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Timestamp: 2019-04-20 12:39:51+00:00

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Justia › US Law › US Case Law › US Supreme Court › Volume 347 › Allen v. Grand Central Aircraft Co.
Allen v. Grand Central Aircraft Co.
A complaint filed November 4;1952, by the Wage Stabilization Board with the National Enforcement Commission alleged in substance that, between January 26,1951, and January 1, 1952, appellee had paid wage increases in violation of an order freezing wages at the levels of January 25, under the Defense Production Act of 1950, the substantive provisions of which expired April 30, 1953. On January 14, 1953, the National Enforcement Commission appointed an Enforcement Commissioner to hear the evidence and recommend to the Commission a determination of the issues in the proceeding. The Commissioner set the case for hearing on February 24, 1953, but, in a suit filed by appellee, the District Court enjoined further action.
Held: the pending administrative proceeding is valid, and the judgment of the District Court enjoining that proceeding is reversed. Pp. 347 U. S. 536-555.
1. Once the right of the Government to hold these administrative hearings is established, appellee is not entitled to enjoin them merely because they might jeopardize its bank credit or otherwise be inconvenient or embarrassing. Pp. 347 U. S. 539-540.
(a) The Defense Production Act of 1950 is to be read with reference to the Stabilization Act of 1942, which was a model for the 1950 Act. P. 347 U. S. 541.
(b) The history of administrative enforcement under the 1942 Act supports the conclusion that the President had authority under the 1950 Act to apply administrative action to the enforcement of wage stabilization. Pp. 347 U. S. 541-550.
(c) Section 706 of the 1950 Act did not vest enforcement of the Act exclusively in the District Courts and leave to the President only authority to promulgate general regulations. Pp. 347 U. S. 550-552.
in the 1942 Act. The "general provisions" of § 706 do not restrict the specific provisions of § 405(b) now reenacted. Pp. 347 U. S. 550-552.
(e) It would be premature for this Court to rule upon other questions submitted by appellee concerning the interpretation and constitutionality of the statute until after the required administrative procedures have been exhausted. P. 347 U. S. 553.
3. Such administrative enforcement may be applied even after the restrictions placed on wages under Title IV of the Act have expired, provided the enforcement is limited to violations antedating such expiration. Pp. 347 U. S. 554-555.
(a) There is no express or implied provision in the 1950 Act contrary to the policy of 1 U.S.C. (1952 ed.) § 109, the general savings statute. Pp. 347 U. S. 553-554.
(b) The precise object of the general savings statute is to prevent the expiration of a temporary statute from cutting off appropriate measures to enforce the expired statute in relation to violations of it, or of regulations issued under it, occurring before its expiration. Pp. 347 U. S. 554-555.
(c) The authority of the President to delegate his powers with respect to wage stabilization enforcement to the Director of the Office of Defense Mobilization derives from §§ 703 and 705, and, under § 717(a), such authority remains effective until June 30, 1955. P. 347 U. S. 555.
to apply administrative action to the enforcement of its wage stabilization provisions. For the reasons hereafter stated, we decide that it did.
There is here also the question whether such administrative enforcement may be applied even after the restrictions placed on wages under Title IV of the Act [Footnote 2] have expired, provided the enforcement is limited to violations antedating such expiration. Our answer is in the affirmative.
order was then appealed to this Court under 28 U.S.C. (1952 ed.) § 1253. Stay of the injunction was denied, two Justices dissenting and one not participating. Norback v. Grand Central Aircraft Co., 345 U.S. 988. Probable jurisdiction of the appeal was noted. 346 U.S. 920.
A somewhat comparable case was decided by a three-judge United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas in favor of an employer June 14, 1953, in Jonco Aircraft Corp. v. Franklin, 114 F.Supp. 392, with Chief Circuit Judge Hutcheson dissenting. That judgment was reversed by this Court, per curiam, for failure of appellee to exhaust its administrative remedy. 346 U.S. 868.
