50 U.S.C. App. 2162

for payment of interest under subsection (b) of this section by the President and such agencies as he may designate or create. Funds made available for the purposes of this Act may be allocated or transferred for any of the purposes of this Act, with the approval of the Bureau of the Budget, to any agency designated to assist in carrying out this Act. Funds so allocated or transferred shall remain available for such period as may be specified in the Acts making such funds available.

(b) Interest shall accrue on (1) the cumulative amount of disbursements to carry out the purposes of sections 302 and 303 (except for storage, maintenance, and other operating and administrative expenses), plus any unpaid accrued interest, less the cumulative amount of any funds received on transactions entered into pursuant to sections 302 and 303 and any net losses incurred by an agency in carrying out its functions under sections 302 and 303 when the head of the agency determines that such net losses have occurred; and (2) the current market value of the inventory of materials procured under section 303 as of the first day of each fiscal year commencing with the first fiscal year beginning July 1, 1975. At the close of each fiscal year there shall be deposited into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts, from any amounts appropriated under this section, an amount which the Secretary of the Treasury determines necessary to provide for the payment of any interest accrued and unpaid under this subsection. The rate of such interest shall be determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, taking into consideration the average market yield during the month preceding each fiscal year on outstanding marketable obligations of the United States with one year remaining to maturity.

SEC. 712. (a) There is hereby established a joint congressional committee to be known as the Joint Committee on Defense Production (hereinafter referred to as the committee), to be composed of ten members as follows:

(1) Five members who are members of the Committee on Banking and Currency of the Senate, three from the majority and two from the minority party, to be appointed by the chairman of the committee; and

(2) Five members who are members of the Committee on Banking and Currency of the House of Representatives, three from the majority and two from the minority party, to be appointed by the chairman of the committee.

A vacancy in the membership of the committee shall be filled in the same manner as the original selection. The committee shall elect a chairman and a vice chairman from among its members, one of whom shall be a Member of the Senate and the other a Member of the House of Representatives.

(b) It shall be the function of the committee to make a continuous study of the programs and of the fairness to consumers of the prices authorized by this Act and to review the progress achieved in the execution and administration thereof. Upon request, the committee shall aid the standing committees of the Congress having legislative jurisdiction over any part of the programs authorized by this Act; and it shall make a report to the Senate and the House of Representatives, from time to time, concerning the results of its studies, together with such recommendations as it may deem desirable. Any department, official, or agency administering any of such programs shall, at the request of the committee, consult with the committee, from time to time, with respect to their activities under this Act.

(c) The committee, or any duly authorized subcommittee thereof, is authorized to hold such hearings, to sit and act at such times and places, to require by subpena (to be issued under the signature of the chairman or vice chairman of the committee) or otherwise the attendance of such witnesses and the production of such books, papers, and documents, to administer such oaths, to take such testimony, to procure such printing and binding, and to make such expenditures as it deems advisable. The provisions of sections 102 to 104, inclusive, of the Revised Statutes shall apply in case of any failure of any witness to comply with any subpena or to testify when summoned under authority of this subsection.

(d) The committee is authorized to appoint and, without regard to the Classification Act of 1949, as amended, fix the compensation of such experts, consultants, technicians, and organizations thereof, and clerical and stenographic assistants as it deems necessary and advisable.

(e) The expenses of the committee under this section, which shall not exceed $100,000 in any fiscal year, shall be paid from the contingent fund of the House of Representatives upon vouchers signed by the chairman or vice chairman.

(f) The Secretary of Commerce shall make a special investigation and study of the production, allocation, distribution, use of nickel, or its resale as scrap, and of other aspects of the current situation with respect to supply and marketing of nickel, with particular attention to, among other things, the adequacy of the present system of nickel allocation between defense and civilian users. The Secretary of Commerce shall consult with the Joint Committee on Defense Production during the course of such investigation and study with respect to the progress achieved and the results of the investigation and study, and shall make an interim report on the results of the investigation and study on or before August 15, 1956, and shall, on or before December 31, 1956, make a final report on the results of such investigation and study, together with such rec

50 U.S.C. App. 2163

50 U.S.C. App. 2164

50 U.S.C. App. 2165

ommendations as the Secretary of Commerce deems advisable. Such reports shall be made to the Senate (or to the Secretary of the Senate if the Senate is not in session) and to the House of Representatives (or to the Clerk of the House of Representatives if the House is not in session).

SEC. 713. The provisions of this Act shall be applicable to the United States, its Territories and possessions, and the District of Columbia.

SEC. 714. [The Small Defense Plants Administration created by this section, added by the Defense Production Act amendments of 1951, was terminated at the close of July 31, 1953, and was succeeded by the Small Business Administration created under the Small Business Act of 1953. For purposes of section 301(a) of this Act, section 714(a)(1) defined a small-business concern thusly: "*** a small-business concern shall be deemed to be one which is independently owned and operated and which is not dominant in its field of operation," and provided that, "The Administration, in making a detailed definition, may use these criteria, among others: independency of ownership and operation, number of employees, dollar volume of business, and non-dominance in its field."]

