THE WOOL PAYMENT PROGRAM UNDER THE NATIONAL WOOL ACT OF 1954, AS AMENDED Legislative authority Public Law 690, 83d Congress, Agricultural Act of 1954, H.R. 9680, title VII approved August 28, 1954. Public Law 85-835, 85th Congress, S. 4071, title IV-Wool, Agricultural Act of 1958, approved August 28, 1958. Public Law 87-128, 87th Congress, S. 1643, title I, subtitle E-Wool, Agricultural Act of 1961, approved August 8, 1961. Number, total amount, and average size of payments on shorn wool and unshorn lambs for the 1959 marketing year NOTE. This is the latest marketing year for which such information is available. The principal deviation from these figures would depend largely upon the amount of marketings and the payment rates. Related data are: The objective of this program is to encourage an annual domestic production of approximately 300 million pounds of shorn wool. This is accomplished by incentive payments to eligible producers on a percentage basis reflecting the amount required to bring the national average received by all producers up to the announced incentive level. The incentive level shall not exceed 110 percent of parity. Pulled wool is supported in a comparable relationship to shorn wool by payments on the sale of lambs that have never been shorn. Mohair is supported at a level not in excess of 15 percent above or below the comparable percentage of parity at which shorn wool is supported. Payments are made to eligible producers through the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation county offices and are financed by the Commodity Credit Corporation. The Corporation is authorized to be reimbursed for expenditures made under the wool-payment program. However, such reimbursement for any fiscal year is limited to an amount equal to 70 percent of the gross receipts from duties collected on imports of wool and wool manufactures during the period January 1 to December 31 preceding the beginning of such fiscal year. The accumulative total of all payments made under the program at any time may not exceed an amount equal to 70 percent of the accumulated totals of the gross receipts from duties collected on and after January 1, 1953, on wool and wool manufactures subject to duty under schedule 11 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended. Support by payments is available on domestic wool and mohair shorn on or after January 1, 1955, and marketed on or after April 1, 1963, but not later than December 31, 1963, and, on pulled wool by payments on domestic unshorn lambs marketed on or after April 1, 1963, but not later than December 31, 1963. The 1963 marketing year represents a 9-month program. Subsequent marketing-year programs will be on a calendar-year basis. Costs incurred under this program comprise (1) Payments to producers. Deductions are made from producer payments for promotional and advertising programs. (2) Operating expenses. (3) Interest expense. Following are the pertinent data upon which the estimates are based: Wool production. The estimated U.S. production of shorn wool in 1962 is approximately 249 million pounds compared with around 261 million pounds in 1961 and about 265 million pounds in 1960. Production is expected to decline somewhat further in 1963 and remain near that level in 1964 and 1965 as a result of the decline in stock sheep numbers in 1960 and 1961. Sales of wool subject to payments.-In the 1961 marketing year, sales of shorn wool subject to payments are estimated at approximately 248 million pounds, an amount equivalent to about 95 percent of the estimated production. Sales during the 1962 and 1963 marketing years are also estimated to be at about 95 percent of the estimated production in these years. World wool production and consumption. The production and consumption of wool on a worldwide basis, both at record levels, are about in balance in 1962. It is estimated this relationship will continue in 1963. Market prices for wool. The average price received by wool producers in the United States during the 1961 marketing year was 42.9 cents per pound, compared with 42 cents per pound during the 1960 marketing year. It is estimated producers will receive 43 cents per pound for wool marketed in 1962 and that this rate will continue in the 1963 marketing year. Imports and consumption of apparel wool.—The U.S. imports of apparel (dutiable) wools during 1961 were about 22 percent above those for 1960. This increase in imports was stimulated largely by the rising mill consumption of apparel wool and the resulting need to supplement inventories by purchases in the world markets. During the first 6 months of this year, imports were over 40 percent higher than a year earlier but have been declining since March. The U.S. mill consumption of apparel wool in the calendar year 1961 is about 8 percent above that for the prior calendar year. Mohair production.-Production of mohair in the United States has increased by 8 percent from 24.4 million pounds in 1960 to 26.4 million pounds in 1951, establishing a new record. An increase of 4 percent in the number of goats in Texas January 1, 1962, compared with a year earlier, indicates that the U.S. production of mohair will increase further in 1962. Summary of operations, 1962–64 (inclusive) fiscal years 1960-63 marketing years. It is estimated that payments in the fiscal year 1964 (applicable to the 1962 and 1963 marketing years) will be made on 236.4 million pounds and 175 million pounds of shorn wool, respectively, amounting to a total of $78.2 million, and on 12 million and 9 million hundredweight of unshorn lambs, respectively, amounting to a total of $16 million, and on 33.6 million pounds and 21 million pounds of mohair, respectively, amounting to a total of $5.3 million. The total payments to be made in the fiscal year 1964 for both the 1962 marketing year (12 months) and the 1963 marketing year (9 months) programs are estimated at $99.5 million. This compares with estimated total payments of $56.9 million during the 1963 fiscal year (applicable to the 1961 marketing year), consisting of approximately $47.4 million on 248.3 million pounds of shorn wool and $9.5 million on 12.5 million hundredweight of unshorn lambs. Actual payments made in the fiscal year 1962 (applicable to the 1960 marketing year) amounted to $59.5 million, consisting of $49.9 million on 249.7 million pounds of shorn wool and $9.6 million on 11.9 million hundredweight of unshorn lambs. 1963 marketing year. The price of domestic shorn wool is supported by incentive payments to producers, based on their set sales proceeds from shorn wool marketed during the 1963 marketing year. The incentive price for the 1963 marketing year is 62 cents per pound, grease basis, which is approximately 84 percent of the September 1962 parity price. The support price for pulled wool (unshorn lambs) will be figured at a rate per hundredweight of live lambs, that have never been shorn, to compensate for the wool on them at a price relationship comparable to the incentive payment rate for shorn wool. The rate of payment will be determined after the end of the marketing year when the average price received by growers for shorn wool is known and the rate of payment to bring the average price received in the open market for shorn wool up to the announced incentive level can be determined. Price of domestic mohair is supported at 76 cents per pound. This amount is approximately 72 percent of the September 1962 parity price. For the first 6 marketing years under the National Wool Act, the support price for mohair was established at 70 cents. For the 1961 and 1962 marketing years the support price was set at 73 and 74 cents per pound, respectively. It is estimated that payments in the 1963 marketing year will be made on approximately 21 million pounds of mohair at 11 cents per pound amounting to $2.3 million. Exports of mohair.-The export of domestic mohair during 1961 was practically the same as for 1960; i.e., 16.5 million pounds. Exports for the first half of 1962, however, were more than 15 percent below the same period a year earlier. Market prices for mohair.-The national average price received by growers for mohair for the 1961 marketing year was 85.6 cents per pound. With the production of mohair continuing to increase and with exports off to a lower level than in the peak year of 1959, it is estimated that the prices to be received for mohair in 1962 and 1963 marketing years will be lower than in 1961. The currently projected price for mohair of 65 cents per pound during the 1962 and 1963 marketing years is well below the support levels of 74 and 76 cents, respectively, for these marketing years. The following tables reflect costs and reimbursements under the National Wool Act, and the detail of payments, by States, for the 1960 and 1961 marketing years: Expenditures and reimbursements to CCC under the National Wool Act Payments, by States, under the 1961 wool program through Aug. 31, 1962 Mr. WHITTEN. I believe it would be well for the record to show the pertinent provisions of law having to do with the production of wool, and the average payment as well as a listing of some reasonable percentage of the larger payments that may have been made to individuals and corporations. (The information follows:) |