Vichy Commissariat for Jews, Though Not Functioning, Still Gets Government Funds

Though the Commissariat for Jewish Affairs which was established by the Vichy regime ceased all activity under the present regime, and did not operate for at least four of the twelve months of the year, its fifty-million franc budget for 1944, allocated by the Vichy Government, was reduced by only 3,300,000 francs in the revision of the national budget by the Provisional Government, a study of the revision ordinance disclosed today.

The revised budget contains no reduction in the allocation for safaris and wages which totalled in excess of 36,000,000 francs. The salary items of 180,000 and 150,000 francs respectively of the Commissioner General and the Secretary General remain unchanged although most of the high officials of the commissariat are either under arrest or awaiting indictment. Informed quarters have no knowledge of any decree or action removing high officials of the Commissariat from government service and payroll.

The only items deleted from the original Vichy budget by the new financial ordinance were 2,500,000 francs of the original 3,600,000 franc appropriation for propaganda; 600,000 of the 2,200,000 francs allowed for travel expenses, and 200 francs of the 600,000 earmarked for family subsidies for employees of the commissariat.

Several members of the Consultative Assembly have promised to intervene to bring about the dissolution of two organizations founded to prevent the return to Jews in France of property confiscated from them under the Vichy regime, Bernard Lecache, president of the International League Against Racism and Anti-Semitism, announced today.

M. Lecache said that they had interviewed leaders of several groups in the Consultative Assembly and had described to them the work and purposes of these organizations and the urgency of a definite solution of the problems created by the Vichy racial policy.