and hull losses occurring on the high seas and attributable to military action by Germany in World War II. The subject bill, H. R. 10549, relates not only to such claims arising from losses in the countries named above, but also to the same categories of claims arising from losses occurring in Japan and territory occupied by the Japanese during the period between July 7, 1937, and September 2, 1945, and resulting from military or naval operations of Japan in World War II. The Japaneseoccupied territory is defined in the bill as meaning "any territory occupied by the military or naval forces of Japan." The Department of State on June 7, 1955, submitted to the Congress, as a part of the President's international claims program, draft legislation which would authorize the payment of claims of nationals of the United States resulting from World War II in a number of European countries including Germany. This proposal was introduced in the House June 8, 1955, as H. R. 6730, and in the Senate June 14, 1955, as S. 2227. A complete explanation of the provisions of H. R. 6730 may be found in the Congressional Record for June 8, 1955, volume 101, No. 95, beginning at page A4062. These bills, which represent the executive branch proposals in these respects, have the complete approval and support of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission. They were developed after consideration of all of the technicalities involved in such a program as well as the best interests of Americans who suffered such losses including those who lost their lives or became disabled by the sinking of such ships as the Athenia in 1939. The Commission has heretofore, under date of November 25, 1955, submitted to the committee its views with respect to the bill, H. R. 6730, and has recommended favorable consideration of that bill by the committee. The subject bill, H. R. 10549, is an extension of the claims provisions of H. R. 6730, but does not include proposed amendments to the Trading With the Enemy Act, as amended, which are found in H. R. 6730. Such proposed amendments relate to the return of certain former German assets vested by or transferred to the Office of Alien Property, Department of Justice. With respect to the provisions of the subject bill, H. R. 10549, which extends recognition to claims against Japan, the attention of the committee is invited to the following facts: (1) The Guam Relief Act, Public Law 224, 79th Congress, approved November 15, 1945 (59 Stat. 582), provided for the payment by the Secretary of the Navy of claims up to an amount of $5,000 to permanent residents of Guam for damage, loss, or destruction of property arising out of hostilities or hostile occupation in Guam. (2) The Philippine Rehabilitation Act of 1946, Public Law 370, 79th Congress, approved April 30, 1946 (60 Stat. 128; 50 U. S. App. 1751), provided for the compensation by the United States on account of physical loss or destruction of or damage to property in the Philippines arising out of World War II, to the extent of 52.5 percent of the established loss. The act stated that in case the aggregate amount of claims payable to 1 claimant exceeds $500, the aggregate amount of the claims approved in favor of such claimant shall be reduced by 25 percent of the excess over $500. (3) The treaty of peace with Japan, signed on September 8, 1951, effective as of April 28, 1952, states in article 14 (b) that the Allied Powers waive all reparation claims of the Allied Powers, and all claims of their nationals arising out of any actions taken by Japan and its nationals in the course of the prosecution of World War II claims as well as claims of the Allied Powers for direct military costs of occupation, except as otherwise provided for in the treaty. Claims not waived by the treaty consisted of war damage claims with respect to property situated in Japan proper during the war period and to the claims of prisoners of war taken by Japan other than Americans captured by the Japanese. American prisoners were compensated under the War Claims Act of 1948. As of April 30, 1956, the last reporting date, 303 out of 599 American claimants had received awards totaling slightly more than $16,500,000 on account of such property claims. It thus appears there has been a substantial satisfaction of property loss claims attributable to Japanese action in the Philippines and Guam, both of which would be included in the subject bill which would recognize claims for losses arising in "Japanese-occupied territory." The Commission believes that these two areas should be excluded to avoid any possibility of double benefits. According to the best estimates of the Commission, the value of real property owned by United States nationals and legal entities controlled by United States nationals, in Burma, China, Hong Kong, Indochina, Indonesia, and New Guinea amounted to roughly $1,500 million. Of this real property, an estimated $180 million was subject to some 15-percent war damage attributable to Japanese war action. This real property was owned by an estimated number of less than 3,000 owners. Of these owners, about 2,000 suffered losses not exceeding $10,000 and about 1,000 losses in excess of $10,000. The total number of claimants and the value of the property losses sustained as a result of the war with Japan appear to be close to the following figures: It must be noted that the above figures represent estimates with respect to real property only in areas occupied by Japan, with the exception of Guam and the Philippine Islands. Claims for war losses in these two areas have already been settled under the Guam Relief Act of 1945 and the Philippine Rehabilitation Act of 1946. Claims for war damages in Japan proper, including Korea and Formosa, are also excluded from this estimate. An additional estimated 1,900 claims could be added to the above total arising out of other classes of claims attributable to the Japanese war action (claims for personal property, debt claims, personal injury, death, etc.). The total amount of claims estimated under this class is $18,110,844. It is further estimated that between 200 and 250 claims for maritime losses attributable to Japan would amount to some $4,950,000. The total of all these figures can be recapitulated as follows: (1) Loss or damage to real property in Japanese occupied areas (outside Guam and Philippines) (2) Loss or damage to personal property in Japanese occupied areas (outside Guam and Philippines) – (3) Loss or damage on the high seas (maritime losses) -- Total amount of estimated claims____. $28, 017, 795 18, 110, 844 4,950, 000 51,078. 