Evening star., 1955-02-11
Trade Bill Extension
Voted Out by House
Committee, 70 10 5
By Robert K. Walsh


President Eisenhower's re-
quest for a three-year exten-
sion and liberaliZing of the
reciprocal trade agreements pro-
gram will come up for two days
of House debate next week with
strong support by the Demo-
cratic controlled Ways and
Means Committee.
The committee reported out
the bill late yesterday, 20 to 5.
Representative Forand, Rhode
Island Democrat, opposed it.
The four Republican dissenters
included Representative Reed of
New York, who served notice
he will try to have the House
recommit the measure when it
reaches the final voting stage
next Friday. Republican Rep
resentatives Simpson of Penn
sylvania, Jenkins of Ohio and
Mason of Illinois also voted
against the bill.
Committee Chairman Cooper,
Democrat, of Tennessee de-
scribed the bilI-House Resolu-
ton No. las fully in accord
with the Presidents message"
requesting the authority as a
means of improving world trade.
He said he will seek a closed
rule banning floor introduction
of amendments by anyone except
the committee. This course
would prevent a flood Of indi-
vidual amendments aiming at
greater tariff protection for vari-
Gus articles produced in this
country, committee members
explained.
Three-week Hearing.
The bill was approved by the
committee as a climax to three
weeks of public hearings at
which more than 200 witnesses
testified for Of against its pro-
visions. introduced by Mr..
Cooper at the start of the new
Congress the bill scored notable
gain not only by being reported
out so early in the session, but
also by emerging with only five
changes by the committee.
Combinations of Democrats
and Republicans on the 25-mem-
ber committee. however. beat
down large number of what
Mr.. Cooper called various and
sundry" amendment proposals.
Following the committees ira
ditional practice, Mr.. Cooper re-
fused to list the proposals that |
lost or the unsuccessful sponsors.
Such suggestions covered a
wide range and, in general, would
have increased tariff or quota |
protection for American indus
tries against oil, chemicals. elec-
trical equipment, machine tools I,
and many other items from
abroad. Still other defeated
proposals would have restricted |
the Presidents authority in vari-
Gus ways.
The present Reciprocal Trade |
Agreements Act would expire i
June IL. Congress in 1854 ex-
tended the law for only one year.
AS reported out by the commit
tee. the Cooper bill would con-
tinue the law for three more
years. It also would broaden
in some respects the Presidents
power to negotiate lower tariffs
on goods imported from foreign
countries in return for trade
benefits which those countries
would allow on goods sent from
the United States.
Provisions of Bill.
AS requested by Mr.. Eisen-
hover, the committee-approved
bill would permit the President
to negotiate reciprocal agree
mentS that could cut tariffs S
per cent below existing levels
each year for three years, cut
any rates currently above so per
cent of an items value down to
that level, or cut tariffs to SO |
per cent of the January l, 1854,
rate on imports not now coming
into this country in appreciable |
amounts.
One of the final actions of the
committee yesterday before vot-
ing on the bill as a whole was to |
strike out provision that would |
have given the President uni
lateral power to cut tariffs on |
goods not imported in appreci-
able quantities.
Mr.. Cooper explained that |
this provision was among recon-
mendations of a commission |
headed by Clarence Randall but
1t was deemed separate and |
apart from the purposes of this
bill" He added that there was
no particularly strong feeling
that it should be included.
Benson Protest Needed.
Another change written into
the bill by the committee resulted
largely from a protest by Secre-
tary of Agriculture Benson. The
revision made clear that no
reciprocal trade agreement could
interfere with existing laws re-
quiring quotas on farm COM
modities when such imports
threaten domestic farm price
support programs. Secretary
Benson felt that the original
wording of the section would
have tended to weaken protec-
ton against imports of some
foreign farm products.
Still another amendment
voted by the committee was de-
signed to speed up as well as
strengthen the Presidents au-
thority to suspend the applica-
ton of tariff reductions on arti-
cles manufactured or produced
in countries found to discrimi-
nate against American COM
merce.