500.C115/345
Memorandum by the Assistant Secretary of State (Carr)
In further relation to the acceptance on the part of the United States of the invitation to become a member of the International Labor Organization, Mr. Mackey12 telephoned me this morning at the request of Mr. Douglas, Director of the Bureau of the Budget, to say that Mr. Douglas had addressed a memorandum to the President in which he had said substantially that membership in the Organization was estimated to cost approximately $300,000 a year; that the resolution adopted by Congress does not authorize an appropriation; that in the absence of an appropriation he doubted the legality of accepting membership and thereby creating an obligation; that, moreover, Congress passed the resolution upon the understanding that no expenditure be involved during the fiscal year 1935 and that he recommended that acceptance of the invitation be deferred until the legislative body has an opportunity to determine whether the expenditure necessary should be incurred.
Subsequently, Mr. Sayre13 and I had a conference with the Secretary of State, and placed these facts before him, and the Secretary stated that in view of Mr. Douglas’s attitude, the fact that Representative McReynolds14 had assured the House that there would be no cost to the Government in 1935,15 and that the resolution contained no specific authorization of an appropriation and under Mr. Douglas’s interpretation would necessitate the adoption of a new authorizing resolution, the acceptance should go over until next winter, after Congress shall have had an opportunity to determine whether it will authorize the expenditure which membership in the organization would entail.