We consider first the claim to injunctive relief which appellee made on the ground that the conduct of the proposed administrative hearings would cause it irreparable damage by weakening its bank credit and depriving it of essential working capital. On that basis, interlocutory relief was granted pending the court's determination of the ultimate issue of the validity of the administrative procedure. That injunction has been made permanent, but the Government, on behalf of appellants, contends that appellee is acting prematurely in seeking such relief before carrying the prescribed administrative procedure at least to the point where it faces some immediate compulsion and greater probability of damage than it has established.
alleged payment of wages in excess of wage ceilings to an extent of about $750,000. If such a violation of the ceilings is found by the National Enforcement Commission, it may then, under § 405(b) of the Defense Production Act of 1950 and the President's delegated authority, certify to governmental agencies, including the Bureau of Internal Revenue for income tax purposes, the disallowance of all or part of appellee's illegal wage payments. Appellee argues that such proceedings carry the possibility of the disallowance as a business expense, for income tax purposes, of $750,000, more or less, up to the total wages paid, exceeding $5,500,000. Appellee contends also that the mere threat of such action would jeopardize the bank credit upon which it depends for essential working capital. There is grave doubt of the right of appellee thus to test the validity of administrative procedure before exhausting it or bringing the issues closer to a focus than it has done. However, it is clear that, once the right of the Government to hold administrative hearings is established, a litigant cannot enjoin them merely because they might jeopardize his bank credit or otherwise be inconvenient or embarrassing. Aircraft & Diesel Equipment Corp. v. Hirsch, 331 U. S. 752, 331 U. S. 777-779. "[T]he expense and annoyance of litigation is part of the social burden of living under government.'" Petroleum Exploration, Inc. v. Public Service Commission of Kentucky, 304 U. S. 209, 304 U. S. 222. See also Myers v. Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corp., 303 U. S. 41, 303 U. S. 47; Chicago & Southern Air Lines v. Waterman S.S. Corp., 333 U. S. 103, 333 U. S. 112-113; Franklin v. Jonco Aircraft Corp., per curiam, 346 U.S. 868.
question whether the administrative enforcement of the 1950 wage stabilization program has been validly authorized.
The procedure in question is prescribed by General Procedural Regulation 1, Revised, issued by the Economic Stabilization Administrator, August 21, 1952, 17 Fed.Reg. 7737. The hearings are to be conducted regionally by an Enforcement Commissioner, and provision is made for appeal to the National Enforcement Commission. That Commission (NEC) is authorized to issue a certificate of disallowance prescribing the amount of wages to be disregarded by the executive departments and other governmental agencies in determining the costs and expenses of appellee for the purposes of any other law or regulation. ESA Gen. Order No. 18, July 28, 1952, 17 Fed.Reg. 6925. Standards of action are prescribed by the Economic Stabilization Administrator in his General Order No. 15, April 3, 1952, 17 Fed.Reg. 2994. Appellee does not complain of noncompliance with these regulations. It complains, rather, that they are not authorized by statute, or that, if purporting to be so authorized, the statute violates the Federal Constitution.
The Government finds authority for the creation of this administrative machinery in § 405(b) of the Defense Production Act of 1950, when read in connection with the entire Act. That section is derived from § 5(a) of the Stabilization Act of 1942, 56 Stat. 767, 50 U.S.C. Appendix, (1946 ed.) § 965(a). To read the Defense Production Act of 1950 without reference to this model is to read it out of the context in which Congress enacted it.
"No employer shall pay, and no employee shall receive, wages or salaries in contravention of the regulations promulgated by the President under this Act. The President shall also prescribe the extent to which any wage or salary payment made in contravention of such regulations shall be disregarded by the executive departments and other governmental agencies in determining the costs or expenses of any employer for the purposes of any other law or regulation."
56 Stat. 767, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed.) § 965(a).
attendant thereon which threaten our military effort and our domestic economic structure, and for the more effective prosecution of the war."
That order established an Office of Economic Stabilization, headed by an Economic Stabilization Director. In Title II, it established a national "Wage and Salary Stabilization Policy." This placed wage rates under the control of the National War Labor Board, and froze them generally at the levels prevailing September 15, 1942. In Title III, it authorized the National War Labor Board to issue rules and regulations "for the speedy determination of the propriety of any wage increases or decreases in accordance with this Order." It thus established administrative processes for making specific determinations of wages paid in contravention of the Act. The same processes also enabled the Government, through other agencies, to disregard such illegal payments when computing taxes, compensation under cost-plus contracts, and other governmental transactions.
They support the natural presumption that Congress, in its subsequent actions, accepted them as legitimate interpretations of the Stabilization Act. Shapiro v. United States, 335 U. S. 1, 335 U. S. 16; Helvering v. Winmill, 305 U. S. 79, 305 U. S. 82-83; Norwegian Nitrogen Products Co. v. United States, 288 U. S. 294, 288 U. S. 310-315; Hecht v. Malley, 265 U. S. 144, 265 U. S. 153.
