He could, if necessary, within the authority given him, divert from the foreign shipments to Commodity Credit Corporation such amounts of fluorspar as were necessary to meet domestic consumption requirements.

But, adequacy of supply is not sufficient alone to meet the needs of today. We must be sure that we do not create, in our efforts to solve this problem, a situation where prices are permitted to get out of hand and upset the competitive position of our domestic manufacturers who use fluorspar. For that reason, S. 1285 uses General Services Administration prices on metallurgical-grade fluorspar, as were determined by the then Office of Defense Mobilization, and Public Law 733 prices for acid-grade fluorspar, which were determined by the Congress-with the exception of a $2 per ton adjustment for drying and transportation.

This price for acid-grade fluorspar is about $20 per ton less than that paid one foreign producer for acid-grade fluorspar when the need for it was acute. In addition, we advanced over $1 million for the construction of his mill, which incidentally was constructed over 1,000 miles away from his mine. The mine was in Newfoundland, and the mill we financed was in Wilmington, Del., representing a rather long haul for crude ore from mine to mill, and which mill, I might add, never produced a ton of ore after completion of the stockpile contract which we gave him.

Mr. Chairman, Colorado, like your own State of Montana, both richly endowed by nature with minerals, are looking to the Congress for assistance for their minerals industries. The fluorspar mills and mines in Colorado, with one exception, a captive, are closed.

The communities which depend upon those fluorspar operations for the lifeblood of their economy are hurt-severely so. A needed industry is idle. A solution is imperative.

I believe that the interests of the nation will be served by speedy approval by this committee of S. 1285 and by its prompt enactment by the Congress.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Senator Allott, for your very excellent statement. I am sure it will be convincing to the members of the Senate that the program should be carried through. You, being on the committee, will be helpful to us in engineering the problems through the committee.

Senator ALLOTT. Thank you.

The CHAIRMAN. Senator Carroll.

Senator CARROLL. Mr. Chairman, I also want to join in commending the senior Senator from Colorado for the great deal of attention and study he has given this most important piece of legislation and the problem itself, and at the same time to express my approval and association with the Congressman from the Fourth District of Colorado, Congressman Aspinall, for his very excellent statement. It occurs to me, Mr. Chairman, that over 30 years ago in Colorado began the first consideration of what we call the Sugar Act. Senator Costigan was the father of that act. Now we are in almost an identical situation. We had a great domestic demand for sugar, but the sugar beet farmers and the industry itself was rendered almost unstable by virtue of the tremendous flowing in of sugar from other areas. Those areas needed help, too, I suspect, just as some of the areas that

are now furnishing fluorspar. So this is sensible legislation. Here we have a domestic consumption of fluorspar that far exceeds our ability to produce, and that we have other countries that are flooding our markets with their fluorspar because of the low cost. We can't compete, evidently, in the fluorspar industry in this country with the foreign producer of fluorspar. What do we do about it? We are confronted with this problem not only in this commodity in the mining industry, but also with lead and zinc. We had some testimony here I think 2 years ago by Joseph Little of Colorado, a prominent attorney and mining man in Denver, who at that time advocated that we adopt a similar program for lead and zinc based upon some bounty concept or processing tax concept, and this is the sort of legislation we have to think about.

In my opinion we have thought about it enough. This seems to be a reasonable piece of legislation and a reasonable program. I wonder if I might ask the senior Senator from Colorado, is there any evidence in the record of what this would cost the Government in dollars and cents in the first year?

Senator ALLOTT. I do not have an estimate on it. As far as I know, the only expense connected with it would be the incidental expense connected with the administration of it.

Senator CARROLL. It would be very small, as I understand it.

Senator ALLOTT. A comparatively insignificant amount, yes. In other words, the figures for all this are available. It would simply be a matter of combining them and doing some work to make the determinations. It would be a very small item.

Senator CARROLL. This would therefore not create stability in the foreign producer but would create a rebirth in our own country where all production of fluorspar has pretty much stopped. I think this is true in our own State.

Senator ALLOT. Thank you.

Senator CARROLL. I thank the Senator for his fine presentation. Senator ALLOTT. I thank the Senator for his words.

