foreign attorneys and counsels every now and then. We thought he ought to have enough money in there to operate properly. As you recall, this appropriation used to be almost $1,000,000 and came all the way down to $100,000. When it was $200,000 for a time, we did not use all the money and so it was cut to $100,000. It is for specific purposes only, and if the money is not spent, it goes back into the Treasury. Mr. STEFAN. How much has been expended this year, until December 31? Mr. ANDRETTA. It is $53,161.57. We are running about $10,000 short. CASES PENDING Mr. STEFAN. Will you please list the cases pending this year? Mr. STEFAN. We will put that in the record at this point. COMPENSATION OF SPECIAL ATTORNEYS Typical of cases and matters, handled by special assistants under this appropriation in the past year are the following: U. S. v. Corrigan et al. U. S. v. Wm. S. Pitcairn Corporation, and other currency cases. In re SS. Medina, and many other admiralty and collision cases. War risk litigation cases; national service life insurance cases of which there are some 104 now pending. U. S. v. Hans Max Haupt (treason case). U. S. v. Richard W. Deaver. SS Norefjord-U. S. Sturtevant case in Canada. U. S. v. Dr. Wm. E. Koch. U. S. v. Winrod et al (sedition case). U. S. v. Douglas Stewart (perjury case). U. S. v. Chandler & Best (treason case). Various cases under the Frazier-Lemke Act. Isabelle H. Pack and Katherine T. Baldwin v. Harlan J. Askvig et al. U. S. v. Ezra Pound (treason case). U. S. v. Carl Marzani. U. S. v. Albert W. Johnson et al. U. S. v. Nicolai Redin. Mr. STEFAN. Are there any questions now? SALARIES AND EXPENSES OF MARSHALS, ETC. STANDARD CLASSIFICATION SCHEDULE Mr. STEFAN. We will now take up "Salaries and expenses of marshals." SUMMARY OF REQUIREMENTS The summary of requirements will be inserted at this point in the record. (The matter referred to follows:) Summary of requirements, fiscal year 1948-Salaries and expenses of marshals, etc. Appropriation, 1947 (regular bill)__ Add: Pending supplemental appropriation (Public Law 390). Total estimate of appropriation__ 5, 270, 000 Mr. STEFAN. There is quite a jump here. It is an increase of $178,000; 1947 totaled $4,642,000 plus $450,000 in Pay Act funds, and for 1948 it is $5,270,000. Mr. Andretta, are you going to justify this item, and will you give us some brief explanation here of this and also the number of marshals you have? PERSONAL SERVICES, FIELD Mr. ANDRETTA. At the present time we have 1,134 marshals and deputies. They are scattered all over the country in probably 300 places. We have 93 districts and probably 300 places where court is held where there is at least a deputy or a part-time deputy. There has not been any change in the marshals' staff or personnel to speak of in the last 10 years. In fact, some of the offices today have fewer deputies in them than they had before the war, or in years gone by. Mr. STEFAN. Right there, I note your appropriation for 1938 was $3,560,000, and now you are asking for $5,270,000. That is the same number of personnel there? Mr. ANDRETTA. Yes, sir. Mr. STEFAN. The same number of part-time marshals also? Mr. ANDRETTA. Yes, sir; but I can explain a good part of that increase in cost, Mr. Stefan. Mr. STEFAN. What is it? Mr. ANDRETTA. It costs more money to do business in the marshals' offices. Travel costs are up and it costs them more to travel. They have been allowed more liberal travel allowances under acts of Congress. We have to pay more money for guards that we hire. We have to pay more money for storage of seized property and rentals. The general cost of doing business is up. 99740-47-18 In addition to that, sir, you will remember this committee approved the reclassification of deputy marshals' positions from grade 4 to grade 5, which ran into some money. Mr. STEFAN. That is $139,887 for just salary increases; is that right? Mr. ANDRETTA. No, sir. That is for automatic raises, mostly. Mr. STEFAN. That is by act of Congress? Mr. ANDRETTA. Yes, sir. Mr. STEFAN. Does that include all of that increase? Mr. ANDRETTA. No, sir. Part of that increase is to make up the cost of present personnel for which we have a present deficiency. You see, we are going to ask for a deficiency this year of $60,000, I believe. Mr. STEFAN. Is that on "Personal services in the field"? Mr. STEFAN. Why do you have to have that? Mr. ANDRETTA. That is in order to come out this year we have to either leave vacancies unfilled, or fire people. Some have already received dismissal notices. We are trying to drop at least 60 deputy marshals. It is the hardest thing in the world, as I can show you any number of letters from marshals where they have a deputy in an outlying post and they cannot get along without that coverage. We wanted to drop one in a little town in Alaska and have been deluged with letters that a law-enforcement officer is absolutely essential for the protection of the people in the town. The reason that the marshal ordered that he be dropped was there had been only one arrest in a year. The people said there was only one arrest because there was a deputy there which kept things down and was a deterrent. Another example was a case where a marshal had to go out and seize goods on a writ of replevin in a lawsuit in which the United States was not involved. Because of the local situation, 15 or 20 persons had to be deputized as deputies to seize these goods. However, the cost will be taxed against the litigants in the case as a court cost, and the money goes into the Treasury. You do not see it in the appropriation because the private litigant pays for it. Mr. ROONEY. What percentage of