ADJUSTMENT IN PAYMENT OF ANNUAL OVERHEAD CHARGE ON REPAYMENT CONTRACT BETWEEN UNITED STATES AND STRAWBERRY WATER USERS' ASSOCIATION OF PAYSON, UTAH

JULY 1, 1940.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed

Mr. MURDOCK of Arizona, from the Committee on Irrigation and Reclamation, submitted the following

REPORT

[To accompany H. R. 10069]

The Committee on Irrigation and Reclamation, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 10069) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to accept payment of an annual equitable overhead charge in connection with the repayment contract between the United States and the Strawberry Water Users' Association of Payson, Utah, having considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.

Testimony presented at the committee hearing on this legislation to the same effect as the report of the Secretary of Interior, which report is hereinbelow set out in full and made a part of this report, as follows:

Hon. COMPTON I. WHITE,

THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR,
Washington, June 19, 1940.

Chairman, Committee on Irrigation and Reclamation,
House of Representatives.

MY DEAR MR. WHITE: I have received your letter of June 17 enclosing for my report a copy of H. R. 10069, a bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to accept payment of an annual equitable overhead charge in connection with the repayment contract between the United States and the Strawberry Water Users' Association of Payson, Utah, in full satisfaction of delinquent billings upon the basis of an annual fixed overhead charge, and for other purposes.

I recommend the enactment of the bill.

Under the provisions of the contract of September 28, 1926, the association is required to pay a flat annual charge of one-tenth of 1 percent of the net investment of the United States as of January 1 preceding the date of each annual payment, as determined and stated by the Secretary, which flat charge is to cover for such calendar year the project's proportion of all overhead charges for the Denver office, field legal office, and any other detached offices.

At the time the contract was executed the net investment of the United States was approximately $2,500,000 and for the years 1928 to 1931 the association paid the overhead charges as prescribed in the contract. Because of the relief granted under the several moratorium acts, the net investment of the United States has not been reduced as fast as anticipated and the determination of overhead charges, based upon one-tenth of 1 percent of the net investment, is deemed to be excessive, and for 1932 to 1939, inclusive, total $16,142.38. This is the only repayment contract of the Bureau of Reclamation that provides for a payment of overhead charges based upon a percentage of the net investment.

The association has requested an adjustment in the amounts due as determined by the 1926 contract and a study has been made of what steps might be taken to adjust the account so as to be more nearly commensurate with the costs. Based upon legal and other assistance given in recent years, it has been decided that a payment of $400 per annum would be a satisfactory settlement and the further conclusion has been reached that this compromise should be authorized by an act of Congress, since there would be no legal consideration for a revision downwards of a fixed indebtedness due the United States, for overhead charges already accrued.

An attempt is being made to prepare an amendatory repayment contract with the Strawberry Water Users' Association under the provisions of the Reclamation Project Act of 1939 (Public, No. 260, 76th Cong.), and it is intended to provide in this contract for an equitable payment, as determined annually by the Secretary, of overhead costs, for years following the date of such proposed contract.

The proposed bill, if enacted into law by Congress, will authorize, after the execution of an amendatory contract with the Strawberry Water Users' Association under the Reclamation Project Act of 1939, an adjustment of overhead charges then due under the contract of 1926 on the basis of $400 per annum.

In connection with a similar report on a companion Senate bill, S. 4011, I have been advised by the Director, Bureau of the Budget, that there would be no objection to the presentation thereof.

Sincerely yours,

E. K. BURLEW, Acting Secretary of the Interior.

O

W. J. HANCE

JULY 1, 1940.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House and ordered to be printed

Mr. COFFEE of Washington, from the Committee on Claims, submitted the following

REPORT

[To accompany H. R. 532]

The Committee on Claims, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 532), for the relief of W. J. Hance, having considered the same report favorably thereon with amendments and recommend that the bill as amended do pass.

The amendments are as follows:

Line 6, strike out the sign and figures "$271.61" and insert in lieu thereof "$180 in full settlement of all claims against the United States".

At the end of the bill add:

: Provided, That no part of the amount appropriated in this Act in excess of 10 per centum thereof shall be paid or delivered to or received by any agent or attorney on account of services rendered in connection with this claim, and the same shall be unlawful, any contract to the contrary notwithstanding. Any person violating the provisions of this Act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not exceeding $1,000.

The purpose of the proposed legislation is to pay to Mr. W. J. Hance, of Coolidge, Tex., the sum of $180 in full settlement of all claims against the United States for personal injuries sustained by him and damages to his automobile in a collision occasioned by the negligent driving and operation of a United States Army truck in the intersection of Bell and Second Streets, Coolidge, Tex., on October 13,

1937.

STATEMENT OF FACTS

At about 10 a. m. on October 13, 1937, a convoy of Army vehicles, on official business, was proceeding east on Bell Street, in Coolidge, Tex., at a speed estimated to be 20 or 25 miles per hour. Cars were parked diagonally to the curb on each side of Bell Street, leaving a space of approximately 20 feet wide for the passage of traffic, and

it is stated by the War Department that these parked cars partially obstructed the visibility of drivers. The interval between one of the Government trucks (No. W-4604) and the vehicle ahead had been increased considerably, due to the traffic conditions and it seems that the driver of truck No. W-4604 was traveling at a high rate of speed in order to catch up with the preceding truck. At this time the weather was rainy and the streets were slippery and wet. Bell Street is a main street and Second Street is a secondary street intersecting Bell. At this time, Mr. W. J. Hance was proceeding north on Second Street at a speed of approximately 20 miles per hour. As Mr. Hance approached the intersection of these two streets he saw the Government truck approaching him some distance away and felt confident that he had sufficient time to clear the intersection before the Government vehicle reached him.

