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4-2162
FEDERAL HOR.KS .A.G-E~JCY
WORK PEO,TECTS .Al.l!•~rnrs:..1R.ATIOlJ
For I mmediate Release
Friday, August 23, 1940
WI.LLKIE CHARGES REGARnHTG WPA El{l?LOY?{Ei'JT BASELESS , HUl:TER SAYS, CITilTG
SCHEDULES GIVEJ::! CONG:?.ESS LAST APRIL
Employm ent estimates submitted to Congr ess last April by
Colonel F. C. Harrint:;ton , Commissioner of Work Projects, and c...,_ctual
WPA employment since then c om1Jletely r efute a charge attributed to
Wendell L . Willkio , Republican p resid011tial candidate, tha t the rolls
have been increas ed f or political r oa.sons , Howard 0 . Huntor, Acting
WPA Comm i ssi on er, said today .
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Tho statement attributed to Mr . Willk:io in press dispatches
that a WPA incr oaso in omp l oyr.iont dttring July was a violation of the
H,?..tch Act and a prediction that tho WPA would increa se its employment
on account of the election simply is not true, 11 Mr . Hunter s.:1id .
"As a matter of actuo.1 fact, the WPA empl oyment docroased fr om June
to July by approximately 100 , 000 persons .
11 Thoro
was a drop below tho 2.uthorized l ovel of WP.A et1plo;y::10nt
f or a very brief period about t ho first of July, bocause of the chnngo s
in operations necessary at the end of our fiscal yenr ,
This minor
fluctuation ho.d nothing to do with job authorizations ancl I fo.il utterly
to see what connection it has with tho Hatch Act .
11 Tho
statomont by Con::1issioner Harrington of t he WP.A b efo re
tho House Ap:rwopr inti ons Com:1 it teo , A~ril 4 , 1 940 , is cl ':)ar and
unnistclrn.ble as to t he projected WPA enploynont month by nonth on the
basis of the au thorized appropriation .
The whole plan was outlined on
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It was outlined aga.in
pages 402;, 712 a nd 71~ of the House hearin g s .
in the Ser.ate hearings in May , without objer.tion from e ither D8mocra t ic
or Republican memoers of t he Con:mitt ee .
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Those p l a ns have been followed .
There is no que stion of Colonel Ha-rrington 1 s intention , and
it was made perfectly clear that WPA emplo ymen t woul d :.ernain a t
approximately the same level for ,Tu l y , Augus t s nd Septeriber , with a
very small in crease proposed for Oc tobe r and
,i
f,.1rther incre ase during
the winter months :provided relief n eed s warranted such increar.e .
Howeve r , those proposed increases , with the single excep ti on of a v 9r y
small in c re a se i n October , would G.11 come aft ':l r th e Hovernber elec ti ons .
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It is a l so worthy of not e t.hat WPA omp loyrien t during the
months of this fiscal ye a r r r ~ceding the November el e ction wil l oe the
smallest total emp lo ymen t in the s a.mo mont':ls fo:r- thG past three years .
It is also worthy of n ote that approximately one mill i on people are
at p r e sent e li g ible for WPA j obs but not ass i gned t o thorn .
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WPA e:nployment will be based on th (': f a ct0rs of the amount
of money made ,waila"ble and the nwnber of people certified as in need
in the v a rious states , and has no connection whatever with an elE., ction
or politic3,J. cnmpaign .
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Such char (;es always a:ce made a n d ,,,e expect them , bu t usua lly
they come when the heat and hys teri a of campaign ora t ory is farther
As evi der.:ce the.t such charges were an ticipated , even though
advanced .
\ve have helc:t employment exnctly where
W;:'.. i
\:/8
said we would des:p i t e a
ting list of mo re than a mil lion appl icP,nts, let me auote fro m t=ti1o ther
statemen t, made by Colonel Harrington l ast April before the same Comm ittee .
On pages 409 a nd 410 of t he Investi 6 a ti on henrings , here is the record :
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Colone l HAR~IJrnTON .
There is another elect i on coming a long
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this year, in the month of November , and, if the Congress provicles the
appropriation which I have r 8commended, there will be an increase in the
WPA rolls in October, and a ft:rther increase in Noveniber .
in my statement "before tho c ommittee .
That is already
I presume ths.t it will be described
in some sections of the press as being made to influence the election.
I
want to put in the record the fact that, if Con6 ress makes the money available , we propose t o increase em~:iloyment in October and. November .
MR. LUTILOW.
Eut that will be a seasonal increase, wi11 it not ?
Colonel F...AF..RUJGTON .
Hr . DIT':i:ER.
That i s correct; ;:res , sir .
Woll, Colonel , since ;rou have ooon so gracious to volunteer
that statement , may we n'YG with tho sarr!O c:1-egro0 of frn.nl:noss acco~'.lt
from you an assu.rance that, if tho so roll s arc inc:;:oo.sod. , thoy wil1 b o
increased bocauso of unemplo~ mcnt necis, rather t!1an because of political
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C},_-:podicncio s ?
Colonel HARRINGT01'i,
Mr . DIT~R.
fo· . TABER.
I would like to give you that unt1ualif i ed assuranco .
1l'hat is fine .
Do you moan to toll us , colo"1ol , tL.,1.t tho rolls aro 6 oin2; to go
up if the ap:pro 1'.lriation goos
l:Q,
regardless of thn rolio:::' needs of the country .
in October , Novcr:;bor , t., nd December?
Colonel F.JL'R.RINGTG:i.i .
Er. TABER.
It co1Eos pretty non.r boing a cUsto:rtion of what I said.
I would like to hn.ve that on tho r ecord..
You t old ns a
little whEo a.go thn.t, if we incrcn.socl the a}'.lpropriati o~ , we could count
on the rolls going up .
I am asking you tho o.uostion , arc t:iey going up
regardless of tho relief needs of tho countr;; at tho ti :".1 0?
Colonol HA..irniliGT01'T .
The answer is "No.
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