COTTON STATISTICS MAY 10, 1949.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr. WILLIAMS, from the Committee on Post Office and Civil Service, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. R. 3444] The Committee on Post Office and Civil Service, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 3444) to provide for the collection and publication of cotton statistics, having considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. STATEMENT This legislation is intended to improve the administration of activities relating to the collection of cotton statistics. The bill provides for four changes in the act of April 2, 1924. The first of these changes deletes the word "calendar" in front of the word "month" in section 2 of the act of April 2, 1924. This amendment will make it possible for cotton mill operators to prepare their cotton consumption and mill activity reports on the basis of business months rather than calendar months. This change will remove the necessity of cotton mills keeping two sets of records in order to prepare census reports on cotton consumption and mill activity. The second change removes language which is repetitive and no longer necessary. The third change that this bill makes in the act of April 2, 1924, is to remove the mandatory provision of section 2, which requires that the Director of the Census mail copies of cotton reports to all cotton ginners, cotton manufacturers, and cotton warehousemen, and to all daily newspapers throughout the United States. This change would make it possible to limit the mailing of cotton reports to those who wish or need them and will prevent public criticism of the unnecessary distribution of governmental reports. The fourth change is required to make the act of August 2, 1924, consistent with the provision of the act of August 8, 1946 (Public Law 689, 79th Cong.), relating to the issuance of cotton estimates by the Department of Agriculture. This change provides for the issuance of cotton ginning reports on a governmental workday. Some of the datos prescribed by the act of April 2, 1924, for the issuance of cotton ginning reports occasionally fall on a Saturday or other nonworkday. From the evidence that has been submitted, the committee is convinced that this legislation meets with the approval of the cotton industry and that it would provide for a more satisfactory basis for the collection and publication of cotton statistics by the Bureau of the Census. The passage of this bill would not require additional appropriation for the collection and publication of cotton statistics by the Bureau of the Census. This legislation was requested by the Secretary of Commerce and his letter and accompanying statement follow: Hon. SAM RAYBURN, The Speaker, House of Representatives, THE SECRETARY OF COMMERCE, Washington, D. C. DEAR MR. SPEAKER: I recommend to the Congress for its consideration the attached draft of proposed bill to provide for the collection and publication of cotton statistics, and a copy of statement of purpose and need in support of the recommended legislation. It is the opinion of the Department that the enactment of the proposed legislation would improve the administration of activities relating to the collection of cotton statistics, an authorized function of this Department. I have been advised by the Bureau of the Budget that there is no objection to the presentation of this proposal to the Congress. If any further information is desired or testimony of any officials of the Bureau of the Census is deemed necessary, do not hesitate to call on us for such assistance. Sincerely yours, JOHN R. ALISON, Acting Secretary of Commerce. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE AND NEED FOR PROPOSED LEGISLATION TO PROVIDE FOR THE COLLECTION AND PUBLICATION OF COTTON STATISTICS It is believed that enactment of this proposed bill will improve the administration of activities relating to cotton statistics, by effecting the following changes: 1. Certain content changes and revisions are proposed which relate primarily to matters which are not properly legislative but rather administrative. For example, the act as it now reads requires that the statistics shall relate to each calendar month. In the revision the word "calendar" has been deleted, so that the Bureau can exercise its discretion to make the reports most suitable to the convenience of respondents in order to obtain better data. Many individual textile mill operators and their associations, including the Cotton Textile Institute, have told the Census Bureau that the reports covering a number of calendar weeks can be prepared by the mills more easily than reports covering other time periods, such as calendar months. Reports initiated during the war period covered such combination of weekly periods with satisfactory results and it has been suggested to the Bureau that the reports on cotton consumption stocks, and spindle activity also be adjusted to cover periods of 4 or 5 calendar weeks rather than the present calendar month, since such a change can actually save money for the respondents. The third sentence of section 2 is duplicate, so it is recommended that it be stricken in the interest of clarity. It is also recommended that the succeeding sentence directing the mailing of cotton statistics be eliminated. In view of the marked decline in the demand for these statistics by ginners, warehousemen, manufacturers, and daily newspapers, it is the Department's opinion that compliance with the present mandatory directives of the act is burdensome, that the distribution therein directed is unnecessary, and that statistics can be more effectively and economically distributed pursuant to administrative regulations. 