TABLE I.-Allotments to the States under S. 419—Continued Mr. DONDERO. That will be all increases in moneys provided for public education in the States. Dr. DAWSON. Mississippi will have 62 percent or more money to support public schools than it had before this money was allotted. The first year will be one-third of that amount. Mr. DONDERO. That is based on $300,000,000. Dr. DAWSON. That chart was made on $100,000,000. The proportions are the same. Mr. FLETCHER. The percentage is more in relation to the 1936 expenditure for a period of years? Dr. DAWSON. That is based on 1933-34 revenue, the last year for which official data have been published. For 1936 that is about the same. Georgia is 54.2 percent. North Carolina 38 percent more money for schools than they have had. Mr. HALL. That is for 5 years. Dr. DAWSON. For the first year North Carolina about 13 percent more. For the fifth year Virginia would have 34 percent; Oklahoma, 23.9 percent. The 12 poorest States average 36 to 37 percent. West Viraginia had 23.7 percent; New Hampshire, 15.8 percent. The second 12 States ranked in the order of their income, will have an increase of 18.9 percent. Pennsylvania has 15.8 percent. The State of Washington has 14.6 percent, and the second richest 12 States, the 12 I have just referred to, will have an average increase of 14.9 percent. Iowa, 13.2 percent; Massachusetts, 13.2 percent; Wyoming, 12.9 percent: Rhode Island, 12.9 percent; Colorado, 12.7 percent; Montana, 12.4 percent; Delaware, 12.3 percent; Oregon, 12.2 percent; New Jersey, 10.7 percent; New York, 9.4 percent; Nevada, 8 per cent; California, 7.7 percent. The 12 States average 10.1 percent as compared with 36.7 of the 12 poorest. That would give you some idea of the equalization of the money for schools with the available allotments possible. (The table referred to is as follows:) TABLE II.-The equalizing effect of the Harrison-Black-Fletcher bill as reflected by percent of increase in public-school funds (column 3)1 1 Percent proposed allot Black Fletcher bill is of present revenue re ceipts for schools 15.8 15.6 15. 2 15. 1 15. 1 14.9 14.3 14.3 13. 8 13. 6 13. 2 12.7 12. 2 10.7 9.4 7.7 1 Column 2 is included to enable the reader to compare present expenditures with the percentages of increase. THE EQUALIZING EFFECTS OF THE PROPOSED ALLOTMENTS Mr. DAWSON. As will be developed later, there are now very great differences in the amount of revenue per child available in the different States for the support of schools, the highest State having about six times as much revenue per child as the lowest State. Under these conditions it is desirable that the available revenue for schools in the several States be made more nearly equal. For that reason it is well to examine the effects of the proposed allotments on the different States. When the proposed allotments reach a maximum the school revenue of the lowest State will be increased 62.1 percent over the revenue available in 1932, while the revenue in the highest State will be increased only 7.7 percent. The revenue in the lowest 12 States will be increased by an average of 36.7 percent over 1932, while the increase in the 12 highest States will average only 10.1 percent. The average increase for the Nation will be 16.5 percent. The data by States are shown in table II, showing the expenditures per pupil for the schools in 1932 and the percentage of increase in public-school PERCENT THE FIRST YEAR'S ALLOTMENT UNDER PROPOSED BILL IS OF STATE AND LOCAL SCHOOL REVENUE IN 1933-34 revenues that can be expected if the Fletcher bill is enacted by Congress. (See chart I.) An 8-months' school term will be made universally available to every child in the Nation for the first time in our history. The States can, and no doubt most of them will, use substantial parts of the apportionments received through this act for the purpose of equalizing educational opportunities within their borders. Evidence is conclusive that in practically all of the States there are material inequalities yet to be removed. ISSUES BEFORE THE COMMITTEE As the proponents of this bill see the matter, there are nine issues or major questions before this committee and the people of the United States. These issues, which I and may colleagues to follow me will discuss, are as follows: 1. Does the Federal Government have an interest in the education of its people? 2. Is our national economy as a whole able to finance the education of all the Nation's children? 3. Are there particular States or sections which are unable to pay for a suitable educational program? 4. To what extent are there inequalities of educational opportunities among the States? 5. How far is the denial of educational opportunity in certain areas associated with financial inability to pay for schools? 6. Can educational underprivilege be removed in the United States if all States and sections of the Nation "put their fiscal houses in order" by adopting modern tax systems and by allocating a suitable proportion of resulting revenue to the financing of education? 