Page 2-Wednesday, July 19, 1978-The Michigan Daily
Panel backs ERA extension

WASHINGTON (AP) - -The House
Judiciary Committee recommended
yesterday that Congress extend the
deadline for ratifying the Equal Rights
Amendment (ERA) but not allow states
that have already ratified to withdraw
their approval.
The final vote was 19 to 15, one more
than proponents of the three year, three
month and eight day compromise ex-
tension of time had expected.
The extension now goes to the House
floor, where backers said they are con-
fident of victory. Approval in the Senate
is less assured.
THE VOTE WAS greeted by wild ap-
plause and cheering in the committee
room, packed mostly with ERA suppor-
ters.
Among those standing and ap-
plauding was Midge Costanza, an aide
to President Carter.
Backers of the extension originally
wanted another seven years added to

the seven set aside by Congress in 1972
for states to ratify the anti-sex
discrimination constitutional amen-
dment.
THEY SCALED this down because
they did not have enough votes to get it
approved. The amendment to reduce
the extension was adopted by a vote of
17-16. An amendment to allow states to
rescind their approval was defeated 21
to 13.
Unless extended, the deadline for
ratification is next March 22, with at
least three states still needed. The ex-
tension would push the date back to
June 30, 1982.
A supporter of the extension, Rep.
John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) told the
committee that if the ERA is not
ratified "it will be the fault and the
responsibility of Congress."
BUT AN OPPONENT, Rep. Walter
Flowers (D-Ala.) said he would "be
concerned for the future if we create

the precedent of extending for the first
time the period of time for ratification
of an amendment to the Constitution."
The ERA , would probbibit
discrimination on the basis of sex.
Thirty-five states have ratified the
proposal, three less than the number
required. However, legislatures in four
states-Nebraska, Idaho, Kentucky
and Tennessee-subsequently rescin-
ded their approval.
THE JUSTICE Department has said
it will be up to Congress to determine
whether this is legal, and the commit-
tee was expected to consider that mat-
ter later.
The ERA supporters have abandoned
their original proposal to allow an ad-
ditional seven years for state
legislatures to act on the proposal,

which was approved by Congress in
1972. They predicted the panel would
vote 18-16 to recommend the shorter ex-
tension.
A tally by The Associated Press
showed 17 votes for the compromise ex-
tension, with Reps. Walter Flowers (D-
Ala.), James Mann d-S.C.) and Lamar
Gudger (D-N.C.) still publicly uncom-
mitted.
ONE OF THE 17 was Rep. Harold
Sawyer of Michigan, a freshman
Republican who said he was against the
extension but would vote for the com-
promise if his vote would be decisive in
giving the full House a chance to con-
sider the matter.
Rep. Don Edwards (D-Calif.), the
leader of the pro-extension forces, said
Sawyer's vote was crucial.
ERA backers also said they had
enough votes to defeat an expected ef-
fort by Rep. Thomas Railsback (R-Ill.)
to allow state legislatures that have ap-
proved ERA to withdraw their approval
during the period of the extension.
REP. HENRY HYDE (R-Ill.), sup-
porting the Railsback amendment, said
proponents of a simple extension "want
another seven innings with only their
side getting a turn at bat."
Among ERA supporters in the
audience were former Rep. Bells Ab-
zug (D-N.Y. ), wearing one of her
familiar broad-rimmed hats; Rep.
Millicent Fenwick (R-N.J.), puffing oc-
casionally on a pipe.
Outside, the line of people hoping to
get in filled much of two corridors.

CAR TER DEPENDS ON CONGRESS:

Oil bill key to Bonn

An AP News Analysis
WASHINGTON - President Carter's
promise at the Bonn summit meeting to
raise U.S. Oil prices to the world level
by 1981 relies mainly on the crude oil
tax proposal that Congress has avoided
for the past 14 months, an ad-
Ministration spokesman said yester-
day.
But Energy Department spokesman
James Bishop, Jr. said Carter still
holds in reserve the power to
discourage U.S. oil imports by im-
posing an import fee, as the ad-
ministration has frequently threatened.
And, under present law, crude oil
price controls become discretionary as
of May 1979, at which point Carter could
let U.S. oil prices jump to the world
level.
CARTER PREFERS to continue
limiting the producers' crude oil price
and raise the cost to refiners and con-
sumers through a tax, instead, to avoid
handing producers what he considers a
huge windfall profit.
When Carter's pledge means to the
consumer is simply what his policy has
meant since it was proposed in April
1977: an increase in the average price
of gasoline and other petroleum
products of around 6.4 cents per gallon
over the next couple of years.
Carter told reporters, after two days
of meeting with the heads of six other
industrial nations, that "each one of us
was cautious not to promise things he
could not subsequently deliver."
BUT THE fact remains that
Congress, not Carter, has the power to
deliver or withhold the promised in-
crease of U.S. domestic crude oil prices
by passing the proposed tax, or by
modifying or even extending the

