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appearance for EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT BUREAU OF THE BUDGET WASHINGTON, 25, D.C. JUN 41945 My dear Mr. Latta: On May 29, 1945, you advised this office that S. 938, "To provide for emergency flood control work made necessary by recent floods, and for other purposes, 11 had been received at the White House and requested reports and recommendations as to the approval of the bill. This legislation authorizes an appropriation of $12,000,000 as an emergency fund for expenditure under the direction of the Secretary of War, for the repair, restoration, and strengthening of levees and other flood-control works which have been threatened or destroyed by recent floods, or which may be threatened or destroyed by later OC- curring floods. Also, the War Production Board and other governmental agencies are authorized and directed to provide for the necessary allocations and priorities to enable farmers to replace and repair their farm machinery and equipment destroyed or damaged by the floods of 1944 and 1945. Facsimiles of the enrolled enactment have been referred to the War Department, the War Production Board, and the War Food Administra- tion, and their replies are attached. The War Department recomnends approval of the bill, and the War Production board in terposes no ob- jection to its approval. The War Food Admini istration, while calling attention to the cost, estimated at $500,000, of carrying out the directive with respect to providing allocations and priorities on farm machinery and equipment, likewise interposes no objection to the ap- proval of the bill. I am somewhat disturbed over the continuing character of these so-called emergency measures to provide funds for the repair of flood control works - this being the third successive measure of this char- acter since 1943 - and over the possibility that the funds thus pro- vided may come to be used for the ordinary "wear and tear" kind of operation and maintenance repair work that the basi c flood control acts of 1936 and subsequent years contemplated as being the proper ob- ligation of the local interests benefited by the Federally constructed projects. However, I am not now disposed to raise this question to the extent of con sidering it a sufficient basis for a recommendation of disapproval of the present bill. The expenditures to be made under TRUMAN NARA