Franklin D. Roosevelt

Statement on a Report by the National Resources Committee.

July 12, 1937

A review of new inventions and the problems of change which they carry with them is made for the first time by the Federal Government in this comprehensive survey of technological trends in major industries. For the continuous revision of plans we need continuing surveying agencies.

In our planning for the Nation we must view the general causes and trends that bear on our welfare. Any specific program may be affected by forces originating outside a particular problem. This report holds out the hope that we can anticipate some of the effects of major inventions and make plans to meet new situations that will arise as these inventions come into widespread use.

While it is certain that much of the unemployment caused by the march of technical advance is absorbed by new occupations born of new industries, it is equally true that in the meantime labor may pay a very heavy price through the readjustment and adaptations necessary on the part of workers whose jobs are affected by change. Employers likewise are deeply affected by swift technological changes producing obsolescence and displacement of capital investment.

More than jobs and investment are affected by technical change: Family, church, community, state and all industry are subject to its influence. Study and investigation of technological advances and their social implications constitute one of our most important American planning problems.

I commend this Report for earnest consideration in solving the great problem of how best to conserve and develop our vast national resources. A study of this report will be of help not only to the public servants in the legislative, executive and judicial positions of government but also to others in private employ, business, journalism, agriculture, and the teaching professions.

Franklin D. Roosevelt, Statement on a Report by the National Resources Committee. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/208642

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