Statement on Signing the Domestic Apparel and Textile Industry Statistics Bill

I am pleased to approve H.R. 2721, a bill that directs the Secretary of Commerce to collect quarterly statistics on the domestic apparel and textile industries. The bill will allow the Bureau of the Census to provide reliable and timely data on these important industries. These industries are large and important employers, experience volatile production patterns, and face strong foreign competition.

It is essential that those responsible for the administration of our textile and apparel programs have the information they need to determine if, and to what extent, such imports disrupt domestic markets within the meaning of the appropriate statutes. Accordingly, I ask the Nation's textile and apparel firms to give the Census Bureau their fullest cooperation and to respond to its surveys fully, honestly, and quickly.