Parley of Major Jewish Communities Adopts Five-point Program to Meet 1948 Relief Needs

A five-point program was adopted here today at the conclusion of the two-day session of the representatives of the 30 largest Jewish communities in the United States called by the Council of Jewish Federations and Welfare Funds to plan ways and means of meeting the 1948 obligations of American Jewry to the Jews of Eruope and Palestine. The program provides that:

1. The campaign executive committee of the United Jewish Appeal on which there is community representation should counsel the UJA on the 1948 national goal setting process in advancs of the Atlantic City UJA conference and, subsequently, on the procedure for establishing local quotas.

2. For this purpose representatives of the 30 large communities not already directly represented on the executive committee should be invited to serve in an advisory capacity.

3. In order to achieve the common purpose of the UJA and the communities there should be a closer working partnership between them through more frequent meetings and greater use of the executive committee by the UJA for all policy decisions by which the communities are directly or indirectly affected.

4. For the same ends there should be greater use by the communities of their representatives on that committee in funneling through them their suggestions for improved cooperative relationships for more effective campaingns.

5. And for the same purpose the community representatives should report regularly to their communities and to the Council regions which selected them.

Speakers at the parley, who included economists and social welfare experts, outlined the magnitude of the task at home and abroad. Isador Lubin, chairman of the Technical Advisory Committee of the Council’s Institute on Overseas Studies, declared that much will depend on other sources in addition to American Jewish voluntary agencies–the IRO, reparations and the restitution of heirless Jewish property by various governments. Another factor which will increase the 1948 relief budgets is the increase of world prices, which he estimated to have risen 30 percent.

RESETTLING 150,000 DISPLACED JEWS IN PALESTINE WILL COST $400,000,000

Economists Robert Nathan and Oscar J. Gass estimated the cost of resettling 150,000 displaced European Jews in Palestine during the next two years, as proposed by UNSCOP, would amount to $400,000,000. This sum, which would include many transitional and permanont neods, would be in addition to the operating budget of the Jewish Agency and would come from loans, grants, governmental and intergovernmental funds, demestic resources in Palestine and voluntary contributions.

Soaring relief costs in European countries where local and displaced Jews require aid was the greatest problem the JDC had to contend with, Moses Leavitt, executive vice-chairman said. “The termination of UNRRA activities raised the prices of food to such an extend that the JDC had to increase its food supplementation in countries where military governments were meeting basic relief needs.” He added that “unless voluntary agencies like the JDC make sufficient supplemontations there may be ##ots in those areas this winter.”

Joseph E. Beck, executive director of the United Service for New Americans, ## that his organization would spend $9,000,000 this year against $2,700,000 ## The JDC will disburse $64,000,000 in 1947 against cash receipts of $52,000### the United Palestine Appeal will spend nearly $74,000,000 against a cash ### $41,000,000, it was revealed.