Draft boards create gap in system
(Continued from page 1)
thankless job. So it is up to the state draft headquarters to recommend candidates to the governor.
In Kansas, the state Selective Service asks county commissioners for names. The county commissioners may request the local board with a vacancy to make recommendations.
The board members submit the names of citizens of the county to the commissioner, Mrs. Edith Cordell, Douglas County board clerk, said.
"The county commissioner makes a rigid check on those individuals' character," she explained. "Then those who pass are interviewed to see if they would accept the job."
"If a man is found, his name, qualifications and character references are submitted to the state director, who in turn sends the name to the governor," she continued.
Board members must by law be between 30 and 75 years old, residents of the areas they represent, "competent citizens of stature in their communities," and non-members of the armed forces, active or reserve.
"After another examination by the Governor, the candidate's name is sent to the national director and is approved by him and the President," she said.
Board members receive no pay. Clerks and their assistants receive a nationwide average salary of $4,600 per year.
Finding a person willing to serve is very difficult. "You can imagine he can be unpopular," Mrs. Cordell said.
"You don't make many friends," said a member of another Kansas board.
Because the clerks' fulltime job is to deal with the Selective Service, they usually know the system's details far better than
most board members, who meet only once each month.
At the meetings, the clerk prepares the files of all men due for classification or reclassification. The clerk investigates the cases beforehand and attaches the reasons for awarding or changing deferments to the files. If written appeals are made, they too are included in the files for presentation to the board.
The board sometimes divides the review load, which averages 200 to 250 cases in a typical three-hour meeting.
"With the exception of hardship deferments and a few others, the cases are mostly matters of black-and-white," Mrs. Cordell said.
"Evident" cases, such as reclassification of student deferments to I-A upon graduation and the dropping of men over 26 from the draft pool, are normally given a cursory check by the board.
50,000 Gls out by April
(Continued from page 1)
Democratic leader Mike Mansfield termed it "a further step in the right direction, but I still wish it could be accelerated."
Nixon was "cautiously optimistic" about the overall Vietnam situation. He reported with regret "no progress whatever" on peace negotiations.
Despite this lack of progress toward a negotiated peace, Nixon promised that this country would continue its diplomatic efforts in this direction.
White House officials said that as a matter of practical fact, they expected the actual withdrawal figure to run slightly ahead of the announced goal.
White House officials reported in connection with the President's speech that enemy infiltration from the North was now running five to 10 times higher than it was
a few months earlier, but had not reached a rate quite as large as it was a year ago. These officials said it would take possibly two more months to determine the significance of the current high rate of infiltration, but they saw nothing on the horizon to halt the
12 KANSAN Dec. 16 1969
Student offenses topic for Senate
rate of U.S, withdrawal.
In the first step towards what is to be a comprehensive guide to student offenses and penalties, the Student Rights, Privileges and Responsibilities Committee plans to submit a bill to the Student Senate at tonight's 7:30 meeting in the Kansas Union Jayhawk Room.
The bill pertains to non-academic conduct and the rights of students charged with offenses against property, people or the integrity of the University.
The President said this latest reduction in U.S. forces was decided "with the approval of the government of South Vietnam, and in consultation with other nations which have combat troops in Vietnam."
Officials said this country expected the realignment of leadership in Hanoi following the death of Ho Chi Minh to manifest itself by late winter or early spring. The officials said they have inside information on the internal operations of the North Vietnamese government but they thought that in the next two or three months it should become apparent whether the Hanoi leadership would be able to negotiate more flexibly.
In a minority of cases, the board must use its collective judgment. Hardship deferments are "hard decisions," Mrs. Cordell said, along with occupational and consecientious objector deferments.
Selective Service regulations provide certain guidelines for these, but the final determination is left to the board's discretion.
The Kansas Draft Advisory Commission aids boards with occupational deferment requests. If a potential defreer holds a job outside the board's jurisdiction, even in another state, the commission inspects it and sends a recommendation to the local board. The board's decision must be based on whether the job is in the national health, safety or interest.
When a registrant disagrees with his reclassification, he has 30 days to appeal it to the local board. He can file a written appeal or ask for a personal appearance before the board.
At the board's next meeting, it considers his written appeal or his request for personal appearance. It must grant a personal
Until 1968, national Selective Service headquarters supplied a Critical Skills list to local boards, but even before its demise it was used infrequently.
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appearance it the man desires it.
One month later, or two months after the original reclassification, the board hears the personal appeal and makes a decision. If the second decision is also unfavorable to the registrant, he may appeal within 30 days to the state appeals board. The registrant cannot appear before the state board, which only re-inspect his file.
Should the state board vote unanimously against the man's appeal, his case is ended and he must report for induction. But if there is a single dissenting vote, his case may be appealed to the national appeals board—three men selected by the President. The national appeals board's decision is final.
At all times the registrant's file is open only to his local board clerk, the registrant himself or someone to whom he has given a signed power of attorney, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the various appeals boards.
Tomorrow: Board members speak
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