SEC. 715. If any provision of this Act or the application of such provision to any person or circumstances shall be held invalid, the remainder of the Act, and the application of such provision to persons or circumstances other than those as to which it is held invalid, shall not be affected thereby.

SEC. 716. That no person may be employed under this Act who engages in a strike against the Government of the United States or who is a member of an organization of Government employees that asserts the right to strike against the Government of the United States, or who advocates, or who is a member of an organization that advocates, the overthrow of the Government of the United States by force or violence: Provided, That for the purposes hereof an affidavit shall be considered prima facie evidence that the person making the affidavit has not contrary to the provisions of this section engaged in a strike against the Government of the United States, is not a member of an organization of Government employees that asserts the right to strike against the Government of the United States or that such person does not advocate, and is not a member of an organization that advocates, the overthrow of the Government of the United States by force or violence: Provided further, That any person who engages in a strike against the Government of the United States or who is a member of an organization of Government employees that asserts the right to strike against the Government of the United States, or who advocates, or who is a member of an organization that advocates the overthrow of the Government of the

United States by force or violence and accepts employment the salary or wages for which are paid from any appropriation or fund contained in this Act shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, shall be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned for not more than one year, or both: Provided further, That the above penalty clause shall be in addition to, and not in substitution for, any other provisions of existing law.

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SEC. 717. (a) Title I (except section 104), title III, and 50 U.S.C. App. title VII (except sections 708, 714 and 719) of this Act, and all authority conferred thereunder shall terminate at the close of September 30, 1977: Provided, That all authority hereby or hereafter extended under title III of this Act shall be effective for any fiscal year only to such extent or in such amounts as are provided in advance in appropriation Acts. Section 714 of this Act, and all authority conferred thereunder shall terminate at the close of July 31, 1953. Section 104, title II, and title VI of this Act, and all authority conferred thereunder, shall terminate at the close of June 30, 1953. Title IV and V of this Act, and all authority conferred thereunder, shall terminate at the close of April 30, 1953.

(b) Notwithstanding the foregoing

(1) The Congress by concurrent resolution or the President by proclamation may terminate this Act prior to the termination otherwise provided therefor.

(2) The Congress may also provide by concurrent resolution that any section of this Act and all authority conferred thereunder shall terminate prior to the termination otherwise provided therefor.

(3) Any agency created under this Act may be continued in existence for purposes of liquidation for not to exceed six months after the termination of the provision authorizing the creation of such agency.

(c) The termination of any section of this Act, or of any agency or corporation utilized under this Act, shall not affect the disbursement of funds under, or the carrying out of, any contract, guarantee, commitment or other obligation entered into pursuant to this Act prior to the date of such termination, or the taking of any action necessary to preserve or protect the interests of the United States in any amounts advanced or paid out in carrying on operations under this Act, or the taking of any action (including the making of new guarantees) deemed by a guaranteeing agency to be necessary to accomplish the orderly liquidation, adjustment, or settlement of any loans guaranteed under this Act, including actions deemed necessary to avoid undue hardship to borrowers in reconverting to normal civilian production; and all of the authority granted to the President, guaranteeing agencies, and fiscal agents, under section 301 of this Act shall be applicable to actions taken pursuant to the authority contained in this subsection.

50 U.S.C. App. 2167

50 U.S.C. App. 2168

Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the termination of title VI or any section thereof shall not be construed as affecting any obligation, condition, liability, or restriction arising out of any agreement heretofore entered into pursuant to, or under the authority of, section 602 or section 605 of this Act, or any issuance thereunder, by any person or corporation and the Federal Government or any agency thereof relating to the provision of housing for defense workers or military personnel in an area designated as a critical defense housing area pursuant to law.

(d) No action for the recovery of any cooperative payment made to a cooperative association by a Market Administrator under an invalid provision of a milk marketing order issued by the Secretary of Agriculture pursuant to the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 shall be maintained unless such action is brought by producers specifically named as party plaintiffs to recover their respective share of such payments within ninety days after the date of enactment of the Defense Production Act Amendments of 1952 with respect to any cause of action heretofore accrued and not otherwise barred, or within ninety days after accrual with respect to future payments, and unless each claimant shall allege and prove (1) that he objected at the hearing to the provisions of the order under which such payments were made and (2) that he either refused to accept payments computed with such deduction or accepted them under protest to either the Secretary or the Administrator. The district courts of the United States shall have exclusive original jurisdiction of all such actions regardless of the amount involved. This subsection shall not apply to funds held in escrow pursuant to court order. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, no termination date shall be applicable to this subsection.

SEC. 718. The Comptroller General, in cooperation with the Secretary of Defense and the Director of the Bureau of the Budget, shall undertake a study to determine the feasibility of applying uniform cost accounting standards to be used in all negotiated prime contract and subcontract defense procurements of $100,000 or more. In carrying out such study the Comptroller General shall consult with representatives of the accounting profession and with representatives of that segment of American industry which is actively engaged in defense contracting. The results of such study shall be reported to the Committees on Banking and Currency and the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives at the earliest practicable date, but in no event later than eighteen months after the date of enactment of this section.

COST-ACCOUNTING STANDARDS BOARD

SEC. 719. (a) There is established, as an agent of the