| Show Wrestling With Task of Cutting Postal Deficit Plan to Increase Revenue and Curtail Outlay Washington Legislation designed to halt bait an nn annual post office once deficit which rose to a new height of for the last fiscal Oscal year rear is now being drafted by the house committee on post offices and post roads It Is expected to be Intro Introduced ns as asa asa n a part of the administrations administration's econ economy omy pro program am either cither at this session after emergency matters ha have e been disposed of or early In the nest regular session Members of the committee are arc un- un understood un understood to be working on both ends of the problem seeking to In in- in increase Increase crease revenue and to curtail out out out-Iny lay Their major efforts alon along the first line It Is reported will be the restoration of the former two cent rate on first class postage which was raised to three cents In the revenue act of Three Cent Rate Causes Loss A recent survey suney conducted by br Representative James M Mead Dem N Y T chairman indicated that Instead of a promised In postal in- in income In Income come the lie Increased first lass rate Is going to lose some in tile the current fiscal year ear He fie termed the three cent rate one of the greatest blunders In the his his- history history tory of the Hie mall service Efforts to 10 stem slem the outlay of the Post Office department will be di- di directed di directed at al a n curtailment of air and ocean mall subsidies In the fiscal 1 year 1032 steamship mall mail subsidies totaled while subventions subventions to air transport companies en In carrying the mails amount amounted ed cd to Recently the committee complied compiled n a comprehensive e report embodying n a new plan of air mall mail payment ment un un- under under der which subsidies would would be corn com completely abolished within five fire years It Is expected that this program wIll be Included in the le legislation which I Is to be bt brought before before the house Representative Clyde Kelly telly Rep RepPa Pa author of the original air airmail mail act declared that a n a complete change In the method of pa payments ments to contractors must be made In Inthe inthe Inthe the Interests of justice and econ econ- econom economy om omy Whatever er justification there may maybe maybe maybe be for a large subsidy as a II means of establishing the he new aviation In in- Industry industry he said sahl It Is now time timeto timeto timeto to look forward to the cessation of such payments and the establish ment of te t f e air all mall service on a sustaining sustaining self basis Deficit Mounts Rapidly According to Representative Hr I elly the record of decreased revenues In Inthe the postal service during the last three years has lias ne never neer er been en par par- paralleled paralleled In history In H 1030 30 he de- de de dared dc Glared postal revenues were wore 70 48 In 1931 1031 they dropped by nearly to a n total of and In 1932 1032 hey declined another to a toto total I of oC only In the two year perIod the aggregate loss loss amounted to more than while In inthe Inthe the period from H 19 1921 21 1 to 1930 1030 postal revenues re showed an average yearly increase of nearly he post office deficit has been mounting swiftly according to fig fig- figures fig figures ures url's compiled b by the lie department In 1920 1929 there was a gross deficiency deficiency of including payments for air nir and anel ocean malls subsidies franked mall mail sen service Ice and functions while In 1032 the deficit on the same gross basis jumped to an an increase Increase In the red of 81 The H 1929 1020 20 net deficit representing the outgo for purely postal purposes purpose against the Income from postal ser services ices amounted to They 1032 net dene- dene was as |
