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Show Selective Service Program Tells Appeal Board's Composition, Duties Editor's Note: This is the fourth of a series of eight articles arti-cles prepared by Capt. William Nash of the Air Force ROTC detachment de-tachment at the Branch Agricultural Agricul-tural college to acquaint the readers with various phases of the Selective Service Act. The Selective Se-lective Service Act concerns the lives of all registrants and the economic and social welfare of each and every community. This article pertains to the authority of the State Director and Appeal Board. There has been some misconception miscon-ception about the authority the local boards have in granting deferments especially agricultural agricul-tural and occupational. They do have such authority. Obviously, the authority cannot can-not supersede the law and the regulations. It is patent that while a local board must use judgment, discretion and plain common sense, it also utilizes every available source of information infor-mation in classifying a registrant regis-trant and it cannot depart from the law and the regulations. NOR must it be forgotten that the National Director and the State Director have the authority to appeal a classification, either in behalf of the Government or the registrant, if they believe the law and the regulations have not been followed. If the national director or the state director takes an appeal, he must direct the file either to the National Appeal Board or to the State Board of Appeal. It is highly important and I cannot over-emphasize the fact that the national director and the state director do not have the power of classification of any registrant but they do have the power to take an appeal. The state director has the re-sponsibility re-sponsibility in his state to see that no registrant is wrongfully inducted into service before his turn. All fathers and mothers, Including In-cluding the registrant, should appreciate that every precaution is taken by the local board, the state director, and the appeal board, to insure them their sons will not be inducted until their number is reached. All calls for induction must be met by each and every local board. It is therefore there-fore difficult to defer one son, and by so doing, go to another family and take its son. We all want to be sure, without a shadow sha-dow of a doubt, that the registrant regis-trant deferred is rightfully so in the maintenance of the national health, safety or interest. Where the state director does not believe the local board is correct in its classification of any registrant, he has no alternative alter-native but to take an appeal to the state board of appeal when he deems it to be in the national interest or necessary to avoid an injustice. Let me repeat, the state director does not have the power to classify any registrant, but he does have the power to appeal from any determination of a local lo-cal board in his state at any time. The appeal board consists of five good men and true, who are appointed in the same manner as the local board members. They I receive no compensation for their I patriotic efforts; it is merely for I God and Country. These five men of the appeal board represent the activities of its area and as such include one member from labor, one member from industry, one physician, one lawyer and one member from agriculture. ag-riculture. The representative from labor evaluates matters relative to labor; the businessman evaluates evalu-ates matters relative to industry; indus-try; the physician evaluates matters mat-ters relative to medical state ments; the lawyer evaluates matters mat-ters relative to the legal profession, profes-sion, and the farmer evaluates matters relative to agriculture. No personal appearance can be granted before the state board of appeal. As a body they convene con-vene alone and sit in judgment with only the written contents of the file, applying the law and regulations. No outside influence is permitted. j |
