Ohio to Seek Federal Funds for Armories

Article taken from The Lima News, April 6, 1935

COLUMBUS, O., April 26- (AP)- The possibility of Ohio legislative appropriating any specific amounts for the construction of new armories appeared remote today.

Two bills to buy or construct armories at Fremont and Portsmouth now rest in the house finance committee. The Portsmouth proposal has passed the senate, but has made no progress since being referred to the house treasury watchdogs.

Adj. Gen. Emil F. Marx expressed a belief that the legislature would make no specific appropriations. If any are made, he believes they will be lumped in the national guard appropriations bill and it will be left to his department to make the allocation of funds.

2 BILLS FILED

The Fremont armory bill by Rep. John J. Lehman, (D. Sandusky), proposes appropriating $70,000 for the purchase of a now available building. This bill contemplated the moving of the state highway patrol station into the building. However, Col. Lynn Black, superintendent of the patrol, has declared there will not be sufficient room in the structure for his men.

the Portsmouth bill would appropriate $50,000 to construct a new state militia building.

General Marx and several other members of his staff plan to go to Washington next month to lay the Ohio guard armory situation before the federal government.

At the conference, it was said, national guard officers from over the nation hope to have congress pass a bill which will earmark $80,000,000 of the $4.8000,000,000 public works funds for building armories.

SEEK $4,000,000

General Marx is expected to submit a proposal to build about 22 new guard headquarters in Ohio at an approximate cost of $4,000,000.

While all federal funds are dependent on the outcome of the conference, the adjutant general's office said it was probable that if congress sets aside the money for this purpose, the Fremont and Portsmouth proposals will be included.

Members of the house finance group so far have opposed the earmarking of any funds for an armory building program until such time as other building programs, such as that of the Welfare department, have first been cared for. To date, the house group has cut deeply into the general appropriations bill and refused to approve bills for specific projects.