2. The revision of section 6 is made advisable by the fact that Saturday is no longer a Government workday. Under existing law, if a report date falls on Saturday, there is no means of postponing this report until the next workday. Changes proposed in this law are consistent with the changes effected in the Department of Agriculture legislation, to which this is very closely related, by the act of August 8, 1946 (Public Law 689, 79th Cong.). If any further justification is desired, or if testimony of any officials of the Bureau of the Census is deemed necessary, do not hesitate to call on us for such assistance. We have been advised by the Bureau of the Budget that there is no objection to the presentation of this report to the committee. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW In compliance with paragraph 2a of Rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the bill, as introduced, are shown as follows (existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter is printed in italics, existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in roman): ACT OF APRIL 2, 1924 SEC. 2. That the statistics of the quantity of cotton ginned shall show the quantity ginned from each crop prior to August 1, August 16, September 1, September 16, October 1, October 18, November 1, November 14, December 1, December 13, January 16, and March 1: Provided, That the Director of the Census may limit the canvasses of August 1 and August 16[,] to those sections of the cotton-growing States in which cotton has been ginned. The quantity of cotton consumed in manufacturing establishments, the quantity of baled cotton on hand, the number of active consuming cotton spindles, the number of active spindle hours, and the statistics of cotton imported and exported shall relate to each [calendar] month, and shall be published as soon as possible after the close of the month. [Each report published by the Bureau of the Census of the quantity ginned shall carry with it the latest available statistics concerning the quantity of cotton consumed, stocks of baled cotton on hand, the number of cotton-consuming spindles, and the quantity of cotton imported and exported. [All of these publications containing statistics of cotton shall be mailed by the Director of the Census to all cotton ginners, cotton manufacturers, and cotton warehousemen, and to all daily newspapers throughout the United States.] The Director of the Census shall furnish to the Department of Agriculture, immediately prior to the publication of each report of that [bureau] Department regarding the cotton crop, the latest available statistics herein before mentioned, and the said Department of Agriculture shall publish the same in connection with each of its reports concerning cotton. SEC. 6. * * When such date of release falls on [Sunday or a legal holiday] Sunday, a legal holiday, or other day which pursuant to statute or Executive order is a nonworkday in the Department of Commerce at Washington generally, the reports shall be issued at [eleven] 11 o'clock antemeridian [on] of the next succeeding workday. AUTHORIZING ACQUISITION BY THE COUNTY OF MISSOULA, STATE OF MONTANA, OF CERTAIN LANDS FOR PUBLIC USE PURPOSES MAY 10, 1949.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr. PETERSON, from the Committee on Public Lands, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. R. 2197] The Committee on Public Lands, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 2197) to authorize acquisition by the county of Missoula, State of Montana, of certain lands for public use purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with an amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do pass. The amendment is as follows: Strike all after the enacting clause and substitute the following: That the Secretary of the Interior be, and hereby is, authorized, in his discretion to sell and convey at one-half the value thereof fixed by the Secretary, certain lands to the county of Missoula, State of Montana, described as follows: Southeast quarter northeast quarter, southeast quarter southeast quarter, section 30, township 13 north, range 19 west, Montana principal meridian; south half northeast quarter, southeast quarter, section 25, township 13 north, range 20 west. Montana principal meridian. SEC. 2. The patent issued under this act shall contain a reservation to the United States of all mineral deposits in the lands and of the right to prospect for, mine, and remove the same under applicable laws and under regulations to be established by the Secretary. EXPLANATION OF THE BILL H. R. 2197, as amended, authorizes the county of Missoula, Mont., to acquire certain lands, at one-half the value thereof, from the Federal Government. The lands will be used by the county to house road equipment, machine shops, etc. The Federal Government is making no use of the area, except for one 40-acre tract that has been withdrawn by |