present price control law.
So far, Congress has been so reluc
tant to consider the crude oil tax that it
split this proposal out of the com
prehensive energy bill to give the
remaining four segments a better
chance of passage.
One of those segments would
gradually deregulate the price of newly
discovered natural gas, but this alone
might tend to increase the demand for
oil as a substitute fuel.
THE ENERGY Department has
asked Congress to deregulate gasoline
prices, arguing it would not increase
prices at the servicestation pump.
Deputy Secretary John OLeary
testified Monday to a House in
vestigations subcommittee that "the
evidence is overwhelming that con
tinued controls on motor gasoline are
both unnecessary and unwise."
O'Leary said competitive forces
already limit gasoline prices, which
have been lower than the ceiling prices
permitted by government regulations.
IN FACT, controls on other major
petroleum products already have'been
removed without creating any sudden
price surges, supporting O'Leary's
view.
But this has been possible only
because the cost of crude oil - the basic
raw material from which gasoline, fuel
oil and the other products are made -
has been held down by Congress.
Congress' price-controlling power
covers only the United States and was
originally wielded as an anti-inflation
measure.
THE AUTHORITY was put to a dif-
ferent purpose when, in 1973 and 1974,
the Organization of Petroleum Expor-

it
t-
e
r
d
y
e
r

promise
ting Countries suddenly quadrupled
world oil prices while its Arab mem-
bers temporarily cut off oil shipments
to the United States and other friends of
Israel.
Faced with this sudden shortage and
steep price hike, Congress continued
price controls on U.S.-produced crude
oil and on U.S. marketing of all refined
products after it allowed other anti-in-
See CARTER, Page 50

s Carter rebuffs Soviets;
e
cancels computer deal
- WASHINGTON (AP) - President negotiated by Dresser Industries of
Carter yesterday canceled a Dallas, Texas, to sell a modern plant to
- multimillion-dollar sale of the Russians for producing bits for oil
sophisticated computers to the well drills.
Russians in apparent retaliation for the Marcuss indicated that both
trials of Soviet dissidents, a Commerce presidential actions were in response to
Department official said, the trials of Soviet dissidents Anatoly
Acting less than 24 hours after his Shcharansky and Alexander Ginzburg,
return from the economic summit who last week were given harsh senten-
meeting in Bonn, the President repor- ces by Soviet courts on charges of bar-
tedly ordered Commerce Secretary ming the Soviet state.
Juanita Kreps to reject an application Senate Democratic Leader Robert
yfor sale of a Sperry-Univac computer Byrd of West Virginia, informed of Car-
system to the official Soviet news agen- ter's action, said: "The President has
cy Tass. taken an appropriate step. He has
asStanley Marcuss, senior deputy backed up United States criticism of
cassistant secretary of commerce, who Soviet oppression with concrete ac-
confirmed reports of Carter's action, tion."
said the President also ordered that The technology portion of the Dresser
government licenses be required in the deal already has been approved by the
r upture for sale of all oil production Commerce Department, and Marcuss
equipment to the Soviet Union. said it would not be revoked. Another
rThe White House and the State key portion of the deal, the proposed
epartment refused to comment on the sale of an electron-beam welder for the
ieporta of the President'saction. Of- drilling bit plant, is still under review,
ficials at Sperry-Univac were Marcuss said.
unavailablefordcomment. But in the future, he said, all oil
Carter's order on oil production production equipment will require a
equipment apparently will have no Commerce Department license for sale
immediate effect on a 144 million deal to the Soviet Union and other countries.
THE MICHIGAN DAILY This would include such items as sub-
vol. Lxxxviii, No. 4-S mersible drilling pumps that did not
Wednesday.July 19,1978 previously require U.S. government
is edited and managed by students at the University approval.
o: Michigan. News phone 74-0562. Se:ond class Marcuss said that technically, the oil
postage is paid at Ann Arbor, Michgan orn routineqimntws0u9 h
Published daily Tuesday through Saturday morning production equipment was put n the
during the University year at 420 Maynard street, government's "commodity control
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109. subscription rates: $12 list," which means the goods "raise
september through April (2 semesters); $13 by mail national security concern."
outside Ann Arbor. TeDesrpcae eas f-t
Summer session published through saturday mor- The Dresser package, because ofits
sing. Sobs ri ton1at :6:50 inAnn Arbor;,15o-by . , soph)istication, already required a
mail outsideAnn bor.government license before Carter's ac-
' d .

Ann Arbor Civic Theare
w *201 S. Mulbolland off W. Washington
announces
Open Auditions
7:30 pm Sunday, July 16, Monday, July 17, Wednesday, July 19 for
"You Can't Take It With You"
by GEORGE S. KAUFMAN and MOSS HART
Roles available all ages male and female (except children)
ALL WELCOME EVERY NIGHT
- Production Dot"-, gpltpber6,7, 8 and