1 Reporter's Statement of the Case Price" defendant had previously offered for a sale to it of the property and which plaintiff had rejected. 17. The property taken by the defendant from the plaintiff under the requisition consisted of aluminum sheets, circles, coils, tubing and rivets which plaintiff had purchased cut to shapes and ready for use in manufacturing cooking utensils without undue waste, but which had become "Idle Inventory" by virtue of the aluminum conservation order of the defendant. All of this property was new, bright finish, fabricated aluminum. It was pure commercial aluminum. None of it was scrap, obsolete, damaged or defective material. 18. February 21, 1942, the Office of Price Administration, acting under the provisions of Section 206 of the Emergency Price Control Act of 1942 (Pub. No. 421, 77th Cong., 2d Sess.) republished in the Federal Register a pre-existing maximum price regulation called "Revised Price Schedule No. 2." On February 26, 1942, the Office of Price Administration issued Amendment No. 1 to Revised Price Schedule No. 2, which remained in effect through May 20, 1942. As thus amended Revised Price Schedule read in part as follows: § 1302.1 Maximum prices of aluminum scrap and secondary aluminum ingot. (a) On and after November 1, 1941, regardless of the terms of any contract of sale or purchase or other commitment no person shall sell, offer to sell, deliver or transfer, aluminum scrap or secondary aluminum ingot, and no person shall buy, offer to buy, or accept delivery of, aluminum scrap or secondary aluminum ingot, at prices higher than the maximum prices set forth in §§ 1302.10 and 1302.11, Appendices A and B hereof, except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section. (b) On and after February 26, 1942, any person may sell, offer to sell, deliver or transfer to the Metals Reserve Company, or its duly authorized agent or agents, aluminum scrap, pursuant to the program with respect to idle or excessive inventories of aluminum materials adopted and announced by the War Production Board, Division of Industry Operations, on February 24, 1942, and the Metals Reserve Company, or its duly authorized agent or agents, may buy, offer to buy, or accept delivery of, aluminum scrap, pursuant to such program, without regard to the provisions of Price Schedule No. Reporter's Statement of the Case 107 C. Cls. 2: Provided, however, That the provisions of Price Schedule No. 2 shall apply to all sales, deliveries or transfers, of such aluminum scrap by the Metals Reserve Company or its duly authorized agent or agents. § 1302.7 Modification of Price Schedule No. 2. Persons complaining of hardship or inequity in the operation of Price Schedule No. 2 may apply to the Office of Price Administration for approval of any modification thereof or exception therefrom: Provided, That no application under this section will be considered unless the person making such application shall have, to the satisfaction of the Office of Price Administration, complied with Price Schedule No. 2. § 1302.8 Definitions. When used in Price Schedule No. 2, the term: (b) "Aluminum scrap" means the grades of aluminum scrap set forth in § 1302.10, Appendix A, of this Revised Price Schedule No. 2. These grades include all aluminum materials which are the waste or byproduct of any kind of metal working, as well as materials which have been discarded from inventory or use because of obsolescence, failure or other reason, and which are to be remelted for further use. * § 1302.10 Appendix A: Maximum prices for aluminum scrap. [There followed a table quoting maximum f. o. b. point of shipment for various classifications and quantities, including the following:] Plant scrap: Segregated 2S: Clips or other 2S solids. 10 cents per pound in lots less than 1,000 pounds. 11 cents per pound in lots of 1,000 to 20,000 pounds (if shipped by truck) or 1,000 to minimum carload (if shipped by rail). 112 cents per pound in lots of 20,000 pounds or more (if shipped by truck) or minimum carload (if shipped by rail). 19. Simultaneously with Amendment No. 1 to Revised Price Schedule No. 2 the Office of Price Administration issued the following statement of the considerations involved therein: 1 Reporter's Statement of the Case OFFICE OF PRICE ADMINISTRATION STATEMENT OF THE CONSIDERATIONS INVOLVED IN THE ISSU- In accordance with the provisions of Section 2 (a) of the Emergency Price Control Act of 1942 (Pub. No. 421, 77th Cong., 2d Sess.), I hereby issue simultaneously with Amendment No. 1 to Revised Price Schedule No. 2 the following statement of the considerations involved: On February 24, 1942, the War Production Board, Division of Industry Operations, announced the adoption of a program for acquiring aluminum materials comprising idle and excessive inventories in the hands of manufacturing users of aluminum. Such inventories are defined as that aluminum which is in excess of the amount required to be put into production during the next ninety days in order to meet scheduled deliveries on "A" rated orders. Included also are aluminum materials which cannot be used by their holders because of war restrictions. It is estimated that by this program approximately twenty million pounds will be made available for use in essential military production, which will help to relieve current shortages. The Metals Reserve Company is offering to purchase these aluminum