Table 82.-FEDERAL FUNDS OBLIGATED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS AT EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS: 1958-59 TO 1960-61

THE

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

"HE JURISDICTION of the Department of the Interior extends over the continental United States to specific islands in the Caribbean and the South Pacific, and to lands in the Arctic Circle. It includes the custody of 750 million acres of land; the conservation and devolopment of mineral resources and the promotion of mine safety; the conservation, development, and utilization of fish and wildlife resources; the administration of the Nation's great scenic and historic areas; the reclamation of the arid lands of the West through irrigation; and the management of hydroelectric power systems. The Department of the Interior is also responsible for the welfare of over 150,000 persons in the Territories of the United States and in the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, and provides services to 275,000 Indians living on reservations.

Several educational programs are associated with these responsibilities. One of these is the Bureau of Mines Safety-Training Program which was started in 1910. In this educational service, the Department has provided training in first aid, accident prevention, rescue work, and the maintenance of good health for miners.

Expenditures for the program of education for Indians living on reservations in the United States represent the Department's largest item of educational support. Funds provided are for operating schools for Indian children who do not have access to public schools. This includes, to a limited extent, educational activities for Indian adults who have had little or no formal education.

Educational programs for these people, and other programs for populations in outlying parts of the United States, are particularly challenging both in the difficulty in arranging satisfactory services and in the rewards that come with the extension of educational services to these people. Due to the advancing economy which has diverted these people from their earlier way of life, it is essential for social and economic adjustment that they be given the advantages to be derived from the acquisition of additional knowledge and skills.

Thus, through education they will be able to contribute more effectively to the national welfare.

In addition, other educational services are provided by the Department for the education of children who are dependents of employees at the national parks. Such services are usually provided through arrangements with local school authorities.

The Department also distributes certain revenues to the States which may be used for educational purposes. These revenues are derived from payments for permits, licenses, and leases associated with grazing lands, mineral lands, and national forests which are administered by the Federal Government. Allocations are limited to those States having portions of the public domain in such categories, and the amounts received by these States are proportional to the collections from areas within their boundaries. Revenues from these sources may be used by the States for purposes of local government with emphasis placed upon roads and schools. Information for this chapter was obtained from the Department of the Interior.

ALASKA PUBLIC WORKS PROGRAM

In order to foster economic and social development in Alaska, the Eighty-first Congress passed Public Law 264 in 1949 authorizing $70 million for the provision of facilities for community life. This 5-year act was later amended by Public Law 498, Eighty-third Congress, and extended to June 30, 1959. Originally, the authority under this act was delegated to the General Services Administration, but on May 20, 1950, the responsibility and authority was transferred by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 15 to the Secretary of the Interior. The Congress did not again extend the expiration date of the act but has authorized the total use of appropriated funds. Depletion of these funds is expected not later than the end of calendar year 1961.

In accordance with this act any public body in Alaska, such as the Territorial Government, city, town, school district, public utility district, or other public body, was enabled to make application to the Secretary of the Interior for a public works project. The Federal Government financed the entire cost of construction of the approved projects. Upon completion, these construction projects were authorized to be transferred to the public bodies for which they were built. The public agencies in turn paid in cash or delivered term securities in amounts that would return to the Treasury of the United States approximately 50 percent of the total cost of all projects built under the program. Inasmuch as the financial position of all public bodies on Alaska is relatively the same, the selling prices of

construction projects have been almost uniformly 50 percent of their total costs.

At the time a project is transferred to the public body, the United States accepts a cash payment for the total amount of the public body's share of the cost or a smaller cash payment is made and bonds of the subdivision are issued to amortize the debt. In practice, this period for repayment has usually been limited to 20 years or less, but occasionally a term of 30 years has been permitted. Interest on these deferred payments is fixed by the act at 2 percent per annum.

A summary presenting information about the number of projects for school facilities and the Federal share for the construction of these facilities are given in table 83. Data are not given beyond the 1958-59 school year since a significant change has taken place in this program with the approval of Statehood for Alaska.

Table 83.—FEDERAL FUNDS EXPENDED FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF SCHOOL FACILITIES UNDER THE ALASKA PUBLIC WORKS PROGRAM: 1949-50 TO 1958-59

1 Federal share considered as 50 percent of total construction expenditures.

BUREAU OF MINES SAFETY-TRAINING PROGRAM

The safety-training program was started on July 1, 1910, with the establishment of the Bureau of Mines. It is intended to reduce fatalities and injuries and to promote safe practices for the prevention of occupational injury of persons employed in the mining industries. In the beginning, the educational activities were confined to teaching persons in giving aid to the injured and to training persons in rescue operations and recovery procedures for use following mine disasters. These activities are necessary, and persons taking the training improve their "safety mindedness." However, such training was not directed

toward accident prevention but teaches a person what to do after a mishap occurs. Consequently, accident-prevention training was begun as part of the Bureau's safety-education program.

Safety-education activities of the Bureau, at present, are in the following principal categories:

1. First-aid and mine-rescue training for workmen and supervisors.

2. Accident-prevention training for workmen and supervisors in the various phases of the mineral industries.

3. Holmes Safety Association. The association is a Bureau-sponsored safety organization that provides through its councils and chapters an open forum for the discussion of accidents and how to prevent them. The association also provides educational meetings to promote the general welfare of its membership.

4. Demonstrated lectures for workmen and supervisors employed in various phases of the mineral industries. These include "Magic of Fire" and "Hazards of Static Electricity."

Additional funds and personnel became available to the Bureau in 1941 through the passage of Public Law 49, Seventy-seventh Congress-the original Federal Coal-Mine Inspection Act. Today, the Bureau's safety-education work operates in all States with mineral industries. The four activities mentioned in the preceding paragraphs are included in the work of Federal coal-mine inspectors, mining engineers, and mine-safety representatives.

Instruction in accident prevention ranges from short talks to 40 hours of formal classroom training for supervisors. The basic accident-prevention training courses for workmen offer 16 hours of classroom instruction for the coal-mining industry and 10 hours for the noncoal-mining industries. The Bureau's first-aid training course is for 10 hours. Courses for basic mine-rescue operations provide 20 hours of instruction. In the 2-year period from July 1, 1957, through June 30, 1959, formal safety-training courses for "First aid to the injured," "Accident prevention," and "Mine rescue" were attended by 63,000, 44,000, and 3,000 persons, respectively. Figures on formal safety-training courses are given below.

Separate appropriations cannot be reported for safety-education services. Instead, funds for these educational programs are portions of appropriations for safety activities, including coal-mine inspections and investigations, investigation of accidents and rescue work, health research and testing of respiratory protective equipment, electricalmechanical testing of underground mining equipment, and demonstra