Executive Order 9647—Regulations Relating to the Giving of Public Notice and the Presentation of Views in Connection With Foreign Trade Agreements

Executive Order No. 6750 of June 27, 1934, is hereby amended to read as follows:

WHEREAS section 4 of the act approved June 12, 1934, 48 Stat. 945, as amended by Public Law 130, 79th Congress, approved July 5, 1945, provides as follows:

"SEC. 4. Before any foreign trade agreement is concluded with any foreign government or instrumentality thereof under the provisions of this Act, reasonable public notice of the intention to negotiate an agreement with such government or instrumentality shall be given in order that any interested person may have an opportunity to present his views to the President, or to such agency as the President may designate, under such rules and regulations as the President may prescribe; and before concluding such agreement the President shall seek information and advice with respect thereto from the United States Tariff Commission, the Departments of State, War, Navy, Agriculture, and Commerce and from such other sources as he may deem appropriate.":

NOW, THEREFORE, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the foregoing statutory provisions, I hereby prescribe the following regulations governing the procedure with respect to the giving of public notice of the intention to negotiate foreign trade agreements and with respect to the granting of opportunity to interested persons to present their views:

1. At least thirty days before any trade agreement is concluded under the provisions of the said act of June 12, 1934, as amended, commonly known as the Trade Agreements Act, the Secretary of State shall cause notice of the intention to negotiate such agreement to be published in the FEDERAL REGISTER. Such notice shall also be issued to the press and published in the Department of State Bulletin, the Treasury Decisions, and the Foreign Commerce Weekly.

2. Persons desiring to present their views with respect to any such proposed agreement shall present them to the Committee for Reciprocity Information. The said Committee shall consist of members designated from the personnel of their respective agencies by the Chairman of the United States Tariff Commission, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of War, the Secretary of the Navy, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Commerce, and the heads of such other agencies as the Secretary of State may designate on the recommendation of the Committee. The chairman of the Committee shall be designated from among the members of the Committee by the Secretary of State. The Committee may designate such subcommittees as it may deem necessary.

3. The Committee shall accord reasonable opportunity to interested persons to present their views on any proposed or existing trade agreement or any aspect thereof. The form and manner in which such views may be presented, the place at which they shall be presented, and the time limitations for such presentation shall from time to time be prescribed by the Committee.

The provisions of Executive Order No. 8190 of July 5, 1939, relating to the Committee for Reciprocity Information are hereby revoked.

HARRY S. TRUMAN

THE WHITE HOUSE,

October 25, 1945