materials at prices recommended by the War Production Board. If holders of these materials refuse to accept voluntarily the prices offered, the War Production Board may have to resort to requisitioning. A high percentage of the materials involved in this program will be remelted for further use and, therefore, would be classified as scrap under the provisions of Price Schedule No. 2. In view of the fact that such materials have been rendered useless in the hands of their holders by war restrictions, the War Production Board has recommended that the Metals Reserve Company purchase such materials at prices higher than the maximum prices established for scrap in Price Schedule No. 2. Therefore, this Office has been requested by the War Production Board to except purchases made by the Metals Reserve Company pursuant to this program from the provisions of Price Schedule No. 2. In response to this request and in order to cooperate with the War Production Board and the Metals Reserve Company in putting this program into effect, Amendment No. 1 to Revised Price Schedule No. 2, issued simultaneously Reporter's Statement of the Case 107 C. Cls. herewith, allows such exception. By the terms of Amendment No. 1, however, the provisions of Price Schedule No. 2 continue to apply to all sales of such materials by the Metals Reserve Company. In this way the existing price structure in the secondary aluminum field will not be disrupted. The War Production Board has announced that the Metals Reserve Company will offer to purchase castings, forgings and any obsolete, damaged, or imperfect material, or material where the alloy is not definitely determined and segregated, at prices not in excess of the maximum prices established for scrap in Price Schedule No. 2. Likewise secondary ingot will not be purchased by the Metals Reserve Company at prices higher than those established for ingot in Price Schedule No. 2. The amendment to paragraph (b) of 1302.8 of Price Schedule No. 2 merely embodies the administrative interpretation of the term "aluminum scrap" which has been followed since the Price Schedule was issued. Issued this 26th day of February 1942. LEON HENDERSON, Administrator. 20. At the time of requisitioning plaintiff was unable to use the material for the manufacture of cooking utensils. Had it been permitted to do so, plaintiff could have held the material in stock for use in such manufacture after the emergency had passed and the various orders were no longer effective. 21. Had they not been requisitioned the plaintiff could have sold its materials to any buyer except Metals Reserve Company for remelting on May 20, 1942, at the following prices then prevailing: 112 cents per pound for Grade 2S, and 11 cents per pound for Grade 3S. At these prevailing prices the plaintiff's 83,140 pounds of Grade 2S materials would have been sold for $9,561.10 and its 62,908 pounds of Grade 3S for $6,919.88, making a total market value of $16,480.98 for the entire lot that was requisitioned. 22. Plaintiff on May 20, 1942, was privileged to have sold its aluminum in the general market to manufacturers or dealers for permitted uses, "as is," at the same price charged by the Aluminum Company of America for the same commodities at the time of taking as shown in its October 1, 1941, price list, or at a price of $42,847.18, provided it could have 1 Reporter's Statement of the Case found a buyer. However, plaintiff, not knowing who had war contracts, was unable to find a buyer in the market. before the property was requisitioned. Commencing in July 1944 plaintiff was awarded several contracts to make aluminum water pitchers for the Navy which were made from aluminum circles and tubing similar to that requisitioned and taken by defendant from plaintiff. 23. August 15, 1944, the defendant, through the WPB, issued "General Limitation Order L-30-e," permitting the manufacture of commercial and household cooking utensils out of aluminum by any person receiving an allotment of aluminum and an authorized production schedule from the War Production Board. Plaintiff applied for and did receive such an allotment and production schedule, but was unable to obtain aluminum until May 1945, when a small quantity was obtained. If plaintiff's inventory of aluminum had been on hand at this time it could have been used for the purpose of manufacturing cooking utensils. 24. Plaintiff was the sole owner of the aluminum at the time it was requisitioned and taken by the defendant, and now is the sole owner of the claim sued upon. Plaintiff has at all times borne true allegiance to the Government of the United States. 25. The aluminum requisitioned and taken by defendant from the plaintiff was purchased by plaintiff at a cost of $45,918.07 plus $203.85 cost of handling at plaintiff's plant from freight cars or highway trucks into storage, or a total cost to plaintiff of $46,121.92. 26. Because of the orders issued by the defendant, plaintiff could not replace the aluminum requisitioned and taken by defendant on the date of taking. The price list nearest to the date of taking under which plaintiff could have replaced the said aluminum in the open market was the Aluminum Company of America price list in effect during the period November 18, 1940-September 30, 1941. Based upon this price list the replacement cost of the aluminum requisitioned and taken by defendant from plaintiff is $45,763.49. |