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Letter to the Speaker of the House on Procurement of Supplies of Foreign Origin for Government Departments and Agencies.

January 26, 1932

My dear Mr. Speaker:

Instances arise from time to time in the procurement of supplies and equipment by the various Government services where, due to requirements of existing law, it becomes necessary to award contracts for materials of foreign origin notwithstanding that suitable articles of domestic production or manufacture are available. By special provisions of law, the War and Navy Departments have been enabled, during the current fiscal year, to give preference to American goods except where to do so would lead to unreasonable cost. I am informed, however, that other Departments are not authorized to extend such a preference. It would be of substantial advantage to American manufacturers and producers if Congress should authorize all Departments and Executive Establishments uniformly to give this preference, and I suggest the enactment of legislation providing that in advertising for proposals for supplies, heads of departments shall require bidders to certify whether the articles proposed to be furnished are of domestic or foreign growth, production, or manufacture, and shall, if in their judgment the excess of cost is not unreasonable, purchase or contract for the delivery of articles of the growth, production, or manufacture of the United States, notwithstanding that articles of foreign origin may be offered at a lower price.

Respectfully yours,

HERBERT HOOVER

[Hon. John N. Garner, The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Washington, D.C.]

Herbert Hoover, Letter to the Speaker of the House on Procurement of Supplies of Foreign Origin for Government Departments and Agencies. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/207744

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