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Mr. SMITH. Per year?

Mr. KAUFMAN. Yes.

There is one element that you have not taken into consideration in your computation. The $2,000,000 that we expended included our expenditures for streets, underground utilities water lines, sewage lines, things of that character. That normally would not be a factor that would be considered in determining the assessed value of a piece of property. Normally that would not be paid by the builder. That would be paid, under ordinary circumstances, by the city. So that the $2,000,000 would not represent exclusively building cost. A substantial part of that $2,000,000 represents the cost of construction of streets, putting in sewage lines, water lines, doing things of that character.

Mr. SMITH. Well, if these people are earning the money

Mr. KAUFMAN. The amount, Doctor, that we have paid to the city, is the amount which officials of the city and officials of the Authority, after conference, thought would be the amount that would have been payable had we paid taxes on this property on a normal basis.

Mr. SMITII. These people are making a fair income. Why do you not charge them enough rent to cover this whole thing?

Mr. KAUFMAN. We have done so. As I stated, Doctor, the amount that we have voluntarily paid the city-and I am not sure that the $20,000 figure that I gave you is absolutely accurate, in fact, I tried to make it clear that that was an estimate on my part based on recollection-I know, however, that the amount which we pay is the amount which, after conference with representatives of the city, it was thought by all parties concerned would fairly represent the amount of taxes which would normally be assessable and payable there on the project, so that the city has received, while the property has been used for the purpose of housing these families, approximately the same amount. which it would have received had it collected normal taxes.

Mr. SMITH. Will you insert in the record a statement showing the amounts that you have paid to the city, annually, since it has been in operation?

Mr. KAUFMAN. I will be glad to obtain that information and furnish it.

(Information referred to is as follows:)

Hon. JESSE P. WOLCOTT,

NORFOLK 10, VA., May 11, 1948.

Chairman of House Banking and Currency Committee,

House of Representatives, Washington, D. C.

DEAR MR. WOLCOTT: In accordance with the assurance given your committee when I testified last Friday, I am writing to give you the information then requested concerning the payments made by the Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority to the city of Norfolk in connection with the two housing projects known as Merrimack Park and Roberts Park.

The Authority's agreement with the city of Norfolk relating to Merrimack Park provides for the annual payments in the amount of $8,775, in lieu of taxes. The agreement contains a provision requiring the Authority to build, in accordance with the city specifications, and to maintain in good order and repair, at the Authority's cost and expense, all streets, sidewalks, sewer mains and pipes, water mains and pipes, and street-lighting equipment, within the boundaries of the project. Since said project was constructed the Authority has paid to the city the amount of $8,775 per annum, as provided in said contract. Merrimack Park contains 500 housing units and the aggregate cost thereof, including streets and utility installations, was $1,940,000.

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The contract relating to Roberts Park requires no payment by the Authority in lieu of taxes. The city is obligated thereunder to furnish all municipal services required in connection with the project, including those above mentioned, without charge. Although not obligated to do so, inasmuch as Roberts Park was not used during the years 1943 to 1946, inclusive, for housing low income families, the Authority made the following payments to the city: 1943, $7,500; 1944, $7,500; 1945, $7,500; 1946, $6,880.26. By a provision in an appropriation bill, the Authority was precluded from making any voluntary payment to the city during 1947, and no such payment was made. The payments made by the Authority to the city during the years 1943 to 1946, inclusive, were approximately 10 percent of the annual rents, which is about the amount of the taxes on other apartment properties located in this city. Roberts Park contains 230 housing units and the aggregate cost thereof, including streets and utility installations, was about $1,042,000.

If you desire any further information in connection with said projects, please advise me and the same will be promptly furnished.

Again thanking you for your courtesy, and with kindest regards, I am,
Sincerely yours,

CHARLES L. KAUFMAN.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you very much, Mr. Kaufman. Mr. KAUFMAN. You are welcome, sir. I wish to express my appreciation for this opportunity of appearing before you gentlemen. The CHAIRMAN. You may include in the record any supplemental statement you wish to include.

Mr. Farrell, do you wish to proceed now, or do you wish to come back Monday morning?

Mr. FARRELL. I would just as soon proceed now. I will be very brief, Mr. Chairman.

The CHAIRMAN. Very well.

STATEMENT OF THOMAS F. FARRELL, CHAIRMAN, NEW YORK CITY HOUSING AUTHORITY

Mr. FARRELL. I appreciate the opportunity of appearing and representing Mayor O'Dwyer, who has already furnished a statement which I understand has been presented to your committee.