Under the Act of 1942, the President thus determined, through his administrative agencies, many specific violations of the prescribed wage ceilings. It was the practice of those administrative agencies to certify to other departments and agencies specific disallowances of the wages paid in violation of such ceilings. See Troy Laundry Co. v. Wirtz, 155 F.2d 53; N. A. Woodworth Co. v. Kavanagh, 102 F.Supp. 9, aff'd, 202 F.2d 154.
"No employer shall pay, and no employee shall receive, any wage, salary, or other compensation in contravention of any regulation or order promulgated by the President under this title. The President shall also prescribe the extent to which any wage, salary, or compensation payment made in contravention of any such regulation or order shall be disregarded by the executive departments and other governmental agencies in determining the costs or expenses of any employer for the purposes of any other law or regulation."
64 Stat. 807, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed., Supp. V) § 2105(b).
It follows, almost word for word, the language of § 5(a) of the earlier Act, supra at p. 347 U. S. 542. While it substitutes the phrase "any wage, salary, or other compensation" in place of "wages or salaries," and the phrase "any regulation or order" in place of "the regulations," the substance of the two sections is inescapably the same.
follow the pattern of the earlier ones. September 9, 1950, he issued Executive Order No. 10161, 15 Fed.Reg. 6105, 6106, Part IV of which created a new agency known as the Economic Stabilization Agency, headed by an Economic Stabilization Administrator. To him the President delegated responsibility for wage stabilization. He established, within such agency, a Wage Stabilization Board with functions to be determined by the Administrator. January 24, 1951, Eric Johnston, then the Administrator, delegated to that Board his functions of wage stabilization. ESA Gen. Order No. 3, 16 Fed.Reg. 739. January 26, he froze wages generally at the levels prevailing January 25. Gen.Wage Stabilization Regulation No. 1, 16 Fed.Reg. 816.
"conclusive for the purpose therein stated. The executive departments and other agencies of the government which receive certifications of such determinations shall disregard and disallow the amount thus certified."
WSB Enforcement Resolution No. 1, § 1(c), 16 Fed.Reg. 6028, 6029. June 28, this procedure was further described in a resolution of the War Stabilization Board. 16 Fed.Reg. 7284.
"This subsection (405(b)) adopts the language of the Stabilization Act of October 2, 1942, respecting the penalties to be applied for violations of the wage and salary stabilization program. The committee finds that the disallowance of illegal wage payments as a cost of doing business, for purposes of computing taxes, Government contract payments, and for purposes of establishing price ceilings, was an effective deterrent."
S.Rep. No. 2250, 81st Cong., 2d Sess. 39.
unless the temporary statute shall so expressly provide, and such statute shall be treated as still remaining in force for the purpose of sustaining any proper action or prosecution for the enforcement of such penalty, forfeiture, or liability."
(Emphasis supplied.) 1 U.S.C. (1952 ed.) § 109.
it, occurring before its expiration. United States v. Allied Oil Corp., 341 U. S. 1, 341 U. S. 5; Fleming v. Mohawk Wrecking & Lumber Co., 331 U. S. 111.
A similar situation followed the expiration, in 1946, of the substantive provisions of the Stabilization Act of 1942, [Footnote 24] and we have seen that the enforcement proceedings continued under it until 1949. See note 11 supra. On that occasion, the authority to make disallowances was transferred to the Department of the Treasury. Executive Order No. 9809, ¦ 10(b), 11 Fed.Reg. 14281, 14283. In the present instance, wage stabilization enforcement has been transferred to the Director of the Office of Defense Mobilization. Exec. Order No. 10494, October 14, 1953, 18 Fed.Reg. 6585. The authority of the President to make such a delegation of his powers appears in §§ 703 and 705, and such authority remains effective until June 30, 1955, § 717(a), note 23 supra.
64 Stat. 798, as amended, 65 Stat. 131, 66 Stat. 296, 67 Stat. 129, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed., Supp. V) § 2061 et seq.
"Title IV -- Price and Wage Stabilization," containing §§ 401-412, 64 Stat. 803-812, 66 Stat. 304, and see 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed., Supp. V) §§ 2101-2110.
Created, within the Economic Stabilization Agency, by § 403(b) of the Defense Production Act, June 30, 1952, 66 Stat. 300-301. See also Exec. Order No. 10377, 17 Fed.Reg. 6891; ESA Gen. Order No. 16, 17 Fed.Reg. 6925.