The CHAIRMAN. The Chair wishes to thank Senator Carroll for his excellent statement here this morning. I am sure we are all in sympathy with the program which has been outlined. We will certainly hope that we will speedily put through this legislation.

Senator CARROLL. If I may interrupt the Chairman to say I hope that by using this sort of legislation with such a program being feasible, we can then move into lead and zinc. That is a more difficult program to judge than fluorspar. But this is the direction we have to take if we are going to save our mining industry in all the States of the West.

The CHAIRMAN. The Senator is right. The solution of this problem will be very helpful to engineering us through the other problems we have in the minerals industry.

The next witness is Congressman Kenneth J. Gray of Illinois.

STATEMENT OF HON. KENNETH J. GRAY, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF ILLINOIS

Representative GRAY. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee. For the record, my name is Kenneth J. Gray. I

have the honor of representing the 25th District of Illinois, the 15 southernmost counties in the State.

Mr. Chairman, it is a pleasure and privilege for me to appear before your committee and urge favorable action on S. 1285, legislation which will permit the domestic fluorspar industry to survive and share in the rapidly expanding domestic fluorspar market. In the district I have the honor to represent, the mining of fluorspar is the only industry in two of the counties and of major concern to the economies of three others. That is, it was until December 31, 1958. Now production of fluorspar except by one captive producer has all but ceased. The situation in those counties is desperate. The rate of unemployment in the affected counties is extremely high, probably higher than any other county in the country. Relief rolls are swollen. The surplus food that is distributed weekly provides the only means of existence for many, many families. The tax revenues of the counties have been severely reduced. The schools are faced with a shortage of funds. All of this exists, Mr. Chairman, while the domestic consumption of fluorspar continues to increase at a very rapid rate, but the demand is being met by cheap imports.

This problem must find a solution, Mr. Chairman. I believe that a reasonable solution is provided in S. 1285. I have introduced an identical measure in the House of Representatives. The domestic fluorspar producers under this measure would be permitted to operate at a satisfactory rate of production. They would be permitted to expand their production for the domestic market as consumption increases, not, however, at as great a rate as the importers.

This level of domestic fluorspar production could be maintained within the price ranges provided in your bill. But aside from the domestic fluorspar producer, there are two other important parties to be remembered the domestic consumer and the foreign producer. In attempting to solve this problem, we cannot inflict injury upon the domestic consumer nor cause injury abroad. I believe this bill treats very fairly both of these other parties. As to the foreign producer, I fail to see how he could oppose S. 1285. The only conceivable reason would be that he expects, after having obtained complete domination of the domestic market, to increase prices far above those permitted in S. 1285.

Very frankly, Mr. Chairman, I would expect the foreign producer to support S. 1285, if for no other reason than the fact that he is assured that imports through the culmination of sales to consumers and barter will be maintained at 1956-57-58 average level of imports. Thus even in the unlikely event of a declining domestic consumption the foreign producer is still assured of being able to import at his highest level. Furthermore, the foreign producer receives 75 percent of the increase in consumption until barter becomes unnecessary. Thereafter he receives 60 percent. This is a most generous division of this increase in consumption which, as we all know, will be very large. Thus the foreign producer, who for the most part has been placed in business by financial assistance from the U.S. Government, will receive undeniable benefits from this legislation.

Opposition to this legislation by importers leads only to the conclusion that they want all of the domestic market at higher prices than those provided for in your bill.

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Now, what about the consumers? All of us are aware that prices cannot continue to go up and up. By the same token it is absolutely essential to our national economy and to the security of this Nation that we have an adequate supply of fluorspar. On this point there can be no disagreement. S. 1285 provides, in fact assures, the consumer an adequate supply of fluorspar. Nothing contained in this bill will restrict the supply of fluorspar to the consumer. By the same token the consumer is protected from price gouges. The prices used are those that Congress and the executive department have determined to be fair and reasonable. But, Mr. Chairman, S. 1285 does even more than I have just described. From a human standpoint it restores confidence by providing jobs for the unemployed miners, and this is most important. The dignity of the individual suffers when he is forced into the relief line or when carrying home surplus food on which his family must exist.

