PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

On August 23, 1912, the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce took over from the Department of Labor the job of quickly finding the cost to make goods that were subject to U.S. import duties in the main producing countries. The work includes breaking down per-unit costs, wages (by day, week, month, year, or piece), hours worked, profits, comparisons of cost and living, and whether trusts or other business or labor combinations control goods and affect production and prices. The Bureau must also do special investigations and reports when the President or either House of Congress asks.

Title 15, §172

Commerce and Trade, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

The duties of the Department of Labor, or Bureau of Labor, “to ascertain, at as early a date as possible, and whenever industrial changes shall make it essential, the cost of producing articles at the time dutiable in the United States, in leading countries where such articles are produced, by fully specified units of production, and under a classification showing the different elements of cost, or approximate cost, of such articles of production, including the wages paid in such industries per day, week, month, or year, or by the piece; and hours employed per day; and the profits of manufacturers and producers of such articles; and the comparative cost of living, and the kind of living; what articles are controlled by trusts or other combinations of capital, business operations, or labor, and what effect said trusts, or other combinations of capital, business operations, or labor have on production and prices”, are, as of August 23, 1912, transferred to and shall be discharged by the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, and it shall be also the duty of said Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce to make such special investigation and report on particular subjects when required to do so by the President or either House of Congress.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The quoted language of this section was originally enacted by act June 13, 1888, ch. 389, § 7, 25 Stat. 183, which charged the duties to the Commissioner of Labor.

Executive Documents

Transfer of Functions

Functions of all other officers of Department of Commerce and functions of all agencies and employees of such Department, with a few exceptions, transferred to Secretary of Commerce, with power vested in him to authorize their performance or performance of any of his functions by any such officers, agencies, and employees, by Reorg. Plan No. 5 of 1950, §§ 1, 2, eff. May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3174, 64 Stat. 1263, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees. Through internal reorganizations, functions of Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce have been reassigned to other offices of Department of Commerce.

§172 Transfer of Duties of Department of Labor; Special Investigations