such as open shelving for Senators' offices and committees. The fine old furniture in the old building requires more care and repairs as it becomes older. The four new employees are necessary to keep the furniture and furnishings in both buildings in a sound and presentable condition. I strongly urge that funds be included in the pending bill for these four jobs. I would like to ask Mr. Caraway, the Superintendent, to testify in detail on these needs. WORK ORDER DELAYS Mr. CARAWAY. Sir, the Senators in the offices who are asking for partitions, cabinets, or any kind of work are waiting up to 3 months. I think that is too long for them to wait and I think they do, too. In order to keep up with this work, we are going to have to put on more help. Of course, the furniture, as explained here, is getting old. The furniture in the new building is 10 years old, and we have to recover the seats and do other repair work to it; and we are laying our own rugs now, and that is saving us money, rather than calling on outside people to do it. Most of the rugs in the new building are going to have to be replaced within the next year, and we will be covering rooms that have never been covered. Senator BARTLETT. How much will you have to pay these people? Mr. CARAWAY. We are asking for one upholsterer and one helper in the upholstery shop, and one cabinetmaker and a cabinetmaker helper. The detail costs are shown in Mr. Stewart's letter to the committee, which we have here with us. Senator BARTLETT. Are they hard to recruit? Mr. CARAWAY. I am afraid we will have trouble finding a good upholsterer. I think we can get a cabinetmaker without any trouble. LETTER OF THE ARCHITECT Senator BARTLETT. For the record I ask that the Architect's letter, dated May 27 of this year, be placed in the hearing record at this point. Perhaps we won't need the people if a Senator would phone you his needs just before he punched the elevator button. It would be all ready by the time you got there. (The letter follows:) Hon. E. L. BARTLETT, Chairman, Legislative Subcommittee, ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL, Committee on Appropriations, U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C. DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: At the request of Mr. Caraway, Superintendent of the Senate Office Buildings, we respectfully ask that you consider adding four new positions to the force of the Senate Office Buildings for the fiscal year 1968, as follows: The salary rates shown include all costs (basic pay for 40 hours per week, overtime pay, health and life insurance, and retirement contributions). These additional positions are necessary due to the tremendous increase in the workload of the Upholstery and Carpenter-Cabinet Shops. We have a constant and increasing backlog of work for these shops. As the furniture in both buildings gets older, this repair work will continue. The furniture, carpeting and draperies in the new building are now almost 10 years old and require a great deal of repair. For example, the chairs with fabric seat-covers are now being received in the shop at the rate of 5 or 6 a day. Carpeting is in constant need of repair, spot cleaning, and in some cases replacement. Draperies have to be cleaned which means the shop personnel must take them down, reinstall when cleaned, and often reseam. The requirement of partitions has more than doubled during the last two years. There is increased demand for specially built furniture such as open shelving for Senators' Offices and Committees. The fine old furniture in the old building requires more care and repairs as it becomes older. The four new employees are necessary to keep the furniture and furnishings in both buildings in a sound and presentable condition. I strongly urge that funds be included in the pending bill for these four jobs. With best wishes, I am, Sincerely yours, J. GEORGE STEWART, SENATE GARAGE Senator BARTLETT. For the appropriation entitled "Senate Garage," you are requesting $58,600, which is a decrease of $300 under the 1967 appropriation. The increases I see are mandatory for the most part. The decreases are reflected in the supplies and materials allotment. JUSTIFICATION I ask that pages 83 through 85 be inserted in the record. (The justification follows:) "Pay above the stated annual rate" allotment eliminated for 1968 and funds for 1968 transferred to "overtime pay" allotment---Supplies and materials allotment reduced for 1968 from $3,700 to $1,700, due to dropping of nonrecurring amount of $2,500 allowed for 1967 for replacement of fluorescent lighting tubes in garage; offset by an increase of $500 in the regular annual allotment to meet current maintenance costs. The last increase allowed under this allotment was in 1964__ Base for 1968-- 100 2,000 56, 800 Additions: An increase of $760 is requested for 1968 to meet on a full- An increase of $140 is requested for 1968 to meet the cost of within-grade promotions authorized by Public Law 763 under the wage-board system, for employees compensated under that act. "Overtime pay" allotment increased from $10,100 to $10,700‒‒‒‒‒‒ Of this increase, $500 results from increase in basic pay rates. The additional $100 results from transfer of such amount from the "Pay above the stated annual rate" allotment. Next year being leap year, there would normally be 2 excess basic workdays to be compensated. However, in the fiscal year 1968, the 2 excess days fall on a Saturday and Sunday. Most of the employees under the Architect are required to work 4 hours on Saturdays at time and one-half pay, and a skeleton