Special Message to the Congress Requesting Funds for Rental Housing for Veterans.

To the Congress of the United States:

A significant contribution to the amount of rental housing so direly needed by veterans and their families at rentals they can afford has been made during the past year by the temporary re-use program under Title V of the Lanham Act.

Under this program, Army barracks and other military or civilian wartime structures are converted into temporary dwellings. Many of these are re-used on their sites; others are moved and set up on the campuses of universities for the use of student veterans. Still others have been placed on new sites in cities where the housing shortage is desperate.

These educational institutions, municipalities and other public bodies have used their own funds to provide sites for these temporary re-use homes. In many cases, also, they have provided the necessary utilities. The Federal Government, through the Congress, made two appropriations, totaling $445,627,000, to finance its part of this program.

Originally, it was planned to convert war structures into 200,000 temporary units under this program. This would of course have provided accommodations for many more than 200,000 persons. Rising costs of labor and building materials, as well as rising costs caused by the increased time required for completion due to shortages, have made it necessary for the Government several times during the past year to cut back the temporary re-use program.

Prior to February 1, 1947, allocations had been made for 158,834 units, but the rising costs of building and the scarcity of materials made it necessary recently to suspend 8,357 of these. With cutbacks which had been ordered earlier, it now appears that it will be possible, out of the Federal appropriations, to provide for only about 150,000 units, or approximately 25 per cent fewer than was planned. Of these 95,451 units have been completed and around 55,000 including suspended units are under construction.

No more allocations out of the funds available under the Lanham Act can be made. Prior to the time cutbacks and suspensions were ordered, as a result of the approaching exhaustion of funds, however, many local groups such as city governments and educational institutions, already had obligated or spent considerable funds of their own, as required under the Lanham Act. This was done to acquire sites, provide utilities or community facilities to accommodate the housing which they confidently expected would be set up. In some instances they also spent funds on a reimbursable basis, to provide utilities and perform other necessary work in connection with these houses. When it became obvious that some temporary re-use units could not be completed at Federal expense, many local bodies set aside funds of their own in order to bring these units to completion.

The result is that in order for the Federal Government to fulfill its contractual obligations a further appropriation by the Congress of $50,000,000 is necessary.

These obligations fall into four categories: 1. Completion of all units now under contract, including approximately 8,357 units suspended since December 14, 1946.

2. Completion of approximately 4,869 units which were cancelled in previous cutbacks.

3. Reimbursement of public bodies for expenditures of their own funds for the completion of approximately 400 units which otherwise would have been cancelled.

4. Reimbursement of public bodies for the cost of utility and other on site work performed by them in connection with veterans' temporary housing on a reimbursable basis.

The Federal Government must carry out contractual obligations accepted in good faith by educational institutions, municipalities and other local bodies.

It is recommended, therefore, that the authorization contained in section 502(d) of the Lanham Act be increased by $50,000,000 and that the funds subsequently appropriated under the increased authorization be available to meet the four obligations specified above.

Over and above these contractual obligations, we have obvious responsibilities to those who served their country in the armed forces. Under our program about half of the temporary re-use housing is made available to colleges and other institutions of learning to house veterans while they are studying under the terms of the G.I. Bill of Rights. The other housing is set up in crowded cities, where otherwise many of our returned servicemen would be unable to find accommodations. Rentals of these temporary structures average $30 per family unit. I am sure I do not need to stress the urgency of the completion of this program to alleviate the stringent housing shortage faced by so many of our veterans.

I urge the Congress to make a further appropriation of $50,000,000 in order that the Government may meet its contractual obligations referred to and in order that this phase of our continuing program of aid to veterans may be carried out.

HARRY S. TRUMAN