COMMITTEE ON EMERGENCY AGENCIESAuthor(s): Harry J. Breithaupt, Jr.Source: Administrative Law Bulletin, Vol. 6, No. 4 (AUGUST 1954), pp. 203-204Published by: American Bar AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40712453 .

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eral, on February 11, 1952,36 (apparently on his own motion, because it is addressed to no one) or less than forty days after a decision by the Supreme Court,37 as to the meaning of a resolution by the Congress which he had theretofore interpreted dif- ferently, the Comptroller General announced in effect that he would continue applying his own concept of the legal meaning of the resolution, which concept was predi- cated on a broader base than that used by either the Supreme Court or the Court of Claims; to wit, that the employees involved were "not entitled as a matter of law to gratuity pay in addition to their pay for work done"; the Supreme Court decision to the contrary notwithstanding!

In conclusion, your committee believes careful and full examination and audit of all government expenditures is a proper and desirable function to be discharged by agencies which are independent of the ex- ecutive branch; that such agencies should be given all requisite and necessary author- ity, facilities and means to effectively find and expose all fraud and incompetencies in the handling of public funds, both expendi- tures and collections. It does not believe that this can be accomplished by any office or agency which considers itself above the law and beyond the limitations which such law imposes in the discharge of these, or any other government function, as import- ant as they may be. To those ends your committee hopes to have specific recommen- dations ready for the Section at its next meeting, designed to strengthen the loose governmental control over the administra-

86 31 Comp. Gen. 370. *t United States v. Kelley (1952), 342 U.S. 193.

tive agencies covered by this interim report so that neither may ever be listed in the category to which Mr. Chief Justice Stone referred in 1942, or of which the Conti- nental Congress was wary in 1775.

Respectfully submitted,

William D. McGraw, Chairman.

Ben Paul Noble, Vice Chairman.

COMMITTEE ON EMERGENCY AGENCIES

Last year's report included a recommen- dation that the Committee on Emergency Agencies be continued on a stand-by basis only, at least for the present. That recom- mendation was made because of the sub- stantial curtailment of federal emergency controls and because of the committee's opinion that since its inception in 1951 the procedures and practices employed by em- ergency agencies and other federal agencies exercising emergency powers had, on the whole, accorded substantial fairness to per- sons affected by the actions of those agen- cies.

During the past year, then, the commit- tee - its views unchanged - has functioned on a stand-by basis only.

In doing so, however, it has endeavored to maintain surveillance over such proposed federal legislation as has dealt with emer- gency governmental powers; and in addi- tion, it has interested itself in and followed

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the progress of other committees of the Section whose work in whole or in part has borne some relationship to the subject of emergency agencies. In this category fell especially the matter of agency fees as they relate to emergency activities - a sub- ject within the particular assignment of the Committee on Agency Fees - and the study of Renegotiation Board procedures under- taken by the Committee on Statutory Re- negotiation.

For the same reasons expressed a year ago, it is recommended that the Committee on Emergency Agencies be continued on a stand-by basis.

Harry J. Breithaupt, Jr Chairman

COMMITTEE ON FINALITY CLAUSES IN GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS

Your Committee on Finality Clauses in Government Contracts was able to report for the 1953 convention sessions that Sen- ate Bill No. 24, introduced for the purpose of overcoming certain implications con- tained in the decision of United States v. Wunderlich, 342, U.S. 98, had passed the Senate but had at that time made no fur- ther progress. Prior to the assembling of the second session of the 83rd Congress, contact was made with Mr. Foley, Counsel for the House Judiciary Committee; Chair- man Reed 'of the Committee and Congress- man Graham of Pennsylvania, Chairman of a sub-committee which had under consider- ation the legislation previously passed by the Senate, as well as various bills of simi-

lar purpose, but in some cases of somewhat different approach, which had been intro- duced in the House of Representatives. It was then understood that both myself and David Reich, Esquire, Vice-chairman on the Committee would be notified if and when hearings were to be held upon the legislation in regard to the Wunderlich problem.

Due to hospitalization and surgery in late November, your Chairman was on the disabled list until about February 1, 1954 and was unable personally to follow up this matter in the early stages of the 1954 Con- gressional session when action became im- mediately necessary. The matter of pre- senting the case of the American Bar Asso- ciation in the matter of the legislation in question was very adequately and success- fully taken care of by Mr. Reich. Following the hearings held by the sub-committee the bill was reported and passed by the House of Representatives in a form which we be- lieve will prove quite satisfactory to the members of the American Bar Association.

On May 4, 1954, following the forward- ing of Senate Bill No. 24 to the President, the Section Chairman (John W. Cragun, Esquire) contributed an important assist to the Committee by addressing a letter to the President of the United States express- ing the desire of the American Bar Asso- ciation that the Bill be signed. Following this letter, President Eisenhower, on May 11, 1954, affixed his signature to the Bill.

I wish at this time to express my thanks to Mr. Cragun and Mr. Reich for their valuable assistance, also to Franklin M. Schultz, Esquire, formerly of Bloomington,

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