maintenance force is required to work on Sundays, also at time and one-half pay. It is estimated that the amount normally provided under "Pay above the stated annual rate" allotment, covering 1 full 8-hour day for all employees, will equal and offset the cost of work required on the excess Saturday and Sunday in 1968. Accordingly, the amount of $100 allowed under that allotment for 1967 has been deleted from that allotment for 1968 and transferred for 1968 to the "Overtime pay" allotment. Contribution to retirement fund increased from $2,300 to $2,600____ This increase results from increase in basic pay rates and is requested to cover the cost of Government contribution to retirement fund required by Public Law 854, 84th Cong., Title IV, Civil Service Retirement Act Amendments of 1956. $900 600 300 Total estimate for 1968 (including $600 budget amendment) - 58,600 CAPITOL POWER PLANT Senator BARTLETT. Any questions on that? We come now to the Capitol Power Plant for which you are requesting $2,841,600, an increase of $53,200 over 1967. JUSTIFICATION I ask that pages 119 through 125 of the justification be placed in the record. (The justification appears on p. 202 :) AIR CONDITIONING MECHANICS Senator BARTLETT. Of your total increase, $20,696 is requested for three air-conditioning mechanics to keep the refrigeration plant in operation on a 24-hour basis. Mr. STEWART. That is right. ADDITIONAL MAINTENANCE MECHANICS Senator BARTLETT. We have already discussed this proposition in connection with the Senate Office Buildings appropriation. Why do you need the two additional maintenance mechanics for which you are requesting $14,020? Mr. STEWART. Mr. Chairman, with your permission, I would like to ask Mr. Rubel to discuss this request. He is familiar with all items pertaining to the Capitol Power Plant. Mr. RUBEL. Mr. Chairman, during the past 8 years the capabilities of the Capitol Power Plant have increased tremendously in order to take care of the demands imposed by the extension of the east front of the Capitol, by the Rayburn House Office Building, the New Senate Office Building, and the air-conditioning installation in the Main Library Building. These new loads required the installation of four additional refrigeration machines. Also, four oil-fired steam generators were installed in the plant to take care of the increased steam load. A new cooling tower on the Capitol Power Plant grounds; a new oil storage system for storing the fuel oil for the new boilers, and a new coal-handling system also are recent additions to the plant facilities. All of this additional equipment must be maintained in first-class operating condition. With the present force of seven mechanics assigned to the maintenance force the workload has become excessive and it is not possible to keep all of the machinery in top-notch condition. ADDITIONAL ELEVATORS FOR NEW SENATE OFFICE BUILDING Senator PROXMIRE. Could I ask unanimous consent just for a minute to go back to these elevators again? ESTIMATED COST OF ALTERNATIVES I wonder if it would be possible for the record if you would give us a precise estimate of the cost-you gave us a general estimate, but I did not follow it up the estimate of the cost of having one additional elevator or two additional elevators in addition to the present three, and also the feasibility if you do that of having available a stairway which would not interfere with this electric shop, because it occurs to me if you knock out part of the space for the electric shop, they are going to have to find new space somehow. This is going to be additional cost for them and I think we ought to do all we can to avoid that sort of thing if we can do so. At any rate, if you could give us, if it is all right with the chairman, if we could get for the record some notion of what our alternatives are, I think we would be in a better position to judge how to go ahead on it. You made a strong case that the three elevators are more economical in a sense, because you are going to have to do this reconstruction anyway. But I think that the committee ought to have a chance to determine whether they want one additional elevator, two or three. ELECTRIC SHOP ENCROACHMENT Mr. RUBEL. Mr. Caraway, do you think this encroachment on the electric shop would require taking over any other space? Mr. CARAWAY. No. We are not taking all of the shop, we are taking part of it. Senator PROXMIRE. I have never seen an operation in the Government since I have been here that can get along with less space. Maybe there are some. Mr. CARAWAY. It is more or less of a workshop and we have another storage room down the hall and an office across the hall from this shop. Senator PROXMIRE. We have a terrific shortage, as you know, for space. We have been fighting for it for the joint committee. We want it desperately; Russell Long wants it urgently for the Finance Committee; everyone wants more space. Mr. CARAWAY. We have 45 people in one suite of rooms. I know everyone needs space. Senator PROXMIRE. Well, at any rate I think these figures would be helpful to the committee, if it is all right with the chairman. I Senator BARTLETT. Certainly. (The information follows:) NEW SENATE OFFICE BUILDING NSTALLATION OF ADDITIONAL PASSENGER ELEVATORS AND CONVENIENCE STAIRWAY COMPARATIVE BREAKDOWN OF COSTS 1. Installation of less than 3 elevators will only partially relieve present inadequate service conditions and is not recommended by the Architect of the Capitol. 2. The installation of the convenience stairway can be omitted without seriously affecting the service provided by the new elevators. |