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Show WASHINGTON NS : yg FROM OUR CONGRESSMAN W. K. GRANGER Terminal Leave Pay For GI's The final 218 members of Congress Con-gress last week affixed their signatures sig-natures to a petition which took out of the House Military Affairs Committee, where it has been cubby-holed for more than a year, a bill which will give terminal ter-minal leave pay to enlisted men' in the same mar.er that it has been granted to commissioned officers. This action virtually assured early passage of the bill. This bill has not only been stymied by the committee all this time. but has met with strong opposition opposi-tion from the Army, whose chief objection was based on the difficulties dif-ficulties of administering the Act, yet it is pointed out" by friends of the enlisted men that those difficulties were readily overcome when Congress authorized author-ized the same payments to officers. of-ficers. The bill would give enlisted men up to 120 days leave on the basis of 2Yz days a month of active war service and pay off the leave in lump sum upon discharge. dis-charge. The act would be retroactive retro-active for those GI's already discharged dis-charged from the service. The first possible date this measure can come before the House for action is May 13, since rules require the fully signed petition pe-tition to be laid on the table for seven legislative days. Veterans Get Priorities on Surplus Property Another bill that is of special interest to veterans was passed in the House on April 18, which provides that veterans will be given special preference for the purchase of surplus property. The bill, in fact, amends the original Act to provide that when property is declared surplus, a certain percentage of that property prop-erty will be set aside for 15 days in which veterans may exercise their preference. It further advances ad-vances the priority of veterans to the same class as the priorities given federal, state and local govenment agencies, thus actually actual-ly giving the veterans an overall over-all priority. Retirement Pay For Railroad Employees The same special procedure of petitioning was followed by the House to force from the Interstate Inter-state and Foreign Commerce Committee a bill which would amend the Railroad Retirement Act. This legislation has been stymied in the Committee for two years and the situation seemed hopless, since the Committee ether would not or could not take acton. Thus, by ths specal procedure, the bill will be considered by the House on May 14. The purpose of the legislation is to amend the Railroad Retirement Act by providing for increased benefits to certain railroaci employees and their dependents. |