the total appropriation item would you say went for such matters? Mr. ANDRETTA. I would say earnings and fees cover about half of the cost of the marshals' offices. Mr. STEFAN. About half? Mr. ANDRETTA. Yes, sir. One way or another funds come back into the Treasury. TRAVEL Mr. STEFAN. This "Travel" item is very large, $1,230,000, which calls for an increase of $2,413 from last year. Mr. ANDRETTA. You will notice we spent a little over $1,230,000 last year. It runs about that all the time, Mr. Stefan. We have no automobiles for the marshals. They have a prison van in about eight major districts. They have no official automobiles, so they use their privately owned cars. That means they are continually running around the districts serving process and transporting prisoners thus running up mileage in their own cars. We find it more economical to transfer three prisoners in an automobile with a deputy and a guard than for all of them to take a train with a compartment or other first-class travel. COMMUNICATION SERVICES Mr. STEFAN. Your "Communication services" is the next item. Mr. ANDRETTA. We spent for communications last year and we are asking this year $80,000, the same allotment as for 1947. There, again, telegraph costs have gone up and the same situation applies with the marshals as with United States attorneys. We have to have .telephones in these various offices where they hold court, even though the marshals may be there only a month or two, when the court is in session. He has to have a telephone, and it is costly. OTHER CONTRACTUAL SERVICES Mr. STEFAN. What is the increase of $14,000 in "Other contractual services"? It increases from $121,000 to $135,000. Mr. ANDRETTA. That is to bring it in line with expenditures in former years. That includes guard hiring and things like that. The rate for guards is up. We couldn't get any guards at the rates we were paying. In the outline which you have before you is indicated the cost of these personal services today, as compared to what it used to be. For example, guards that go along with prisoners and stationary guards have had their rates increased, and all other miscellaneous services cost more money. EQUIPMENT Mr. STEFAN. Let us go to "Equipment." What kind of equipment are you buying for the additional $18,000? Mr. ANDRETTA. That is for the prison vans we are asking to buy. Mr. STEFAN. What is the matter with the old vans? Mr. ANDRETTA. We have bought only two or three in the past 10 years, so we are trying to replace them. Mr. STEFAN. They will run another year, will they not? Mr. ANDRETTA. You gave us the money this year to buy them, but we cannot get them for $2,000. So, we want to buy them next year. DECREASE IN WORK LOAD Mr. STEFAN. I cannot understand your request for increases in view of the decreasing work load. The work load has decreased. If you will look on page 239, there is a decreased work load from 1943. Everything seems to be going down. The number of prisoners handled is down. Prisoners transported is down. Mr. ANDRETTA. That is right for some categories. Mr. STEFAN. All the way along the line the work load is down? Mr. ANDRETTA. That is right in part, sir. Mr. STEFAN. Then you ask for an increase in appropriations. Mr. ANDRETTA. Civil cases are way up. Marshals have to go all over the country and of course there is a tremendous lot of work in serving process. I have not had one letter from a marshal Mr. STEFAN (interposing). Applications dropped from 34,000 to 10,000. Mr. ANDRETTA. In bankruptcy cases? Mr. STEFAN. That is right. It is down to 10,000 in 1946. The process, warrant, served, is down. Mr. ANDRETTA. Yes, sir. Mr. STEFAN. The prisoners handled is way down. Mr. ANDRETTA. No, sir. Mr. STEFAN. That is down from 147,000 in 1943 to 155,000 in 1944, and 135,000 in 1945 and 123,000 in 1946. Mr. ANDRETTA. Yes, sir; but look at the prisoners handled preliminary to trial. Mr. STEFAN. It is still part of the work. The work load is down, but you are asking for more money. Mr. ANDRETTA. If you are referring to prisoners handled preliminary to trial, you have to have a deputy there, whether he walks in with one prisoner or with six prisoners. Those figures are indicative of what goes on, but there is no accurate way of measuring the work in a marshal's office. Mr. ROONEY. Is it fair to assume that the bankruptcy cases will go up substantially from here on? Mr. ANDRETTA. Yes, sir. Mr. ROONEY. I think that is generally known. Mr. ANDRETTA. I want to point this out. A marshal may have nothing to do for a week, but he has to be there when next week 40 cases may break. He has no control over his work and he has to be there to serve the public. PURCHASE OF VANS Mr. STEFAN. Will you look at page 32 of the committee print now? Are you buying more automobiles there? It shows you are eliminating "At not to exceed $2,000 each—” What are you deleting that for? Mr. ANDRETTA. That is the same language we had this year, Mr. Stefan, when I said we could not buy them this year for $2,000. Mr. STEFAN. What kind of automobiles are you buying? Mr. ANDRETTA. These are vans. Mr. STEFAN. Those are the vans we were talking about? The same ones? Mr. ANDRETTA. Yes, sir; they carry about 10 to 12 prisoners in them. Mr. STEFAN. Those are eight, and they are not passenger cars but vans. Mr. ANDRETTA. No, sir. We have no passenger cars at all for the marshals; we have no automobiles. Mr. ROONEY. They use their own cars and they are reimbursed at the rate of 4 cents a mile. Mr. ANDRETTA. Yes, sir; within their official station and 5 cents outside. Mr. ROONEY. All right, Mr. Chairman. Mr. STEFAN. Mr. O'Brien. Mr. O'BRIEN. I have no questions. |