Furthermore, S. 1285 gives hope to our domestic industries, not just fluorspar, but all domestic industries, that they will not be sacrificed in order to provide markets for imports. Rather it shows that we can exist together by sharing the domestic market.

For these reasons, Mr. Chairman, and for many more which I will not go into at this time, I strongly urge favorable action on S. 1285. Let us save a vital industry and give our miners the opportunity to go to work in place of going to the relief line, and the chance to draw a paycheck instead of an unemployment check.

Thank you for your consideration in calling hearings on this bill and for your keen interest in this measure, and trying to help this most vital domestic industry. I appreciate the opportunity and privilege of appearing before this esteemed committee.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you for your very excellent statement. I am sure that the committee is very much impressed with the arguments that you have made, and your assistance to us in getting this legislation through will be very helpful.

Representative GRAY. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate the privilege.

Senator Moss (presiding). Mr. Redwine.

Mr. REDWINE. Mr. Chairman, Congressman Metcalf has a statement which he has asked be read into the record.

Senator Moss. You may proceed to read it into the record.

Mr. REDWINE. The following is the statement of Congressman Metcalf of Montana. [Reading:]

STATEMENT OF HON. LEE METCALF, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF MONTANA, PRESENTED BY ROBERT REDWINE

Mr. Chairman, I appreciate this opportunity to support S. 1285, the Domestic Fluorspar Production Act of 1959, and to pay tribute to the chairman of both the full committee and this subcommittee for again taking the lead on behalf of the domestic fluorspar industry. As you know, Montana is a relative newcomer to the rank of fluorspar producing States, today producing only metallurgical grade fluorspar. Last year, through combined sales to Government for defense stockpile and sales to industry, we were the largest metallurgical grade fluorspar producing State in the Union. I am advised by the

industry, and this advice is supported by the Department of Interior authorities, that Crystal Mountain at Darby, Mont., is the largest known deposit of high grade fluorspar in the world. I am told that this one property could, if in operation, provide all of our essential metallurgical grade fluorspar requirements in the event of absolute emergency. I am thankful we have such a supply. It must be maintained in operation and available when needed.

Although Montana does not presently produce acid grade fluorspar, she will if we in Congress can provide some means whereby domestic production of fluorspar can be sustained and permitted to expand.

It is my information that there will be placed somewhere in the Northwest an aluminum fluoride plant to meet the requirements of our Northwest aluminum producers if some equal distribution of the domestic fluorspar market is arrived at, and particularly in the manner suggested in S. 1285.

I hope that such a solution to the fluorspar problem will be provided by this Congress. But further, I wish along with you, Mr. Chairman, to see the further development of our minerals-producing properties in Montana and the attendant increase in employment and

income.

The production of minerals is to some extent different from other forms of domestic industry. Involved in mining is the creation of new wealth which is not created via our manufacturing industries. Manufacturing industries utilize the products of minerals industries or other raw materials producing industries in their manufacturing processes. Consequently, from the standpoint of our national economy, it is desirable to have domestic production of minerals or other raw materials.

At the same time, we must recognize that our domestic program will have consequences abroad. Today we are engaged in a great struggle extending far beyond the operation of domestic mines or availability of our mineral supplies abroad. We are confronted first with a situation where we must decide how we can best assure ourselves in this case of a satisfactory level of production of fluorspar from domestic sources while at the same time providing for production abroad of additional needed fluorspar for U.S. consumption. We must remember that foreign mill capacity and mine development was encouraged and, for the most part, financed by the U.S. Government in the interests of national security. Now we must find a way of sustaining domestic fluorspar production at a level that, in the interests of national security, meets the requirements of the mobilization base. At the same time, we cannot destroy by this action our access to our foreign supply of fluorspar.

With domestic capacity added to the foreign capacity we have a situation where today available supply exceeds domestic requirements. Yet tomorrow's demand will exceed all available supply from domestic and present friendly foreign sources.

Under these circumstances, the Tariff Commission, the duly delegated arm of Congress to inquire into these matters, is almost wholly lacking in adequate authority. The Tariff Commission, upon a finding of injury, could prescribe relief for only one-half of the fluorspar industry, the acid grade segment. The metallurgical grade segment cannot be considered by the Tariff Commission under an "escape clause" application because there has been no reduction in the statutory