A DRAFT OF A PROPOSED JOINT RESOLUTION ENTITLED, “A JOINT RESOLUTION TO CONTINUE IN EFFECT CERTAIN STATUTORY PROVISIONS FOR THE DURATION OF THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY PROCLAIMED DECEMBER 16, 1950, AND 6 MONTHS THEREAFTER, NOTWITHSTANDING THE TERMINATION OF THE EXIST. ING STATE OF WAR"

FEBRUARY 19, 1952.-Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary and ordered to be printed

THE WHITE HOUSE, Washington, February 19, 1952.

The honorable the SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. MY DEAR MR. SPEAKER: I transmit herewith a draft Emergency Powers Continuation Act, recommended by the Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General, the Chairman of the National Security Resources Board, and the Director of the Bureau of the Budget, and I recommend immediate and favorable consideration of it by the Congress.

The purpose of this draft bill is to insure the continuation of certain specific powers which the Government is exercising for the preservation of the national security. Under the language used in the statutes conferring these powers they exist now only because we are still technically in a state of war. The only state of war still existing between this country and others is the state of war with Japan. Accordingly, unless the Congress acts to continue these powers they will end when that state of war ends or, in some cases, within a fixed period thereafter. The consideration of this measure is a matter of urgency since

the treaty of peace with Japan has now been favorably acted on by the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. It will come into force, after ratification by the United States, when four countries among a group named in the treaty ratify, in addition to Japan and the United Kingdom, which have already ratified.

This bill continues only the specific acts or parts of acts cited in it, some 60 in number, each of which is summarized in the enclosed explanatory memorandum. They deal with such widely varying subjects as those covered by provisions under which (1) the President, in time of war, may assume control over the railroads; (2) the Government may reduce the royalties to be paid by it on articles used in the defense program; (3) Řeserve officers may be appointed without peacetime limitations; and (4) members of the Armed Forces may vote for Federal officials notwithstanding absence from home. Some of the other provisions are individually of less importance, but the 60 as a whole, taken together, are very significant. Existing_wardependent authorities not dealt with in the bill will lapse in accordance with their terms when the state of war ends.

The bill is based on an intensive study of Federal law, which took account of legislation enacted up to the close of the last session of Congress and even during the present session. But a limited purpose has guided the drafting. That purpose is to deal, in this bill, only with such of the war-dependent authorizations now existing as should be continued in the interest of national security during a period when disturbance in world affairs makes it necessary to exercise unusual powers. Consequently the powers specifically dealt with in the billand only these are continued only for the duration of the national emergency proclaimed on December 16, 1950, and 6 months thereafter, with a provision that any or all of them may be terminated at earlier times by concurrent resolution of the Congress or by the President. The bill does not alter these powers except in one particular in section 1 (a) (27). It continues them as they are, and it does not deal at all with powers which existed at one time during the war but have now lapsed or been repealed. If any of these ought to be reenacted, or if the existing provisions to be continued by the bill ought to be amended in the light of practical experience or to meet present conditions, the agencies concerned will make proposals entirely apart from this bill. To insure a full presentation of the issues to the Congress and to eliminate any legal uncertainty or litigation which might arise if it were not made perfectly clear which statutes are in force and which have been allowed to lapse, it has been assumed for the purpose of the bill that the conflict now going on in Korea does not constitute a state of war within the meaning of the statutes dealt with. It has also been assumed that the termination of the state of war with Japan would terminate the national emergencies proclaimed by the President in 1939 and 1941. It is my intention, in order to eliminate any doubt on this latter point, that the proclamation of the treaty of peace with Japan, after its coming into force, shall expressly terminate those emergencies.

The procedures followed in drafting the bill and accompanying explanatory memorandum are set forth more fully in the enclosed letter from the Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General, the Chairman of the National Security Resources Board, and the Director of the Bureau of the Budget.

I hope that the Congress will enact this measure promptly so that the coming into force of the treaty of peace with Japan will not deprive the Government of powers necessary for the national security.

Respectfully,

HARRY S. TRUMAN.

(Enclosures: Draft bill and explanatory material; letter to the President from Defense, Justice, National Security Resources Board, and Budget Bureau.)

The PRESIDENT,

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT,

The White House.

BUREAU OF THE BUDGET, Washington 25, D. C., February 16, 1952.

MY DEAR MR. PRESIDENT: We recommend that you approve and transmit to the Congress the enclosed draft Emergency Powers Continuation Act, designed to insure that certain statutory powers of the Government now being exercised in the interest of national security will not be terminated by the coming into force of the treaty of peace with Japan. A detailed explanatory memorandum concerning the bill is also enclosed.

The bill has a limited purpose. It deals only with a particular group of existing powers-those which depend on the existence of the state of war with Japan or of the national emergencies proclaimed in 1939 and 1941. It continues only powers which it is important to retain, and these only until 6 months after the end of the national emergency proclaimed by the President on December 16, 1950, or until earlier dates fixed by concurrent resolution of the Congress or by the President. It continues them in the form in which they now exist, without seeking to amend them, except in one particular. An amendment added in section 1 (a) (27) will permit the President to operate the transportation systems by delegation "to such officers and agencies as he may designate." The bill does not deal with war powers which have ceased to exist through lapse, repeal, or otherwise.

This draft bill and the explanatory memorandum were prepared by a working group consisting of members from the staffs of the Bureau of the Budget, the Department of Justice, the National Security Resources Board, and, after the preliminary stage, the Department of Defense. The basis of their work was a draft bill and explanation prepared by the Department of Defense to meet its own needs.