We are here to urge the serious consideration of the public housing and slum-clearance provisions of the bill before your committee. The housing crisis of New York City has reached extremely serious proportions, and I would like to give you just a few figures concerning that situation.

Our own housing authority has an estimate of a minimum of 150,000 homeless families in the city of New York. The New York legislative committee on housing has estimated 265,000 involuntarily doubled-up families, most of them in the low-income group, most of them veterans with one or two children who are living with veterans in rooming houses and in flats, slum flats.

More than a hundred thousand families have applied to us for homes in the past 6 months, and we are still getting those applications at the rate of 10,000 a month.

Ninety percent of these applicants are doubled up. They are overcrowded, they are facing eviction, or living away from wife and children, or otherwise in inadequate quarters.

Seventy-five percent of them are veterans.

I need not point out the disturbing possibilities of continuing that situation for a long time without hope of improvement.

Besides those, we have 8,600 veterans living in temporary emergency housing. I do not want to leave the impression that New York City expects the Federal Government to assume the entire responsibility. As you probably know, New York City and New York State have large public-housing programs. In New York City the State has $360,000,000 worth of programs, committed, or earmarked, which includes about 25,000 apartments, completed and under way. The city itself has financed and built subsidized projects, and we now have a new program of $265,000,000 project, all permanent construction, which would provide homes for more than 22,000 families.

Besides this, the city has obligated the entire amount of its present housing debt limit of $325,000,000-a large part of it is tied up to the new program, $11,000,000 is committed for the only postwar Federal project, because the cost went up and the city had to assume the increased cost. Twenty-four million dollars is charged as a guaranty of subsidy applications for State projects. Besides this, the State and city grant tax exemptions amounting to $17,000,000 per year on all public projects in the city.

So we have a postwar program in the city of about 50,000 apartments, one-half under the State program, $1,100 Federal, and the remainder city supported.

While that is a good program, it is not enough, and we do need Federal help to get over this present serious housing situation.

I want to point out that most of these people who need housing are hard working, mostly veterans, and most of them earn small salaries. We are hopeful that they and their children can get a decent home.

We do not believe the entire load should be shouldered by Government. Private enterprise is supplying certain new housing in New York City now, but is completely and entirely unable to provide the housing required for the low-income group.

We do not ask the Federal Government to undertake the entire job. The State and city can help and they are helping.

But we do urge that the Federal Government assume a share of this job and we ask that the House of Representatives pass the TaftEllender-Wagner bill, including the provisions for public housing and slum clearance.

(Complete statement of Mr. Farrell is as follows:)

STATEMENT OF THOMAS F. FARRELL, CHAIRMAN OF THE NEW YORK CITY HOUSING AUTHORITY, APPEARING FOR HON. WILLIAM O'DWYER, MAYOR OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, AT THE HEARING ON THE TAFT-ELLENDER-WAGNER BILL

I am grateful for the opportunity to appear before your committee. I am representing Mayor O'Dwyer to supplement his letter of April 28 to your committee. We urge your most serious consideration of the public housing and slum clearance provisions of the Taft-Ellender-Wagner bill.

The housing crisis in New York City has reached extremely serious proportions. We are concerned, not only because we believe that the richest and most powerful nation on earth has the moral responsibility to help provide decent homes for its low-income groups, but also because a vast number of homeless families are exposed to the misery that breeds crimes, to unbearable overcrowding which shatters families. We cannot afford to shirk our responsibility.

Let's look at the present conditions in New York City. Our housing authority's study estimates a minimum of 150,000 homeless families. The New York State Legislative Committee on Housing estimates 265,000 involuntary doubled-up families, most of them in the low-income group, most of them young veterans with one or two children, crowded in with relatives, jammed into rooming houses, doubled up in slum flats.

More than 100,000 families have applied to us for homes in the last 6 months, and applications are still pouring in at the rate of 10,000 a month. Over 90 percent of these applicants are doubled-up, overcrowded, facing eviction, living away from wife and children, lacking cooking facilities or otherwise in inadequate quarters. Seventy-five percent of these applicants are veterans.

I need not point out to you the disturbing possibilities of continuing such a situation for a long time without hope of improvement.

Besides these, we have 8,600 veterans living in the Quonset huts and frame barracks, furnished by the Federal Government on sites prepared by the city of New York. They need permanent homes as these huts and barracks can serve only as a stopgap.

I do not want to give you the impression that New York City expects the Federal Government to assume the entire responsibility. As many of you know, we have large city and State-aided public housing programs in New York City.

