Published November 1982 — Download PDF of the original newspaper column
Byrd's-Eye View By U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd A Plan for Recovery With over 11.5 million Americans out of work in our country, the most serious and pressing problem facing us is how to put people back on their jobs. It is a problem that demands an immediate and lasting solution. Over the course of this year, I have developed and introduced several pieces of legislation to get our economy moving and put our people back to work, including: -- Legislation to keep interest rates down to affordable levels. Unacceptably high interest rates have threatened economic recovery in our country by thwarting business expansion, causing record numbers of business bankruptcies, and making home ownership an impossibility for many. My legislation would direct the Federal Reserve Board to take interest rates into account when setting monetary policy, and would compel the Board to keep those rates down to reasonable and affordable levels. -- Legislation to end the unfair practices of many of our foreign trading partners. Too many American jobs have been lost to foreign workers because of the unfair trading practices of our foreign competitors, including thousands of steel jobs here in West Virginia. My legislation would make certain that we can trade with foreign countries on a fair and equal basis, and end the unfair subsidization of foreign products that is costing the jobs of our workers. -- Legislation to encourage the sale of more of our coal overseas. We West Virginians understand the importance (Text Cut Off) sources. Exporting greater quantities of coal overseas would not only provide more jobs in West Virginia, but would also have a favorable impact on our balance of trade. Under my legislation, which I introduced earlier this year, our country's coal ports would be deepened and modernized, thereby making it possible for foreign countries to use their larger and more economical coal-carrying vessels that cannot now be accommodated in our antiquated ports. In past years, I have worked hard to modernize and upgrade our inland waterway system, which is an integral part of our coal-shipping network. That was an important and necessary first step in increasing our coal exports, and we must now turn our efforts to improving our eoal ports to complete that network. -- Legislation to put our miners and construction workers on the task of reclaiming abandoned mine sites. This legislation would serve a dual purpose. Not only would it put unemployed construction workers and coal miners to work, but it would also remove the environmental hazards created by abandoned mine sites. Finally, I am developing legislation that would create a National Investment Corporation, which would provide affordable credit to our nation's businesses and industries so they could expand and become productive once again. These are the kinds of forward-looking ideas we must pursue, and pursue quickly, if we are to put our economy back on sound footing and our (Text Cut Off)