Had the Government driver been traveling within the speed limit, Mr. Hance would undoubtedly have been able to safely make the crossing. However, from the statements of various witnesses to the accident it is evident that the Government employee was traveling at an excessive rate of speed and refused to give Mr. Hance precedence in spite of the fact that the owner of the private car entered the intersection before him. It might also be pointed out here that Mr. Hance had already passed the center line of Bell Street when the Government truck hit his car.

Mr. Hance submitted a claim to the War Department in the amount of $266.61 for property damage and $5 damage for medical expenses incident to his personal injuries. The claim for property damage was disapproved because it was believed by the War Department that Mr. Hance was guilty of contributory negligence in the cause of the accident. His claim for personal injury was disallowed because there is no authority of law or appropriation available to the War Department for payment of claims of this nature. The War Department investigated the amount claimed by Mr. Hance and found that the estimate given by Mr. Hance ($266.61) was entirely proper. However, it was further ascertained by the Department that at the time it was wrecked an automobile of the same type and model as Mr. Hance's car could be sold as it was then for about $25 for salvage of the motor and good parts. It is felt, therefore, that an award of $175 cash for the car would properly compensate Mr. Hance for his loss in the destruction of his car.

In addition to this property damage, Mr. Hance incurred some personal injury and has submitted a bill from Dr. E. E. Thomas of Coolidge, Tex., in the amount of $5.

After having investigated this claim carefully, your committee is of the opinion that Mr. Hance suffered certain damages as a result of the negligence of a Government employee, and it is recommended by your committee that the sum of $180 be paid to Mr. Hance in full settlement of his claims against the United States growing out of this accident.

Appended hereto is the report of the War Department, together with other pertinent evidence.

Hon. AMBROSE J. KENNEDY,
Chairman, Committee on Claims,

WAR DEPARTMENT, Washington, October 5, 1939.

House of Representatives, Washington, D. C.

DEAR MR. KENNEDY: Careful consideration has been given to the bill (H. R. 532, 76th Cong., 1st sess.) for the relief of W. J. Hance, which you transmitted to the War Department under date of September 15, 1939, with request for information and the views of the Department relative thereto. The purpose of the proposed legislation is to pay to W. J. Hance, of Coolidge, Tex., the sum of $271.61 for personal injuries and damages to his automobile when his car was struck on October 13, 1937, by an Army truck at the intersection of Bell and Second Streets, Coolidge, Tex.

On October 13, 1937, at about 10 a. m., a convoy of Army vehicles, on official business, was proceeding east on Bell Street in Coolidge, Tex., at a speed estimated at from 20 to 25 miles per hour. Cars were parked diagnonally to the curb on each side of the street on Bell Street, leaving a space of approximately 20 feet wide for the passage of traffic, and these parked cars partially obstructed the visibility of drivers at the intersections. The interval between one of the Government trucks (No. W-4604) and the vehicle ahead had been increased considerably, due to traffic conditions, the weather being rainy and the streets wet and slippery. The driver of truck No. W-4604 was sounding his horn at each intersection. At about the same time a 1932 Ford Tudor sedan, owned and operated by W. J. Hance, was proceeding north on Second Street at a speed of approximately 20 miles per hour. As Mr. Hance approached the intersection of Bell Street and Second Street, he states he observed Government truck No. W-4604 approaching the same intersection and believing he had sufficient time to enter the intersection in safety ahead of the Government vehicle, drove his car into the intersection. When the Government driver observed Mr. Hance's car entering the intersection ahead of the Government vehicle, he applied his brakes and swerved to the left in an effort to avoid an accident, but the Government vehicle skidded into the left rear of Mr. Hance's car, thereby causing the damages complained of.

Mr. Hance alleges that he had sufficient time to pass in front of the Government vehicle if that vehicle had been going at or less than the legal rate of 20 miles per hour instead of at a speed of 35 or 40 miles per hour; but a disinterested witness states, in effect, that the Government driver was seemingly using all necessary precautions in driving and that Mr. Hance drove from a side street directly in front of one of the trucks in the convoy while the convoy was passing on the main street of Coolidge, and another disinterested witness states that the glass on Mr. Hance's car was splattered with mud enough to partially obscure the vision of Mr. Hance. The legal speed limit in the town, as fixed by State law, was 20 miles per hour.

A claim was filed by Mr. Hance with the War Department in the amount of $266.61 for property damage and $5 damage for medical expenses incident to personal injuries.

Upon review in the War Department, the claim for property damage was disapproved for the reason that, notwithstanding any negligence on the part of the Government driver, the evidence of record establishes negligence on Mr. Hance's part in that he entered a through street from a side street when his view was obstructed without properly assuring himself that no traffic was near enough to the intersection to constitute a traffic hazard, and this negligence defeated his claim for property damage. With respect to the claim for medical expenses incident to personal injuries, the claim was disapproved for the reason that, regardless of the person or persons responsible for the accident, there is no authority of law or appropriation available to the War Department for the payment of claims of this nature, except in a very restricted class of claims involving the operation of Army aircraft.

While this accident is regretted by the War Department, the evidence of record in the case appears to establish contributory negligence on the part of Mr. Hance and in view of these circumstances, the Department is constrained to recommend that favorable consideration be not given to the proposed legislation.

Sincerely yours,

HARRY H. WOODRING, Secretary of War.