The Government states that Neal, who is one of the appellants, is now on the staff of the Office of Defense Mobilization, and is authorized and ready to conduct the hearing if the injunction is lifted.
56 Stat. 765, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed.) § 961 et seq. The Stabilization Act itself was an amendment to the Emergency Price Control Act of 1942, approved January 30, 1942, 56 Stat. 23, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed.) § 901 et seq. For its title, see 58 Stat. 643. It was temporary legislation. Its termination date was June 30, 1944, or "such earlier date as the Congress by concurrent resolution, or the President by proclamation, may prescribe." 56 Stat. 767. That date was postponed, one year at a time, to June 30, 1947. 58 Stat. 643, 59 Stat. 306, 60 Stat. 664, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed.) § 966.
"SEC. 2. The President may, from time to time, promulgate such regulations as may be necessary and proper to carry out any of the provisions of this Act, and may exercise any power or authority conferred upon him by this Act through such department, agency, or officer as he shall direct. . . ."
56 Stat. 765, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed.) § 962.
Office of Economic Stabilization -- Pt. 4001 -- Wages and Salaries, 7 Fed.Reg. 8748 et seq. Subsequent amendments did not change the provisions for making tax disallowances based upon specific administrative determinations.
"§ 4001.2 Authority of National War Labor Board. The Board shall . . . have authority to determine whether any"
"(a) Wage payments . . ."
"are made in contravention of the Act, or any rulings, orders or regulations promulgated thereunder. Any such determination by the Board, made under rulings and orders issued by it, that a payment is in contravention of the Act, or any rulings, orders, or regulations promulgated thereunder, shall be conclusive upon all Executive Departments and agencies of the Government in determining the costs or expenses of any employer for the purpose of any law or regulation, either heretofore or hereafter enacted or promulgated, including the Emergency Price Control Act of 1942 or any maximum price regulation thereof, or for the purpose of calculating deductions under the revenue laws of the United States, or for the purpose of determining costs or expenses under any contract made by or on behalf of the United States. Any determination of the Board made pursuant to the authority conferred on it shall be final, and shall not be subject to review by The Tax Court of the United States or by any court in any civil proceedings."
From October 3, 1942, to December 29, 1945, 68,233 cases, resulting in disallowances of $19,018,820.19, were handled by the National War Labor Board. 1 Termination Report, National War Labor Board, 428-441. From January 1, 1946, to January 30, 1947, 30,071 cases, resulting in disallowances of $11,822,609, were handled by the National Wage Stabilization Board. National Wage Stabilization Board (1946-1947) 223-235. While many cases resulted in findings of no violation or were closed without penalty or disallowance, many others were terminated with disallowances, either by consent or after hearings. There were 282 appeal cases processed by the National Boards, and, although the controls were terminated in November, 1946, by Executive Order No. 9801, 11 Fed.Reg. 13435, the enforcement activities, based on earlier violations, were carried on by the Department of the Treasury until 1949. See Ann.Reps. of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue 62-63 (1947); 33-34 (1948); 26-27 (1949).
Not only was the life of the Act extended three times (see note 7 supra), but its administration was reviewed during annual appropriation hearings. See Hearings before the House Subcommittee on Appropriations on National War Agencies Appropriation Bills for 1944, Pt. 2, 78th Cong., 1st Sess. 667-668; for 1945, Pt. 1, 78th Cong., 2d Sess. 240-241, 303-304; for 1946, 79th Cong., 1st Sess. 12-13.
"SEC. 403. At such time as the President determines that it is necessary to impose price and wage controls generally over a substantial portion of the national economy, he shall administer such controls . . . through a new independent agency created for such purpose:. . . . Such agency may utilize the services, information, and facilities of other agencies and departments of the Government, but such agency shall not delegate enforcement of any of the controls to be administered by it under this section to any other agency or department."
"SEC. 703. (a) Except as otherwise specifically provided, the President may delegate any power or authority conferred upon him by this Act to any officer or agency of the Government, including any new agency or agencies (and the President is hereby authorized to create such new agencies, other than corporate agencies, as he deems necessary), and he may authorize such redelegations by that officer or agency as the President may deem appropriate. . . ."
