this bill was introduced on the 28th of July it was announced from Denver that the administration would move in this same direction, and we, of course, will welcome their cooperation. I am going to ask that a copy of Senate 2663 be made a part of the record at this point, together with a digest of the bill which has been prepared. The reports from the interested departments of the Government will also be placed in the record. (The documents above referred to follow :) [S. 2663, 84th Cong., 1st sess.] A BILL To establish an effective program to alleviate conditions of excessive unemployment in certain economically depressed areas Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act may be cited as the "Depressed Area Act." FINDINGS OF FACT SEC. 2. The Congress hereby finds and declares that the maintenance of the national economy at a high level of prosperity and employment is vital to the best interests of the United States and that the present existence of excessive unemployment in certain areas of the Nation is jeopardizing the health, standard of living, and general welfare of the Nation. PURPOSE SEC. 3. It is therefore the purpose of this Act to provide assistance to communities, industries, enterprises, and individuals of depressed areas to enable them to so adjust their productive activity as to effectively alleviate excessive unemployment within such areas. DEPRESSED AREAS ADMINISTRATION SEC. 4. In order to carry out the purposes of this Act, there is hereby estab lished, within the executive branch of the Government, a Depressed Areas Administration (hereinafter referred to as the "Administration"). The Administration shall be under the direction and control of an Administrator who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and who shall be compensated at the rate of $ per annum. ADVISORY COMMITTEE SEC. 5. The Administrator shall, in carrying out his duties under this Act, consult with an Advisory Committee, of which he shall be Chairman, and which shall be composed of the following: The Commissioner of the Bureau of Public Roads, the Commissioner of the Office of Education, the Surgeon General of the |