Arizona republican., 1919-01-01
REGULATION PROPOSED
 IF PACKING INDUSTRY
 TtRESTORE COMPETITION

Representative Thetus w. Sims. chairman of the house committee on interstate and foreign commerce on December introduced a bill dealing with the meat packing industry.
 The bill is intended to be of per manent character as distinguished from war or emergency measure and includes in permanent form many of the powers now being exercised by temporary or permanent government agencies. The purpose of the bill is to insure free competitive markets and to open a free channel of commerce for meat animals and the products derived from them, and also keep such business free from complications with commerce in other sorts of commodities. The president is authorized to effectuate this through such agencies as he may designate and to make use of the pow CTS granted in the bill, from time to time in whole or in part as he may find necessary.
 The proposed legislation does not contemplate the taking over of any Of the packin- house plants. It offers an alternative at the discretion of the president, either to actually acquire and operate certain other facilities or to acquire them for the United States and license their operation; or without acquiring them to place the meat pack ing industry under system of direct federal license.
 The bill carries the authority to ac- quire and operate any or all rolling stock especially equipped for the trans portation of livestock and it's products, as well as of stock yards. cold storage and freezing plants and the necessary appurtenances thereto.
 Alternatively, the power is given to acquire and license the operation of such property. and the third alternative is to license the use of such facilities without acquiring them. and final al ternative looks to the licensing of all persons. partnerships and corporations engaged in meat packing in interstate i commerce with respect to the operation of that business and with respect to 1 any interest direct or indirect. which i the licensee may have in any other sorr i of interstate commerce. In speaking of 1 the bill MT. Sims said.
 "The five large packers substantially ! control the marketing of live stock and i of the products derived from livestock. Tn the interest of producer and con- 1 sumer, it seems that the goVernme mt must effectively regulate these nackers ! so far as they are or tend to become 6 monopoly; must prevent the extension ] of monopolistic tendency and must re- store a full measure of free compe- i tition.
 l "The problem is the difficult one of restoring competition in an industry which has once been brought under monopoistic control.
 Tt appears that certain large pack
 tNrr
 functions which properly belong to the l railroads a~ common carriers by furD- ishing refrigerator cars and other es- pecially equipped cars. Their competi- tors, if they are unable to secure tht necessary type of car from the railroad must either buy such cars for himselt
 or hire them from competitors owning such cars"
 This proposed legislation has a single purpose in view. It is to establish and maintain a free and competitive chan mel of trade for livestock and meal products.
 In order that nothing that is not ab- ! solutely necessary to bring about this condition need be done, the bill is con- fined to grant of discretionary powers
 any or all of which may be invoked to- gether or separately and for sucf length of time as may be needed. Nat urally nothing more will be done thar is required to bring about the free market
 The powers granted range all tho way from a simple license system o1
 ur, until, if necessary, actual ownership by the government of certain facilities is made possible. It should be noticed
 however, that the packing plants themselves. are not included in the bill The bill only runs to the machinery an' facilities for marketing, transporting
 and storing-not to the packing housf
 operations.
 Tn word the congress would, by tht
 enactment of this bill, say to the presi- dent that there must be free and oper
 marketing of livestock and meats ant
 equal access to transportation faclll- ties, and that he is expected to bring this about and is authorized to exercise
 so much or so little of the powers granted, as will bring this about. If government ownership of any ol these facilities shall come. it will onlS be because of resistance to the less ex- treme remedies provided and which
 should be entirely adequate.
 If, as the bio acking concerns insist
 there is now no restraint of trade. they
 can make no real objection to a compli-
 ance with the license features of the bill, and if these license features en- courage competitors who now hesitate to enter the industry, the whole pur-
 nose of the bill will be accomplished simply and quickly.
 Under this bill it would be absolutel! up to the industry itself to say, by ac-
 ceptance or resistance, how far govern
 mental power shall be exercised.
 Tt seems that the control of the ter ninal facilities. that is the sock yard'
 and livestock markets, by the largt
 packers. is a restriction on competition in buying and naturally affects price!
 for that reason. This is equally true O the refrigerated storage for meats-tht