Mr. KELLEHER. The Secretary of Defense will report on his $50 million and the service Secretaries on each of their own amounts. The CHAIRMAN. That is right. You see, we give $50 million in here. Mr. RIVERS. Then I will ask the service Secretaries to keep in busi ness. The CHAIRMAN. Without objection, the section is agreed to. Now, read the next one. Mr. KELLEHER (reading): SEC. 507. As of July 1, 1959, all authorization for military public works to be accomplished by the Secretary of a military department in connection with the establishment or development of military installations and and facilities and all authorizations for appropriations therefor, that are contained in Acts approved before August 4, 1956, and not superseded or otherwise modified by a later authorization are repealed, except This, Mr. Chairman, cuts it down to 3 years. It was 5, then 4, and now 3. The CHAIRMAN. This is the same as it was in last year's bill, and this will prohibit a large unfunded list of items. Mr. KELLEHER. The items of course are not the same. tions this year are not the same. The CHAIRMAN. That is right. Without objection, 507 is approved. All right, now section 50 Mr. KELLEHER. 508, Mr. Chairman, on page 62, line 16. The CHAIRMAN. That is right. Mr. KELLEHER (reading): The excep SEC. 508. Section 408 (b) of the Act of June 17, 1950 (64 Stat. 236, 245), is hereby repealed. That is the report that is made at the beginning of each Congress by the military departments, on unfunded authorization. It is the thought now that with it being rescinded automatically, the report is no longer necessary. The CHAIRMAN. That is right, it is no longer needed. Mr. KELLEHER (reading): SEC. 509. Section 515 of the Act of July 15, 1955 (69 Stat. 324, 352), as amended, is further amended to reads as follows: "SEC. 515. During fiscal years 1958 through and including 1961, the Secre taries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, respectively, are authoribed to lease housing facilities at or near military tactical installations for assignment as public quarters to military personnel and their dependents, if any, without rental charge upon a determination by the Secretary of Defense, or his designee, that there is a lack of adequate housing facilities at or near such military tactical installations." The CHAIRMAN. This is the same as it was last year and it applies to Nike installations. Instead of building them, we will go in the community and rent them. Without objection, that section is agreed to. Mr. KELLEHER (reading): SEC. 510. Section 406 of the Act of August 3, 1946 (70 Stat. 991, 1015), is amended to read as follows: "SEC. 406 (a) The Secretary of a military department may acquire any interest in land that "(1) he or his designee determines is needed in the interest of national defense; and "(2) does not cost more than $25,000 (exclusive of administrative costs and the amounts of any deficiency judgments). This section does not authorize the acquisition, as part of the same project, of two or more contiguous parcels of land that together cost more than $25,000.” Today, the law is $5,000. The CHAIRMAN. That is right. Mr. KELLEHER. This was suggested last year by the Department. There didn't appear to be any great opposition, but it was the final judgment of the committee that it should remain at $5,000. The CHAIRMAN. Now, explain exactly to the committee what this does. Mr. KELLEHER. Yes, sir. Today, any land acquisition that involves more than $5,000 must be a specific line item in the bill. Once in a while, the Department runs into an instance where they have a radar installation or some other relatively small project where the cost of the property is six or seven or eight thousand dollars. That means they must wait until the next year, the only alternative being to lease the property in the interim and then purchase it the next year. This would let it rise to $25,000. The CHAIRMAN. Well Mr. DURHAM. Now, Mr. Chairman, this is something that is important. The CHAIRMAN. Well, we have to have flexibility. It is not much. This doesn't happen often. Mr. RIVERS. You got inflation, anyway. Mr. DURHAM. They can acquire land and keep on acquiring land. The CHAIRMAN. No. Without objection, the section is agreed to. Mr. RIVERS. We just don't have enough time to approve them, any way. Mr. GAVIN. Mr. Chairman The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Gavin Mr. GAVIN. Going back to section 515 for a minute The CHAIRMAN. Örder. Mr. GAVIN. I merely wanted to make an