The working group drafted the bill on two legal assumptions: (1) That the military action in Korea does not constitute a state of war within the meaning of the statutes conferring authority in time of war and (2) that when the state of war with Japan is terminated the emergencies proclaimed by the President on September 8, 1939, and May 27, 1941, will also terminate by reason of the terms in which those emergencies were originally proclaimed.. The first assumption was made without attempt to determine its validity as to any statute. Enactment of the bill will eliminate legal uncertainty which might arise if it were not made clear which of these statutes are in force and which have been terminated. The validity of the second assumption likewise has not been determined. To settle any doubts that might

be raised about it, the working group recommends, and we concur, that the proclamation to be issued by the President upon the coming into force of the treaty of peace with Japan should expressly terminate the emergencies proclaimed in 1939 and 1941.

The working group adopted a procedure developed by the Bureau of the Budget and designed to insure that the resulting bill would meet the needs of the entire executive branch of the Government. It first prepared a list of statutes, to include all existing statutory authorizations which would terminate upon the termination of the war with Japan, or the 1939 and 1941 emergencies, or at a fixed time thereafter. This list was prepared on the basis of two Senate documents dealing with war and emergency legislation (pt. 2 of S. Rept. 339, and S. Doc. 42, both of the 80th Cong., 1st sess.) and the Department of the Army Digest of Emergency Legislation, and on the basis of replies which had been received by the Bureau of the Budget to an inquiry addressed by it in 1950 to all agencies in the executive branch regarding authority dependent upon war or emergency. The list of statutes was then circulated by the Bureau of the Budget with a covering memorandum which explained the assumptions on which it had been prepared and requested the agencies to give the Bureau their reasoned views as to which statutory authorizations set forth in the list should be continued after the termination of the war with Japan. The agencies were also requested to point out and make recommendations on any other existing war-dependent authorizations affecting them. Replies to this inquiry were received by the Bureau of the Budget from every agency in the executive branch, the General Accounting Office (which had prepared a comprehensive list of war-dependent statutes), and the Administrative Office of the United States Courts. After conferring with many agencies concerning their replies, the working group then prepared a first draft of the Emergency Powers Continuation Act, and the first draft of explanation, and circulated these to 17 agencies particularly concerned, with a request for corrections and suggestions. On the basis of these and still further conferences the working group prepared the enclosed drafts of the bill and explanatory memorandum. The bill as it stands represents agreement among the agencies concerning the items in it, and every item within its scope. which any agency desired included is included, with one exception mentioned below.

At the same time the bill reflects the careful screening process which went into its preparation. The list of statutes circulated by the Bureau of the Budget to the individual agencies to serve as a starting point for their recommendations contained some 130 items. About 25 more were pointed out by the agencies, making a total of approximately 155. The bill presented herewith deals with only 60 items. Some of the other 95 have been omitted from the bill because they have already been terminated in one way or another or because they have been superseded. Most, however, have been omitted because, although they confer a still-existing authority dependent upon the existence of a state of war, their continuation is not considered necessary by the agencies concerned.

Since the bill seeks only to preserve certain powers now existing which would otherwise be terminated by the coming into force of the treaty of peace with Japan, and since it preserves them by continuing them on a nonpermanent basis without amendment, it necessarily

docs not exclude separate legislation on matters outside its scope and purpose. It may be that certain of the authorizations continued by this bill on a nonpermanent basis should be made permanent, or stated in greater detail in the light of actual experience with them, or restated in terms more appropriate to a time when the declared state of war has ended. Some bills of this sort have already been introduced or drafted. It may also be that some powers which once existed but exist no longer should be reenacted. These are matters for separate consideration by the several executive agencies and by the Congress. The present bill is independent of them and should not be delayed on account of them.

One existing authority, the Trading With the Enemy Act, has been omitted from the bill because the agencies concerned feel that it may be more satisfactorily handled in independent legislation, if any may be necessary. This is the case because the mere continuation of the powers in the act may not be appropriate in view of certain provisions in section 14 of the treaty with Japan relating to the vesting and retention of certain Japanese assets.

The Department of Defense has accepted the responsibility of making the arrangements for the presentation of testimony to the appropriate committees of the Congress concerning the entire bill. This will be a cooperative undertaking. Other agencies will supply the witnesses on items with which they are primarily concerned. The members of the working group will also be available to the committee if desired.)

We believe that the principles and procedures formulated for the drafting of this bill were sound and well adapted to their purpose and have been carefully observed in practice. We recommend, as stated at the beginning of this letter, that you approve the bill and accompanying explanatory statement and transmit them to the Congress. Respectfully,

ROBERT A. LOVETT,

Secretary of Defense.

J. HOWARD MCGRATH,

Attorney General.

JACK GORRIE,

(Enclosures: Draft bill and explanatory material; draft letters to the Congress.)

A JOINT RESOLUTION To continue in effect certain statutory provisions for the duration of the national emergency proclaimed December 16, 1950, and six months thereafter, notwithstanding the termination of the existing state of war Whereas the existing state of war with Japan is the last declared. state of war to which the United States is a party and the termination thereof and of the national emergencies proclaimed in 1939 and 1941 would render certain statutory provisions inoperative; and

Whereas some of these statutory provisions are needed to insure the national security and the capacity of the United States to support the United Nations in its efforts to establish and maintain world peace: Now, therefore, be it