The State's $360,000,000 program, committed or earmarked for New York City, includes about 25,000 apartments completed and under construction now. The city has financed and built subsidized projects, and we now have under way a $265,000,000 veterans' housing program, all permanent construction, which will provide homes for more than 22,000 families.

The obligation the city of New York has undertaken does not end with the programs it finances entirely on its own. It has a housing debt limit of $325,000,000, and that entire amount is already earmarked. Most of it has been tied to the new veterans' program, some to the low-rent city-supported program; $11,000,000 is committed for our only postwar Federal project, which could not have been built without the city's heavy financial aid; and $24,000,000 is charged against the debt limit as a guaranty of subsidy obligations for State projects. These obligations are in addition to tax exemption amounting to $16,800,000 on all public-housing projects in the city.

The postwar public-housing program in New York City completed and underway totals 50,000 apartments; about half are under the State program, about 1,100 are Federal with heavy city support, and the remainder entirely city supported. This is a good program, but it is not enough. We need Federal help.

The public housing and slum clearance provision of the Taft-Ellender-Wagner bill offer us the hope that we will be able to make a substantial number of homes available to veterans.

The people we propose to help with this program are not the misfits of society. They are hard-working citizens, for the most part veterans, who earn small salaries. They are the backbone of America, and their children deserve a decent home and a chance to grow up as decent citizens. They're not asking for handouts, but they do need homes.

We do not believe that the entire responsibility should be shouldered by Government. Private enterprise is supplying new housing, but unable to do so for the low-income group. We do not ask the Federal Government to undertake the entire responsibility for the low-income group. States and cities can help. as they have in New York City and New York State. But we do urge that the Federal Government assume responsibility for its share, and that the House of Representatives pass the Taft-Ellender-Wagner bill, including its provisions for public housing and slum clearance.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Mr. Farrell.

Are there any questions?

(No response.)

The CHAIRMAN. If not, thank you very much, Mr. Farrell.

The committee will stand in recess until Monday morning at 10 o'clock.

(Whereupon, at 4:30 p. m., an adjournment was taken, the committee to reconvene at 10 a. m. Monday, May 10, 1948.)

GENERAL HOUSING

MONDAY, MAY 10, 1948

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

COMMITTEE ON BANKING AND CURRENCY,

Washington, D. C. The committee reconvened at 10 a. m., pursuant to adjournment, Hon. Jesse P. Wolcott (chairman) presiding.

Present: Messrs. Wolcott, Gamble, Talle, Sundstrom, McMillen, Kilburn, Buffet, Cole, Hull, Banta, Nicholson, Spence, Brown, Patman, Monroney, Folger, and Buchanan.

The CHAIRMAN. The committee will come to order.

We will resume the hearings on S. 866 and related bills.

This morning we have before us representatives of the Veterans' Administration, Mr. Bland, of the Office of Legislation, Veterans' Administration, accompanied by Dr. A. B. Knudson, Medical Rehabilitation Service, Veterans' Administration, and Mr. Mark S. Robson, Rating Schedule Board of Claims Service, Veterans' Administration. Mr. Bland, will you identify yourself and proceed?

STATEMENT OF R. P. BLAND, OFFICE OF LEGISLATION, VETERANS' ADMINISTRATION, ACCOMPANIED BY DR. A. B. KNUDSON, MEDICAL REHABILITATION SERVICE, VETERANS' ADMINISTRATION, AND MARK S. ROBSON, RATING SCHEDULE BOARD OF CLAIMS SERVICE, VETERANS' ADMINISTRATION

Mr. BLAND. My name is R. P. Bland, from the Office of the Assistant Administrator for Legislation of the Veterans' Administration.

Sitting to my left is Dr. A. B. Knudson, of the Medical Rehabilitation Service of the Department of Medicine and Surgery of the Veterans' Administration, and to my right, Mr. M. S. Robson, of the Rating Schedule Board of Claims Service, in the Veterans' Administration.

Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, I have no prepared statement. I had understood that the purpose of our being requested to come here was to give the committee some idea of the nature and background of title VIII of S. 866 as passed by the Senate.

Title VIII begins on page 105 of the bill.

In general, that title would provide assistance, financial assistance, to certain seriously disabled veterans, whether of the peacetime service or the wartime service, in connection with obtaining especially equipped housing units. The bill would apply only to veterans who are entitled to compensation from the Veterans' Administration for permanent and total service-connected disability, due to spinal cord injury or disease, with paralysis of the legs and lower part of the body.

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