Evening star., 1943-04-02
Text of Presidents Bankheud Bill Veto
The text Of President Roosevelt

The text Of President Roosevelt's
veto Of the Bankhead bill follows:
To the Senate:
I am returning S. $50, generally
known as the Bankhead bill, un-
signed. It is bill to exclude in the
determination of parity price any
deduction for any subsidy payment,
parity payment, incentive payment
or other payments made with re-
spect to any agricultural commodity.
I am compelled to this action by
the deep conviction that this meas
ure Is tnflationary in character. It
breaks down the barriers we have
erected and which we must maintain
in order to avoid all the disasters of
imitation. It is wholly inconsistent
with our stabilization program, and,
therefore, dangerous alike to our
constructive farm policy and to our
whole war effort.
In my message Of September Z,
1912, I advised the Congress that
''o,r entire effort to hold the cost
Of living at its present level is now
being sapped and undermined by
further increases in farm prices and
In wages and by an ever continuing
pressure on prices resulting from
the rising purchasing power of our
people" I requested the Congress
ito pass legislation under which the
President could be specifically au-
thorized to stabilize the cost Of liv-
ing. including the price Of all farm
commodities"
Formula on Parity.
I further stated: The purpose
should be to hold farm prices at
parity or ut levels OF recent date,
whichever Is higher, and in
determining whether q commodity
has reached parity We should in
clude all the benefits received by the
farmer from his Government under
the AAA program, allocable to the
particular commodity. For it is un-
fair to give the farmer q parity price
and in addition give him far more
than parity"
To this view still hold.
My suggestion regarding the cal
culation of parity was not novel. It
had received the previous approval
Of the Congress. Under an amend
ment to the Agricultural Adjustment
Act Of 1898 public Law No. "a,
Seventy-seventh Congress- the
Commodity Credit Corp. was di-
rected to make loans on certain 1941
crops at the rate Of IS per cent of
the parity price for the commodity
as Of the beginning of the marketing
year. In approving that act on May
26. 1941, stated: II have taken up
the construction of the law with
certain legislative leaders chiefly re-
sponsible for it and have received
from them letters stating that for
the 1941 crop the broad intention is
that parity payments should, if
necessary, be so curtailed as to avoid
price above parity if added to the
loan and the soil conservation pay
ments. am. therefore, confident
that In the pending appropriation
bill this clear Interpretation and in
tent will be carried out" That in
depreciation and intent were ex-
pressly embodied in the then pend
ing Agricultural Appropriation Act.
eighty seventh Congressional Rec
ord, page 59O3O
Chambers Disagreed.
When the Congress had under
consideration the bill making ap-
preparations for the Department of
Agriculture for this fiscal year, the
Senate approved an amendment
providing that in computing parity
payments. deductions should be
made To- producers by the Govern
ment during this fiscal year under
the Soil Conservation and Domestic
Allotment Act. There was consid-
cradle disagreement between the
House and Senate with respect to
the amendment, but the Senate
amendment was finally incorporated
IN the appropriation bill public
Law H, Seventy-seventh Congress).
Therefore, under the law enacted hv