RUSSELL E. DICKENSON, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL CAPITAL PARKS ELMER S. ATKINS, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, WHITE HOUSE LIAISON, NATIONAL CAPITAL PARKS FLOYD P. HOUGH, CHIEF, DIVISION OF BUDGET AND PROGRAM COORDINATION, NATIONAL CAPITAL PARKS Mr. STEED. The committee will be in order. The committee is in session this afternoon to consider the budget request involving the Executive Residence. We are very pleased to have our old friend Mr. Dickenson of the National Park Service. Mr. Atkins is his very able assistant. On behalf of the committee, let me extend you fellows a warm welcome. Mr. DICKENSON. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. It is a pleasure to be here. Mr. STEED. The appropriation for the Executive Residence in 1973 was $1,372,000. The budget request for fiscal year 1974 is $1,370,000, a decrease of $2,000. How nice to have a situation like that. It is so uncommon around here. Mr. Dickenson, if you would like to make a general statement, we would be pleased to hear from you and then we will have some questions. GENERAL STATEMENT Mr. DICKENSON. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, I appreciate the opportunity to appear before you to present for your consideration the fund requirements for the maintenance and operation of the Executive Residence for the forthcoming fiscal year. The appropriation request, for the Executive Residence for fiscal year 1974, is $1,370,000, a net decrease of $2,000 below the current year appropriation. This net decrease results from a reduction of the nonrecurring item of $40,000 approved by the Congress for repainting the Residence and increases for pay costs and increased cost of supplies, equipment, and contractual services of $38,000. The funds requested for fiscal year 1974 will provide routine operating needs for the Residence at the present level of activity. There are no new programs or personnel proposed in this budget. The Residence continues to be a point of high interest for the visitor, with visitation totaling 1,412,853 in 1972, representing a 1.5 percent increase over the total for 1971. Mr. Chairman, I shall be pleased to attempt to answer any questions you and other members of the committee may have about the operation of the Executive Residence and the 1974 estimates before Mr. STEED. You have covered the reason for the $2,000 reduction. As I understand it, we paint the White House once every 4 years? Mr. DICKENSON. Yes, sir. Mr. STEED. This is always timed to be with the inauguration of the newly elected President? Mr. DICKENSON. That is right. MAINTENANCE AND HOUSEKEEPING NEEDS Mr. STEED. In this budget, you have always had a certain amount of cey to use for the various maintenance and other needs that the White House has. Could you comment on what probably will be the main activity in this particular area of the budget for the coming year? Mr. DICKENSON. The principal items that are covered by this particular budget are the general housekeeping duties in the 132 rooms of the house itself, setting up the public rooms for public visitations and for special events which are held at the White House, setting up and arranging for all official events and preparing and serving meals for these events, general kitchen and food-purchasing and storage activites, doormen to receive visitors, tradesmen to make routine repairs for plumbing and electricity and painting, and providing floral arrangements throughout the residence. These are the principal items that are covered by this particular appropriation. FOOD COSTS Mr. STEED. I have attempted to go into the high food costs because you are going to have some problems in that area, the same as everybody You were speaking of the kitchen operation, and this has to do with the official state functions, not the family day-to-day living itself? Mr. DICKENSON. That is correct. Official functions. Mr. STEED. It has been my understanding that the Presidents have always paid their own grocery bills for the family upstairs, and we here are involved only in the official part. Mr. DICKENSON. That is right. The President pays for his own meals and own personal guests. OFFICIAL FUNCTIONS Mr. STEED. About how many of those functions does the President stage a year? Is it much the same year in and year out? Mr. DICKENSON. That is right. I would say probably during the last year it might have decreased a little bit. We have noted that the food costs were less than had been proposed in the budget. Nevertheless, from year to year the number of events tends to be more or less fairly stable. These are Sunday services, special receptions at the White House for the Congress, and/or business and labor leaders and other types of events of that nature. SPECIAL REPLACEMENT ITEMS Mr. STEED. In the ordinary wear and tear of the building when you accommodate close to 12 million visitors a year there has to be a certain amount of wear and tear. Is the upkeep about the same every year or do you have a time when you have to replace things? Mr. DICKENSON. That is true. From time to time there are special requirements. In that part of the residence in which the public use occurs, where the public visits the White House, this budget visualizes the routine maintenance of that on a year-to-year basis before they get to be big items. As far as replacement of kitchen equipment and other types of special mechanical equipment, we may have to come to the committee with a specific request regarding those. PAINTING CONTRACT Mr. STEED. How well did you do on your contract for repainting this year? You had some good bids in years gone by. Mr. DICKENSON. We did not have as good a success as we had hoped, Mr. Chairman. You will recall that the committee and the Congress gave us $40,000 last year, and we felt fairly confident we could get it for that. But we could not. What happened was that the labor costs and other things apparently ran the price up. Another thing is that apparently the painting of the White House maybe does not have the same prestige value it might have had years ago. We received two bids. The low bid was $64,500 and the high bid was $69,612. We mailed invitations to 10 firms and 2 responded. On careful examination, the low bid was accepted. We feel satisfied it was a good price and a good job. |