639 Not included in this estimate are claims for damages to real and personal property in Japan including Korea and Formosa. No estimate with respect to the number of claimants and the amount of claims is available at the present time for this area. The total amount of claims inside Japan, however, including Korea and Formosa, for war damage arising out of the war with Japan would probably not exceed $9 million. The total amount of all the claims involved by the proposed legislation and attributable to the war action of Japan would, therefore, amount to roughly $60 million, from which amount are excluded claims for war damage in Guam and in the Philippines. With respect to the financing of the proposed claims program provided for in the subject bill, it may be pointed out that there remain no Japanese assets or the proceeds of such assets, according to the Commission's information, from which payments of such claims could be made. Although the bill would establish a joint German and Japanese claims fund and would not disturb the pending proposals for the transfer to that fund of certain payments to be made by the Republic of Germany, payment of the Japanese claims that would be authorized by the subject bill depend upon arrangements for similar payments to be made to the United States by the Government of Japan. It would thus appear that provisions for a Japanese claims program comparable to the proposed German claims program are premature. The question of the eventual availability of funds for the payment of claims against Japan or attributable to Japanese military action in World War II is not a question upon which the Commission feels it can appropriately comment. During World War II the United States seized and vested certain Japanese assets from which it derived, through liquidation, the sum of approximately $60 million. This sum was subsequently transferred to the war claims fund for the payment of claims authorized by the War Claims Act of 1948, as amended. This amount was supplemented by the net proceeds of certain liquidated German assets bringing the total amount so transferred to $225 million, Approximately $160 million was taken from the fund for the payment of claims attributable to Japan. Whatever assets remain in the war claims fund must, therefore, be deemed to have derived from the proceeds of German assets. The Commission does not feel that the further expenditures of non-Japanese funds from the war claims fund would be justified for payment of claims based upon war losses attributable to Japan. In view of the foregoing the Commission would not favor enactment of H. R. 10549. Informal advice has been received from the Bureau of the Budget that there would be no objection to the presentation of this report to your committee. Sincerely yours, WHITNEY GILLILLAND, Chairman. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Hon. J. PERCY PRIEST, Chairman, Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, House of Representatives, Washington, D. C. DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: This is in response to your request for the views of the Department of Justice concerning the bill (H. R. 10549) To amend the War Claims Act of 1948, as amended. The bill would provide for the payment of compensation to American World War II damage claimants against Germany and Japan. Insofar as it relates to damage claimants against Germany the provisions of the bill are the same as those of sections 5, 6, 7, and 8 of the bill H. R. 6730. As stated in its report to your committee on December 1, 1955 the Department of Justice supports the enactment of the administration proposal (H. R. 6730). Whether legislation should be enacted which would include claimants against 'Japan is a matter on which this Department prefers to make no recommendation. The Bureau of the Budget has advised that there is no objection to the submission of this report. DEAR MR. PRIEST: Further reference is made to your letter of April 19, 1956, regarding H. R. 10549, to amend the War Claims Act of 1948, as amended. With one important difference H. R. 10549 is substantially the same as section 7 of H. R. 6730 which, with its companion bill, S. 2227, contains the proposals of the Administration for a limited return of German and Japanese vested assets and for the settlement of American war claims against Germany. H. R. 10549 would, however, also authorize the settlement of claims against Japan of American nationals which arose during the period from July 7, 1937, to September 2, 1945. Claims of this latter character were not included in H. R. 6730 and its companion bill for the reasons indicated by the Secretary of State in his letter dated June 6, 1956, to the Speaker of the House and by Deputy Under Secretary of State, Hon. Robert D. Murphy, in his statement before the subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Committee, on November 29, 1955. As of possible interest, there is enclosed a copy of the Department's press release of Mr. Murphy's statement. As stated in the Secretary's letter to the Speaker, the purpose of the claims program envisaged in H. R. 6730 is to afford some relief to American war claimants against Germany by restoring and making available to them the equivalent of funds derived from German vested assets, which had been used for other pur poses under the War Claims Act of 1948-largely to pay war claims against Japan. If these funds had not been so used, they would have been available at the discretion of the Congress to pay American property damage claimants against Germany. The creation of the $100 million fund as proposed in H. R. 6730 would not, therefore, establish a precedent for the payment of American property damage claims against foreign governments out of public moneys. However, the provisions of H. R. 10549, insofar as they authorize payment of property damage claims against Japan, would involve a substantial expenditure of public funds and the department is therefore not prepared to recommend favorable action on H. R. 10549 but instead recommends early and favorable action on H. R. 6730. It might be pointed out that American nationals having claims against Japan either for loss of life or injury or for property loss or damage have had compensation provided in the following cases: (1) Prisoners of war and civilian internees who suffered personal hardship have