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<br />O()\l35~ <br /> <br />38 <br /> <br />Mr. Donald R. Allen, Law Firm of Duncan, Allen and Mitchell <br /> <br />". . . I am personally distressed, however, at the extent of <br />misinformed discussion taking place over the proposed principles <br />since their publication. <br /> <br />"I have heard serious people, who I am sure know better, <br />oppose or endorse the principles because of what they think the <br />higher discount rate will do or not do to water resource projects. <br />This is utterly ridiculous, as anyone who has taken the time to <br />read the proposed principles will agree. A five, seven, or ten <br />percent interest rate by itself will not necessarily sink or float a <br />Corps project in this day and age. .. II <br /> <br />* * * * * <br /> <br />II . . The real issues here concern, one, the extent to <br />which the public is involved in identifying objectives which will be <br />studied in a project situation, the use to be made of the regional <br />development account, the environmental quality account, the <br />social account. <br /> <br />". . . the impact of the account analysis will have on <br />planners and their products; and, . . . finally, whether water <br />projects will become more responsive to water resource needs <br />by virtue of the principles. <br /> <br />"Before turning to my specific comments on the proposed <br />principles, I would like to raise one fundamental question which <br />occurred to me and for which I do not yet have an answer. To <br />what extent can we consolidate, improve, refine, and intensify <br />our planning process before we reach a point where the projects <br />we are planning and the objectives we ar,e pursuing are beyond <br />the scope of our existing legislative authority? II <br /> <br />***** <br /> <br />". . . I have some problem with the degree of sophistication <br />which the proposed principles and standards would require in <br />water project planning. . . . Federal officials do their best to <br />formulate plans to meet water resource needs. However, they <br />work with limited tools, and in a society which is relatively <br />unplanned the proposed principles call for an extremely sophis- <br />ticated measurement of project costs and benefits. II <br /> <br />***::,~* <br />