7. Is the collection of revenue by the Federal Government from whatever sources are able to pay it and its expenditures wherever needed a necessary national policy? 8. What social consequences may be expected to follow the indefinite continuance of extreme differences in educational opportunity offered children in different States and sections of the Nation? 9. Does Federal control of education necessarily follow Federal contributions to the States for the support of public schools? 1. THE INTEREST OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IN EDUCATION DOES THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAVE AN INTEREST IN THE EDUCATION OF ITS PEOPLE? Public education is of vital interest to the Federal Government as well as to the States and their communities. A citizen of one of the sovereign States is none the less a citizen of the Nation. Ours is a representative form of government founded upon the democratic principle that final power and authority rests upon the will of the people as expressed by ballot. It is necessary, therefore, that the Federal Government as well as the States and communities create the conditions under which full and free opportunity will be offered to every person to acquire the necessary attributes to exercise intelligently, honestly, and effectively the privilege of suffrage. The responsibility of the Federal Government for participating in the creation of free and full educational opportunities has been recognized by the principal American statesmen since the early days of the Republic. The responsibility of the Federal Government in this respect was well expressed by President John Quincy Adams in one of his message to Congress: The great object of the institution of civil government is the improvement of the condition of those who are parties to the social compact, and no government, in whatever form constituted, can accomplish the lawful ends of its institution but in proportion as it improves the condition of those over whom it is established. Roads and canals, by multiplying and facilitating the communications and intercourse between distant regions and multitudes of men, are among the most important means of improvement. But moral, political, intellectual improvement are duties assigned by the Author of our existence to social no less than to individual man. For the fulfillment of those duties governments are invested with power, and to the attainment of the end-the progressive improvement of the condition of the governed-the exercise of delegated powers is a duty as sacred and indispensable as the usurpation of powers not granted is criminal and odious. Among the first, perhaps the very first,, instrument for the improvement of the condition of men is knowledge, and to the acquisition of much of the knowledge adapted to the wants, the comforts, and enjoyments of human life public institutions and seminaries of learning are essential. In 1830 a group of working people met in Philadelphia and unanimously resolved that: There can be no real liberty without a wide diffusion of real intelligence * * * and until means of equal instruction shall be equally secured to all liberty is but an unmeaning word and equality an empty shadow. WAR AND DEPRESSION SHOWED FEDERAL INTEREST In times of national distress the inescapable interest of the Federal Government in the education of its citizens invariably comes to the front. During the World War, when it became an undeniable fact that the young men belonged to the Nation, not merely to the States, it was found that 25 percent of those called into service were unable to write a letter back home or to read a newspaper. More recently when the depdession forced the Federal Government to feed and clothe millions of jobless and destitute citizens it was found that more than 40 percent of all those on relief in rural communities have had less than a fourth-grade education. MOBILITY OF POPULATION AND FEDERAL INTEREST IN EDUCATION Since the early days of the Republic there has been a free and large movement of citizens among the States. As a matter of fact, this movement has increased during each decade of our national history. In 1930 more than one out of each five persons in the United States was living in another State than that in which he was born. The percentage of interstate migration ranges from 7.8 in Maine to 57.5 in Wyoming. Some of the States that now have the best supported systems of public education have the highest percentages of citizens born in other States. For example, in California more than 211⁄2 million of her 42 million American-born population were born in other States. Thus it happens that the entire Nation must be concerned with the kind of educational opportunities offered in each State of the Nation. In the city of Detroit there was in 1930 a Negro population of 130,066, only 16,881 of whom were born in Michigan; 25,400 of them were born in Georgia. Similar statistics for other industrial cities could be cited in numerous cases. |