On behalf of the Pineville Kiwanis Club, I am writing to you to urge you, as our representative in Congress, to do all in your power to vote for an support the legislation enabling the Small Business Administration to make interest-free loans to disaster victims.

As you know so well, Pineville was utterly devastated by the flooding of the Cumberland River on April 4 and 5, 1977, and more than ninety percent of our business community was completely destroyed, along with approximately seventy-five percent of the housing, ten percent of the total housing having been damaged to the extent that it has since been demolished and removed.

In this time when our President is asking that those of us in the Appalachian coal fields double America's coal production, we must have viable, strong, and stable communities where people and business can locate with some confidence in their future and in order to do so, the residence and business people of these communities must have financial support at an interest rate less than thirteen, fifteen or seventeen percent.

Thanks in advance for your cooperation on this matter, and please do not hesitate to call on us if we may be of assistance to you in any way in expediting this legislation.

SCC:bjc

Sincerely yours,

Station Cawood

STEPHEN C. CAWOOD
President

PINEVILLE KIWANIS CLUB

Mr. CARTER. I have these men with me whom I would like to introduce and let them testify, if I may.

Mr. LE FANTE. Without objection.

Mr. CARTER. The first man is Mr. South C. Bevins of Radio WANO, Pineville, Ky.

We ask that you keep your remarks brief. I know the chairman always asks that.

TESTIMONY OF SOUTH C. BEVINS, GENERAL MANAGER,
WANO RADIO, PINEVILLE, KY.

Mr. BEVINS. Thank you, Messrs. Congressmen, Mr. Chairman. Pineville, Ky., is a town that suffers a great deal from flooding in the outlying area. It is a town provided with some flood protection by a floodwall, and a levee at the present time.

It is in a topography, an area of the Nation, that is in rugged terrain. It is in the Appalachian area, which runs from New York to Alabama and Georgia. Generally speaking, the valleys run to the northeast and southwest, and you have serious flooding any time, almost every spring, in this area, from late December to early June.

We just have gone through the most serious flooding of record that ever hit our area; 60- and 65-year records have been kept by the people who have authority to do so.

Pineville has nowhere to build except where it is. It is simply impossible for us to get out of the flood plain. It is impossible for us to help ourselves. What we are asking, I guess I would say, is that the Government do for us what we cannot better do for ourselves. That is the purpose of our being here today.

There are five of us here, at your disposal.

Thank you.

Mr. CARTER. Mr. Chairman, with your permission I would like to hear from Mr. Ronald F. Jones, superintendent of schools in Pineville. Mr. LE FANTE. Mr. Jones?

TESTIMONY OF RONALD F. JONES, SUPERINTENDENT, PINEVILLE INDEPENDENT SCHOOL SYSTEM, PINEVILLE, KY.

Mr. JONES. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Messrs. Congressmen. I am Ronald Jones, superintendent of the Pineville independent school system. I feel strongly the interest rate should be reduced.

My main thinking is from the schools' standpoint, in that our tax base in the city of Pineville has been virtually wiped out. Many of the people are unable to pay a 65-interest rate. If it were lowered they would be able to, and be able to reestablish their property, thereby bringing the tax base back to its original level, or possibly better. That is my opinion concerning the lower interest rate.

Thank you.

Mr. CARTER. Ronald, do you care to tell about the damage to your school?

Mr. JONES. Yes, sir.

Preliminary damage estimates by the Federal disaster team from HEW, for my school district alone, slightly over $750,000. A neighboring district had $1,500,000 damage. I had three buildings affected, one