been compensated under the War Claims Act of 1948 as amended. (2) American nationals whose property was lost or damaged in the Philippines were compensated under the Philippine Rehabilitation Act of 1946. This act also compensated personnel whose bank accounts in the Philippines were confiscated by the Japanese. (3) American nationals whose property in Japan was lost or damaged during World War II are being compensated by the Japanese Government under article 15 (a) of the treaty of peace. In addition to the foregoing the Department is rendering assistance in the submission of claims to the Japanese Government on behalf of American nationals who lost their lives or who suffered personal injury or property damage prior to the outbreak of war. Under article 18 (a) of the treaty of peace, this type of claim was excluded from the claims against Japan by Allied nationals which were waived by article 14 (b) of the treaty. There remain, however, certain other categories of American nationals who suffered loss of or damage to property at the hands of the Japanese and for whom the Japanese Peace Treaty and the Philippine Rehabilitation Act and the War Claims Act of 1948 make no provisions. Included in such categories are American nationals who suffered losses during World War II in such countries as China and Indonesia where there is little likelihood of any adequate war damage compensation being paid by the Governments of these countries. In the past the United States Government has not generally compensated its citizens with appropriated funds for property losses in foreign countries as a result of war and the Department of States is not willing to recommend a different policy with respect to these cases. The Department has been informed by the Bureau of the Budget that there is no objection to the submission of this report. Sincerely yours, ROBERT C. HILL, Assistant Secretary. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, BUREAU OF THE BUDGET, Washington, D. C., June 6, 1956. Hon. J. PERCY PRIEST, Chairman, Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, MY DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: This is in reply to your letter of April 19, 1956, requesting the views of this Office with respect to H. R. 10549, to amend the War Claims Act of 1948, as amended. The Secretary of State, in the report he is making to your committee on this bill, is recommending against its enactment for the reasons set out therein. This Bureau concurs with the views contained in this report and recommends that this measure not be enacted. Sincerely yours, PERCY RAPPAPORT, Assistant Director. THE GENERAL COUNSEL OF THE TREASURY, Hon. J. PERCY PRIEST, Chairman, Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, Washington, D. C. MY DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: Reference is made to your letter of April 30, 1956, requesting a statement of this Department's views on H. R. 10889, to amend the Trading With the Enemy Act, as amended. The proposed legislation would amend section 32 (a) (2) (D) of the Trading With the Enemy Act of 1917, as amended, to permit the return of property to individuals who since the vesting in or transfer of their property to the Alien Property Custodian have acquired United States citizenship and to permit claims to be filed under the amended subsection for a period of 1 year after the date of the enactment of the proposed bill. Since it is believed that the subject of the proposed legislation is primarily the concern of the Department of Justice rather than the Treasury Department, this Department has no comment to make with respect to the merits of the legislation. Very truly yours, FRED C. SCRIBNER, Jr., General Counsel. Hon. J. PERCY PRIEST, UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Chairman, Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, House of Representatives, Washington, D. C. DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: This is in response to your request for the views of the Department of Justice concerning the bill (H. R. 10889), to amend the Trading With the Enemy Act, as amended. The second proviso of section 32 (a) (2) (D) of the Trading With the Enemy Act, as amended ((5) U. S. C. App. 32 (a) (2) (D)) presently authorizes the return of vested property to (1) individuals who at all times after December 7, 1941, were citizens of the United States, and (2) certain individuals who, having lost United States citizenship by marriage to a foreign national, reacquired such citizenship prior to the date of enactment of the proviso, September 29, 1950. The third proviso of section 32 (a) (2) (D) limits the total of the returns under the second proviso to property with an aggregate book value of $9 million. Book values are values reflected on the records of the Office of Alien Property as of the times of vesting. The bill would amend the second proviso to authorize returns to a new category of individuals, i. e., individuals who have acquired American citizenship since the dates of vesting of their property. This category would include former enemy nationals not resident in the United States during World War II who came to this country and acquired United States citizenship after the war. The subject bill would have no effect on the third proviso of section 32 (a) (2) (D) and claims allowed under the bill would have to come within the overall $9 million figure set forth in the third proviso. As of June 30, 1955, the total book value of all claims filed under that section was approximately $7,875,650 and $3,633,219.25 of these claims had been allowed. It is, of course, not possible to state how much of the balance will be allowed and how much of the book value the subject bill would require for returns to the new category of persons it proposes. However, it is possible that the $9 million figure would not cover all existing claims and claims under this bill. Under section 33 of the Trading With the Enemy Act the time for filing claims under section 32 expired on February 9, 1955, or 2 years from the date of the vesting of the claimed property, whichever was later. Since the last vesting order under the Trading With the Enemy Act was issued by the Office of Alien Property on April 17, 1953, the last date for filing claims was April 17, 1955. The bill provides that notwithstanding section 33 any person who has not already filed a claim under section 32 (a) (2) (D) may do so at any time within 1 year of enactment of the bill. |