Letter to the President of the Senate and to the Speaker of the House Transmitting a Report on Balance of Payments.
Dear Mr.___________:
I am transmitting herewith a Report by the Secretary of the Treasury reviewing the wide variety of measures undertaken by this Administration to cope with the urgent balance of payments problem that faces this country.
A start has been made over the past year, but much still remains to be done. We must do more, consistent with our responsibilities for leadership of the free world, to stem the outward flow of dollars from Government programs. We must work with our friends and trading partners to achieve a more equitable sharing of the burdens of aid and defense, and to build a stronger international financial system. Above all, we must harness the energies of all our people--in labor and management as well as Government-to the vital task of keeping our industry competitive and expanding our exports.
To that end, I intend to implement promptly a key recommendation of this Report by appointing, within the Department Of Commerce, a new top-level official to oversee and expedite all our varied efforts to penetrate foreign markets more deeply.
This and other actions, to be fully effective, will require the understanding support of the Congress. I particularly urge prompt consideration and approval by the Congress of each of the specific measures summarized at the end of the Secretary's Report.
Sincerely,
JOHN F. KENNEDY
Note: This is the text of identical letters addressed to the Honorable Lyndon B. Johnson, President of the Senate, and to the Honorable John W. McCormack, Speaker of the House of Representatives.
The specific measures requiring congressional approval are summarized in the report as follows:
1. Authority to participate in supplementary International Monetary fund arrangements.
2. Authority to bargain effectively for lower tariffs with the European Common Market and other countries under the terms of the Trade Expansion Act.
3. Incentives for more rapid modernization of industrial equipment by means of an investment tax credit.
4. The removal of special inducements to invest abroad by eliminating the possibilities for tax avoidance on foreign operations.
5. New appropriations adequate to staff and operate effectively an Office of Export Coordinator and enlarged functions of the Departments of Commerce and State in stimulating exports.
6. Simplified visa requirements for foreign visitors.
7. Continuation of Public Law 480 in a form that would not adversely affect our balance of payments.
The "Report to the President by the Secretary of the Treasury on the Balance of Payments" (Government Printing Office, 1962, 13 pp.) and the Secretary's letter of transmittal, dated March 26, were also released.
John F. Kennedy, Letter to the President of the Senate and to the Speaker of the House Transmitting a Report on Balance of Payments. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/236269