observation. I can't understand where these tactical units are developed or programed that housing facilities are not developed along with the project. In other words, you are talking about these Nike installations, and you are renting houses because there are no houses for the personnel at that installation. Now, those individuals may be 2 or 3 miles from the installation, and when there is an alert and they have to go through the traffic, how are they going to get to these units to perform their duties when they are out 4 or 5 miles from the area? The CHAIRMAN. I don't think, Mr. Gavin, you will find many of them a mile and a half away from the installation. Mr. GAVIN. I hope not. The CHAIRMAN. They are right in that neighborhood. That is the reason we want to give them the authority to rent. Mr. GAVIN. You have to give them the authority. There is no question about that. But I say when they are planning the project why don't they plan the housing right along with it. The CHAIRMAN. We will save money by permitting them to rent. Mr. GAVIN. You might save money, but if you are ever alerted the matter of money won't make much material difference, when the planes are coming over at you. The CHAIRMAN. They will be there. What is the next section? Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. Chairman, may I ask a question on that provision for letting them acquire land The CHAIRMAN. What? Mr. LANKFORD. On the provision which Mr. Kelleher just read, about acquiring land up to the amount of $25,000. Any land under the $25,000 that is acquired without a specific line item will still come before Mr. Rivers' subcommittee, will it not? Mr. KELLEHER. You mean in excess of $25,000. Mr. KELLEHER. No; it will not. Mr. LANKFORD. It would not come ? Mr. KELLEHER. Only as a report and not a clearance. The CHAIRMAN. All right. Mr. KELLEHER (reading): Read the next section now. SEC. 511. Section 408 (a) of the Act of August 3, 1956 (70 Stat. 991, 1016), is amended by adding the following new subsection at the end thereof: "(5) No determination that a project is urgently required shall be necessary for projects, the cost of which is not in excess of $5,000." The law today says that any of these minor projects need to be urgently required before this authority can be exercised. The Department requests that the word "urgently" be stricken because it takes so much paperwork for a determination that it is urgent, that it is very expensive and time consuming. The CHAIRMAN. All right. Without objection, it is agreed to. Section 512. Mr. KELLEHER (reading): SEC. 512. Subsection (a) of section 406 of the Act of August 30, 1957 (71 Stat. 531, 556), is amended to read as follows: "(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law, and effective July 1, 1958, no family housing units shall be contracted for or acquired at or in support of military installations or activities unless the actual number of units involved has been specifically authorized by an annual military construction authorization act, except (1) housing units required to be acquired pursuant to the provisions of section 404 of the Housing Amendments of 1955" and so far that is the law today "(2) housing units leased, utilizing available operation and maintenance appropriations, for terms of one year, whether renewable or not, or for terms of not more than five years, pursuant to the provisions of section 417 of the Act of August 3, 1956 (70 Stat. 991, 1018); and (3) rental guaranty family housing authorized under section 302 of the Act of July 14, 1952 (66 Stat. 606, 662).” Mr. Chairman, may I point out that those 2, exceptions (2) and (3), are added now. They are new. The CHAIRMAN. Now let's discuss those two new ones. The housing units that would not have to come within the provisions of this are those that are leased for a year or so, that we just covered-at Nike sites and so on. You couldn't ever predict in advance when you are going to get this house so you could get a clear ance. By the time you did, the house wouldn't be available, perhaps. The CHAIRMAN. Then in view of that statement they are on sound ground in putting this addition to it. Mr. KELLEHER. Yes, sir. The CHAIRMAN. No doubt. Mr. KELLEHER. And (3) is rental guaranty family housing. That is the so-called French Wherry housing. The CHAIRMAN. That is right. Mr. KELLEHER. Started in France, and now is in some other countries. Actually, it is not military construction at all. It is entirely built with private funds. Mr. RIVERS. That guaranty