Show r Study New Plan For Interstate I Trade Trader Barriers t fl r WASHINGTON Interstate Interstate trade C barriers are being lowered Many ManyI state legislatures this year prevented prevent prevent- I ed the raising of new economic barriel's barriers barriers bar bar- riel's to trade between the states r and some legislatures pulled down r old barriers A ton fon was principally principal principal- r ly ly in the South where Kentucky is isnow isnow now the only state having a maximum maxi- maxi r mum trucking load limit of only f pounds gross weight Elset Elser Elsewhere Else- Else t- t r- r i where the load limit has been raised to pounds or more Texas had a law requiring that the net loads on trucks could not exceed pounds if the truck was 1 to go past a railroad station The load could be pounds if the truck was going only to the nearest railroad This law has been repealed repealed repealed re re- re- re pealed and the load limit raised to pounds gross weight Alabama raised the load limit from to pounds Tennessee had a 10 cent tax on margarine Now the tax applies only to margarine made of foreign oils lolls Mississippi has repealed sits tax on retailers of margarine in that state In New England the states have initiated uniform uniform rules on the movement of cattle with re- re to Bangs Bang's disease The j story everywhere reveals a trend i i against trade barriers since the U U. S. S department of agriculture began began began be- be gan gan its campaign against these barriers barriers bar- bar Tiers two years ago t. t A special report issued by the bureau bureau bureau bu bu- reau of agricultural economics in 1939 Barriers 1939 Barriers to Internal Trade in hi Farm Products Products called called attention to toI I the rapid growth of discriminatory laws and regulations which have the effect of interstate tariffs and em- em The report showed that t i such laws and regulations are interfering interfering interfering inter- inter fering seriously with the free movement movement movement move move- ment and sale of farm products raising the cost of marketing increasing increasing increasing in- in creasing prices of food and clothing clothing clothing cloth cloth- ing to the consumer and lowering I the consumption of these products Serious Trade Barriers I s Studies by a number of federal and state age agencies cies have confirmed t the bureaus bureau's findings and have brought to light the existence of I. I 4 many serious trade barriers which r were not covered inthe bureaus bureau's re- re port At the 1939 sessions of the thet t state state legislatures many proposed additions ad- ad editions to state barriers were blocked This year year year-in in 1941 when 1941 when f more than 40 state legislatures met r additional barriers were blocked or 1 torn down The removal of interstate trade 1 barriers has become an important t national issue according to F. F V. V Waugh of the bureau of agricultural economics Farmers dealers dealerS' and consumers consumers throughout the country want to see our marketing laws and regulations overhauled in such a away way as to permit free trade without sacrificing any of the legitimate purposes purposes purr pur- pur r poses of regulations These legitimate legitimate legitimate mate purposes include the protection protection protection tion of public health the prevention of the spread of insect pests and diseases and the protection of highways highways highways high- high ways from excessive damage Threaten Defense Program Mr Waugh says There are some practical possibilities for eliminating the worst of the trade barriers in agriculture State commissioners of agriculture with whom some of these possibilities were discussed last December were very interested Many of the state commissioners of I agriculture believe that if fed federal ral ralf f and state officials could agree on a ar r program there would be a real possibility possibility post pos- pos t of getting the necessary federal federal fedi fed- fed i eral leral and state legislation this year r Also that inasmuch as trade barriers barriers barriers bar- bar represent an obvious threat to toI I our lour defense program now is an opportune opportune op- op time to push legislation for freer interstate trade Until about 25 years ye rs ago non- non uniform grades for farm products presented many serious trade barrier barrier bar bar- rier problems For example wheat Which had been inspected and fed fled as as to grade grad e in the producing r estate State might not be acceptable in outside the state Potatoes rated as No 1 grade in one market might night be called No 2 in another market and sold there at a discount During the past 25 years ears this situation situation situation situa- situa situa situa- tion has been improved greatly a program developed and carried out jointly by the federal and state tate departments of agriculture This program has accomplished two things 1 It has brought about gradually more and more uniformity ty in the standards and grades used throughout the country 2 It has I provided an inspection service whose certificates of quality are accepted accepted accepted ac ac- as passports in interstate commerce A certificate showing that a carload of potatoes h has s been 1 inspected and is up to the U. U S. S No 1 standard is now accepted in any part of the country as an indic indication indication indi indi- c cation tion of the actual quality This standardization and certification certification certification tion service has virtually eliminated ted trade barriers that once existed because because be- be i. i cause of differences in grading requirements ref requirements re- re f and in inspection techniques techniques techniques tech tech- for some of the principal y agricultural products Mr Waugh suggests a similar program of fed fed- state eral-state operation co-operation to deal with other aspects of trade barriers Federal studies have shown that sanitary laws and regulations have set up a number of monopolistic 7 and discriminatory trade barriers which restrict milk and cream sheds raise prices to consumers a raise costs to producers and arbitrarily arbitrarily arbitrarily arbi arbi- deny many dairymen the opportunity opportunity opportunity op op- to sell their products inthe in inthe the most profitable market There seem to be two basic troubles with milk inspection at the present time 1 l Lack of uniformity in sanitary requirements 2 the refusal of cities cities cities cit cit- cit cit- ies and states to accept outside in in- These are the same problems problems problems lems which have been met rather successfully in m the case of grading Mr Waugh says that greater uniformity uniformity uniformity uni uni- is needed in sanitary re re- |