ments to 815 that will be presented, and I wonder if you could possibly return this afternoon.

Mr. LILLYWHITE. Yes, sir.

Mr. FORD. Would you be prepared to discuss those briefly while we have this panel of impacted aid people available because it might be more productive to have it at this point in the record than separated by several days of testimony at some later date or some later point in the record.

With that, we will recess until 2 o'clock this afternoon.

(Whereupon, at 12:30, the committee recessed to reconvene at 2 of the same day.)

AFTER RECESS

(The committee reconvened at 2 p.m., Hon. Carl D. Perkins, chairman of the committee, presiding.)

Chairman PERKINS. Identify yourself for the record, please.

STATEMENT OF JOHN W. EATER, SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, RANTOUL, ILL.

Mr. EATER. Mr. Chairman and distinguished members of the committee, my name is J. W. Eater, superintendent of Rantoul city schools, Rantoul, Ill. I wish to thank you for this opportunity to present certain facts and my views on H.R. 6230 and the extension of Public Law 81-874 and Public Law 81-815.

Having served as superintendent of the Rantoul city schools for 22 years, I have been fully aware of the financial burden encountered by the Rantoul public schools due to Federal impact even before the enactment of Public Laws 81-874 and 81-815 in 1950.

Since Public Law 89-10 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 has been in effect in Illinois for the school year 1965-66 and a portion of 1966-67 it has given me an opportunity to study the opportunities offered to the educationally disadvantaged children in our State. In general I endorse the philosophy of the act and believe that considerable gain has been made and will continue to be made to provide some of the necessary opportunities for these children.

However, my study of the Federal impact program and the title I and title II programs clearly indicate that we must not confuse our thinking relative to the needs as we find them under Public Law 81-874 and titles I and II of the ESEA.

The conditions of impact which cause need for financial assistance to local districts in federally affected areas are not contingent on low income factors since the families of the students who impact the schools are employed on or assigned to military installations.

If low income factors exist, they would follow rather than create the impact. We seem to be dealing with two conditions (1) pockets of impact, and (2) pockets of poverty and in my opinion they are two completely diverse situations.

In order to clearly show the substantial and continuing impact in the Rantoul city schools on an enrollment basis rather than an ADA basis, I would like to submit table I which will spread the total enrollment by categories.

(The table referred to follows:)

TABLE 1.-Percentage of Federal impact, current school year, 1965-66

To show the Federal impact which Chanute Air Force Base has placed on Rantoul city schools since 1950, I would like to submit table II.

(The table referred to follows:)

TABLE II.-Federal impact in Rantoul city schools (elementary only)

Mr. EATER. The above tables clearly show the increases in our district and the relationship of federally connected students to the total ADA. During 1949-50 the percent of federally connected students. was 56.68 percent of the total ADA, whereas in 1966-67 the current school year, it is 84.28 percent.

As you scan the growth pattern of the tables, you will note a steady increase in both total ADA and federally connected ADA each year. Table III below will give the growth comparisons by percentage of

increase since 1949-50.

(The table referred to follows:)

TABLE III. Growth comparison-Rantoul city schools-19-year period

Mr. EATER. The 1967-68 figures on the above tables are calculations based on current developments in the Rantoul Chanute community.

I could project enrollment figures considering the programed activities in this community to include the school year 1968-69 and 196970. But I believe that by careful consideration of these prior comparisons I have shown that the impact of federally connected students has been, is, and will continue to be extremely heavy.

Therefore, I feel it would be needless to belabor these growth comparisons further.

These steady, but substantial, increases in ADA of both the total and the Federal impact have been due to Chanute Air Force Base, which is now known to be the third largest airbase in the United States, and which is currently increasing its technical student load and capacity. These increases are placing great demands on the Rantoul City schools, District No. 137 to provide additional school facilities and educational opportunities for Chanute Air Force Base dependents.

Chanute Air Force Base is a technical training center offering approximately 200 courses in aircraft maintenance and control, as well as technical training for the missile weapons and the firefighting school.

We must realize the apparent effect such activities would have on the demand for homes within the boundaries of District No. 137. Some knowing conditions in Rantoul, have rented or purchased trailers and parked them in numerous instances, in temporary locations waiting their turn to put their trailer in one of the many trailer parks either in Rantoul or on the base.

Many families upon being assigned to Chanute Air Force Base finds there are no quarters available when they arrive. In the majority of cases they are provided with temporary housing facilities either on the base or in the community. In many instances they are forced to find residence in a neighboring town and commute to the airbase.

According to the authorities on Chanute Air Force Base there are more than 1,300 employees currently commuting to and from the base. These employees are seeking housing in the Rantoul area since they are subject to call on a 24-hour basis or would prefer to live closer to their employment.

Very little, if any, tax revenue for schools is paid by the occupants and owners of trailers in the various trailer camps located within the district since personal property tax is either paid in their home State or the owners usually move before the tax payments are due.

