Statement on Signing a Bill Amending the International Investment Survey Act of 1974

I have approved S. 1104, an act which amends the International Investment Survey Act of 1974.

One of my responsibilities under that act is to assure that the information needed is collected with a minimum of burden on business and other respondents. To fulfill this responsibility, I am asking the Congress to make a technical amendment to the act as amended by this bill. Specifically, I request the Congress to remove the reference to calendar year data, because many business firms would find it much less burdensome to report on the basis of their fiscal accounting year. I believe that a determination of the specific reporting period should be left to the technical experts who manage the program and have been charged with the responsibility for balancing the need for collecting accurate data with that of minimizing the burden on respondents.