64 Stat. 816, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed., Supp. V) § 2153(a).
"SEC. 704. The President may make such rules, regulations, and orders as he deems necessary or appropriate to carry out the provisions of this Act. Any regulation or order under this Act may be established in such form and manner, may contain such classifications and differentiations, and may provide for such adjustments and reasonable exceptions as in the judgment of the President are necessary or proper to effectuate the purposes of this Act, or to prevent circumvention or evasion, or to facilitate enforcement of this Act, or any rule, regulation, or order issued under this Act."
64 Stat. 816, see 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed., Supp. V) § 2154.
"SEC. 4. Functions of the National Enforcement Commission. (a) The functions of the National Enforcement Commission (hereinafter referred to as the Commission) shall be, with respect to persons within the jurisdiction of the Wage Stabilization Board, the Salary Stabilization Board and the Office of Salary Stabilization, and the Railroad and Airline Wage Board, to determine whether any wage, salary, or other compensation has been paid or accrued at any time, in violation or contravention of any provision of the Defense Production Act of 1950, as amended, or any regulation or order or directive heretofore or hereafter promulgated under the act. Such determination shall be made by the Commission after any of the foregoing named constituent organizations of this Agency have instituted an enforcement proceeding before it or after any such organization has submitted a settlement proposal to the Commission for its approval. Such determination shall be final within the Economic Stabilization Agency."
"(b) The Commission is further authorized to certify and transmit such determinations in accordance with the policy and procedure set forth in Economic Stabilization Agency General Order No. 15, and other orders, directives, general policies or general regulations of the Economic Stabilization Administrator."
"SEC. 5. Redelegation of authority. (a) The authority delegated to the Economic Stabilization Administrator with respect to the imposition of disallowance sanctions under section 405(b) of the Defense Production Act, as amended, for the violation or contravention of any provisions of, or any orders or any regulations issued under said act, as amended, relating to the payment of wages, salaries, or other compensation, is hereby redelegated to the Commission, in accordance with the functions described above."
"SEC. 2. . . . The United States is determined to develop and maintain whatever military and economic strength is found to be necessary to carry out this purpose. Under present circumstances, this task requires diversion of certain materials and facilities from civilian use to military and related purposes. It requires expansion of productive facilities beyond the levels needed to meet the civilian demand. In order that this diversion and expansion may proceed at once, and that the national economy may be maintained with the maximum effectiveness and the least hardship, normal civilian production and purchases must be curtailed and redirected."
"It is the objective of this Act to provide the President with authority to accomplish these adjustments in the operation of the economy. It is the intention of the Congress that the President shall use the powers conferred by this Act to promote the national defense, by meeting, promptly and effectively, the requirements of military programs in support of our national security and foreign policy objectives, and by preventing undue strains and dislocations upon wages, prices, and production or distribution of materials for civilian use, within the framework, as far as practicable, of the American system of competitive enterprise."
64 Stat. 798, 799, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed., Supp. V) § 2062.
See S.Rep.No. 2250, 81st Cong., 2d Sess. 4-5, 20-40.
The 1950 Act, generally, was to terminate June 30, 1952. Title IV, as to price and wage stabilization, was to expire June 30, 1951. 64 Stat. 822. The latter date was extended to April 30, 1953. 66 Stat. 306, 67 Stat. 131. The survival of enforcement procedure in relation to prior violations is discussed in 347 U. S.
First Ann.Rep. of the Joint Committee on Defense Production, S.Rep.No. 1040, 82d Cong., 1st Sess. 98-103 (1951); Second Ann.Rep. of the same Committee, S.Rep.No. 3, 83d Cong., 1st Sess. 108-119 (1952).
"SEC. 706. (a) Whenever, in the judgment of the President, any person has engaged or is about to engage in any acts or practices which constitute or will constitute a violation of any provision of this Act, he may make application to the appropriate court for an order enjoining such acts or practices, or for an order enforcing compliance with such provision, and upon a showing by the President that such person has engaged or is about to engage in any such acts or practices a permanent or temporary injunction, restraining order, or other order, with or without such injunction or restraining order, shall be granted without bond."