thing. Mr. KELLEHER. That is right. The CHAIRMAN. Without objection, that is agree to. Mr. KELLEHER. Now, there would be a fourth one suggested, Mr. Chairman, and this goes back to our Capehart houses. The CHAIRMAN. Is this an amendment? Mr. KELLEHER. This is a new amendment, yes, sir, that was discussed before. You may recall you asked General Rentz whether he shouldn't have some elasticity to build Capehart houses at a missile site, let's say, where he couldn't have anticipated that requirement, and put it in as a line item in here. it? This language is the suggested language to accomplish that. The CHAIRMAN. The question didn't prompt the amendment did Mr. KELLEHER. Yes, sir. The CHAIRMAN. My question prompted the amendment. Mr. KELLEHER. Yes, sir. The CHAIRMAN. Then I must keep my mouth shut. [Laughter.] Go ahead and read it. Mr. RIVERS. But you are different, Mr. Chairman. [Further laughter.] The CHAIRMAN. Let's see what it is. Mr. KELLEHER. Four-the fourth exception: To the extent that any of the authorizations of subsections 104 (b), 204 (b), and 304 (b) of this Act to construct housing at locations specified therein are not utilized, such authorizations may be exercised to construct housing at other locations: Provided, That the total number of housing units to be constructed under the authority of this subsection may not exceed for any service the total number of units authorized in its subsection. The CHAIRMAN. That means just pushing them about. Mr. KELLEHER. Abilene Air Force Base, we will say now, has a line item in here for 1,000 units. The CHAIRMAN. That is right. Mr. KELLEHER. For some reason or other the mission is changed at Abilene. Two missile sites come in in the northern part of the United States The CHAIRMAN. Then you are losing control and you are getting away from the line item thought. Mr. KELLEHER. That is right, Mr. Chairman. The CHAIRMAN. Well, I don't think we are sound. All right. Now read the next section. Mr. GAVIN. General Rentz is here. Maybe the general would like to be heard, Mr. Chairman. The CHAIRMAN. Well Mr. GAVIN. Maybe the general would like to be heard on it. The CHAIRMAN. Well it was my question that prompted such an amendment as that. It shows my question wasn't well founded. Mr. RIVERS. The general The CHAIRMAN. All right, General, now. General RENTZ. Mr. Chairman, I don't think your question prompted this wording, sir. When we came to this section of the bill, I started that this was the first year we had to get all the Capeharts approved on an annual basis. The CHAIRMAN. Line basis. General RENTZ. We were building in rigidity that may be very detrimental to the mission of the three services. The CHAIRMAN. Well, General, you know what you want to build now. And you have the line items all established. You are being authorized. And by the flexibility of this amendment, why you could say, "Well, we probably were in error in building at this base, but we did not ask the committee for that at another base, so we will just go up to the other base, because we are in the total number of the whole program." That is not a sound way to legislate. Mr. GAVIN. Do you intend to do that, General? General RENTZ. No, sir; we do not intend to do it that way, sir. Let me give an example, Mr. Chairman. The CHAIRMAN. That would be the sum and substance of it? That would be the effect of it, would it not? General RENTZ. It could be the effect of it. The CHAIRMAN. Certainly. Mr. RIVERS. That would be the only way you could do it. General RENTZ. The only way we could. Let me give an example. We were able to negotiate with the Navy for the use of Brunswick Naval Air Station, for a tanker squadron relocation. We do not have Brunswick listed in this bill for any Capehart housing. Under this revision, we could go ahead, now that we have the mission approved at Brunswick, and build Capehart housing. The CHAIRMAN. Yes; you could take them from some other base. General RENTZ. That is right. The CHAIRMAN. That is right. Well, it is exactly what I said, that the whole purpose of it is. It is to have you shift them backward and forward, and nullifying the intent of a line item. That is what it is. Isn't it? It is not intended that. You want the flexibility. Mr. LANCASTER. Mr. Chairman, I am David N. Lancaster, of Mr. Bryant's Office— The CHAIRMAN. Yes, sir. Mr. LANCASTER. I would like to state that Mr. Bryant's organization approves this amendment. We have reviewed it and we have cleared it with the Bureau of the Budget who also approved it. We |