Although the population of the village of Rantoul has increased from 2,400 in 1940 to over 27,500 in 1966, the assessed valuation has only increased from $4,031,350 in 1940 to $33,715,682 in 1966. From these facts it is readily seen that the population has increased 1,045 percent in the 26-year period.

All this increase in population is directly or indirectly attributable to the Federal activities of Chanute Air Force Base since there are no factories or other industries other than stores, service stations, garages, etc. within the boundaries of the district or in adjacent communities. Most of the working population therefore are employed on a taxfree Federal installation. The estimated taxable value of Chanute Air Force Base is $500,000,000. Then if the place of employment of 85 percent of our school population plus the valuation of the remainder of the District No. 137 were taxable at the present current

operating rate, no difficulty would be experienced in financing either construction of bulidings or the operation and maintenance of our schools.

(The table referred to follows:)

Comparison of growth percentages in Rantoul

Mr. EATER. When Congress enacted Public Law 81-874 and Public Law 81-815 in 1950, it was prompted by the need to provide funds so that children of the members of the great American defense team could have a decent educational program. This program should at least be comparable in quality and quantity to that provided other children in the area or political subdivision where they might be compelled by the U.S. Government to reside.

The funds under Public Law 81-874 and Public Law 81-815 have done this for this past 17 years with a remarkable degree of equity. Payments to the Rantoul city schools, as provided by applications under Public Law 81-874 as amended, have constituted on an average 45 percent of the total operating expenditures during the past 17 years. Without these payments it would have been impossible for the local district to provide educational opportunities to the dependents of personnel employed on Chanute Air Force Base.

I realize it would be practically impossible to enact legislation which would solve all the financial problems in all the federally impacted districts in all the States of the United States with the many patterns of State finance, State school laws and the other variables of one kind or another.

However, I am sure all of you have been proud of those pieces of legislation known as Public Law 81-874 and Public Law 81-815 which have been applicable for 17 years and has provided educational opportunities and school facilities to millions of students.

I am sure, too, that you are aware that no serious justifiable criticisms have been made in connection with Public Law 81-874 and Public Law 81-815 or the administration of the acts by the Commissioner of Education.

The facts just presented to you relate to the Federal impact on the Rantoul city schools. Although the Federal impact in 175 other districts in Illinois varies somewhat, I believe the information I have just given on my own district shows the characteristics of Federal impact in Illinois.

Next I would like to present some extracts of a report to the Ninth School Problems Commission, February 20, 1967, by Noah S. Neace, director of title I, Public Law 89-10, for Illinois, on poverty impact.

This report attempts to summarize the efforts of the Office of Superintendent of Public Instructions in providing genuine assistance to culturally disadvantaged youth within the framework of the intent of Title I, Public Law 89-10In Illinois the Title I staff approved a total of 952 projects from 866 school dis

tricts for the school year 1965–66. Over 500,000 students participated in these compensatory education programs.

The administrative costs, at the state level, were $404,846.92. This cost represents less than one percent of the funds allotted for Title I, Public Law 89-10according to the budgeted funds for the school year 1966-67 we feel that better utilization of the funds will be made for the education of the disadvantaged children.

Undoubtedly the most serious deterrent in the development of effective and efficient programs for the utilization of Title I funds was the acute shortage of personnel; administrative, general teaching, and specialists. With the severe curtailment of funds at the federal level, it appears that very little can be done to help the local educational agencies in their efforts to retrain teachers and specialized personnel.

The impact of the Title I program on students is yet to be measured, the long range index probably being best discerned through an increasing index of continuing education and a reduction in dropout rate.

It is evident from local educational agency reports, verbal reports, and interviews, that the educational programs developed in behalf of disadvantaged children have proved to many of them and their parents, that the school is an agency which genuinely cares about them.

The advent of Title I has given to teachers, parents, and children a new hope and way of expressing hope through educational action. Should Title I funds be curtailed or restricted, these teachers, parents and children will fall victims to an overwhelming sense of frustration. It would have been better that they had never gained this hope than it should be wrested from them.

We in Illinois must not only carry forward with the federal funds provided, we must provide the necessary funds to help retrain the teachers and specialists that are needed by the educationally disadvantaged.

To further substantiate the difference between the impact pocket and the poverty pocket I have prepared a table showing the funds received by 12 of the most heavily federally impacted districts in Illinois and showing the amount of entitlements in 1965-66 under Public Law 81874 and the corresponding entitlements under title I and title II of ESEA.

(The table referred to follows:)

TABLE IV. Twelve heaviest federally impacted districts in Illinois

Mr. EATER. By comparing the amounts of funds received by these 12 districts under title I, title II and Public Law 81-874 it is obvious that the funds received under Public Law 81-874 greatly exceed the funds from the other two. This alone would indicate that title I and title II could never replace Public Law 81-874 funds but that is not the entire story.

The purposes of these funds are entirely different. Title I funds are provided to establish additional programs for the educationally