"(b) The district courts of the United States and the United States courts of any Territory or other place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States shall have jurisdiction of violations of this Act or any rule, regulation, order, or subpoena thereunder, and of all civil actions under this Act to enforce any liability or duty created by, or to enjoin any violation of, this Act or any rule, regulation, order, or subpoena thereunder. Any criminal proceeding on account of any such violation may be brought in any district in which any act, failure to act, or transaction constituting the violation occurred. Any such civil action may be brought in any such district or in the district in which the defendant resides or transacts business. Process in such cases, criminal or civil, may be served in any district wherein the defendant resides or transacts business or wherever the defendant may be found; the subpoena for witnesses who are required to attend a court in any district in such case may run into any other district. The termination of the authority granted in any title or section of this Act, or of any rule, regulation, or order issued thereunder, shall not operate to defeat any suit, action, or prosecution, whether theretofore or thereafter commenced, with respect to any right, liability, or offense incurred or committed prior to the termination date of such title or of such rule, regulation, or order. No costs shall be assessed against the United States in any proceeding under this Act. All litigation arising under this Act or the regulations promulgated thereunder shall be under the supervision and control of the Attorney General."
64 Stat. 817-818, as amended, 65 Stat. 139, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed., Supp. V) § 2156.
That this is a logical interpretation of § 706 is emphasized by the fact that the bills which became the Act of 1950 contained, when introduced, provisions for credit and commodity controls, but no provisions for wage stabilization. Thus the section that was to become § 706 originally had no reference to wage stabilization. Title IV, including § 405(b) as to wage stabilization, was inserted in Committee. The separate origins of §§ 405(b) and 706 point to the separate effect which should be given to them. See S.Rep.No. 2250, 81st Cong., 2d Sess. 5.
". . . The President shall also prescribe the extent to which any payment made, either in money or property, by any person in violation of any such regulation, order, or requirement [as to price control] shall be disregarded by the executive departments and other governmental agencies in determining the costs or expenses of any such person for the purposes of any other law or regulation, including bases in determining gain for tax purposes."
65 Stat. 136, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed., Supp. V) § 2105(a).
"such agency shall not delegate enforcement of any of the controls to be administered by it under this section to any other agency or department."
(Emphasis supplied.) 64 Stat. 807, 50 U.S.C.Appendix (1946 ed., Supp. V) § 2103.
"The conference substitute is not intended to preclude the [Wage Stabilization] Board from, as at present, enforcing wage stabilization regulations and policies."
(Emphasis supplied.) H.R.Rep.No. 2352, 82d Cong., 2d Sess. 24.
"SEC. 717. (a) Title I [priorities and allocations] . . . title III [expansion of productive capacity and supply], and title VII [general provisions] . . . of this Act, and all authority conferred thereunder, shall terminate at the close of June 30, 1955. . . . Titles IV [price and wage stabilization] and V [settlement of labor disputes] of this Act, and all authority conferred thereunder, shall terminate at the close of April 30, 1953."
"(b) Notwithstanding the foregoing --"
"(3) Any agency created under this Act may be continued in existence for purposes of liquidation for not to exceed six months after the termination of the provision authorizing the creation of such agency."
64 Stat. 822, as amended, 65 Stat. 144, 66 Stat. 306, 67 Stat. 131.
"This order shall not operate to defeat any suit, action, prosecution, or administrative enforcement proceeding, whether heretofore or hereafter commenced, with respect to any right, liability, or offense possessed, incurred, or committed, prior to this date."
See also Hearings before the House Subcommittees on Appropriations, Pt. 1, 83d Cong., 1st Sess. 439-441, on The Supplemental Appropriation Bill, 1954, introduced in the House as H.R. 6200, and those on the same bill before the Senate Committee on Appropriations, 83d Cong., 1st Sess. 423-431.
". . . Though most of the controls have been lifted, the Act is still in effect. Liabilities incurred prior to the lifting of controls are not thereby washed out. United States v. Hark, 320 U. S. 531, 320 U. S. 536; Utah Junk Co. v. Porter, 328 U. S. 39, 328 U. S. 44; Collins v. Porter, 328 U. S. 46, 328 U. S. 49. And Congress has explicitly provided that accrued rights and liabilities under the Emergency Price Control Act are preserved whether or not suit is started prior to the termination date of the Act. If investigation were foreclosed at this stage, such rights as may exist would be defeated, contrary to the policy of the Act."
Fleming v. Mohawk Wrecking & Lumber Co., 331 U. S. 111, 331 U. S. 119.

References: v. 
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 § 706
 § 405
 § 109
 § 717
 § 1253
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 § 405
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 § 405
 § 5
 § 965
 § 965
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 § 2105
 § 5
 § 1
 § 109
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 § 717
 § 2061
 § 403
 § 961
 § 901
 § 966
 § 962
 § 2153
 § 2154
 § 2062
 § 2156
 § 706
 § 706
 § 405
 § 2105
 § 2103
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