Executive Order 6657—Regulations for Payment of Losses Sustained by Officers, Enlisted Men, and Employees of the United States in Foreign Countries Due to Appreciation of Foreign Currencies in Their Relation to the American Dollar

[APP NOTE: This executive order was signed by the president but never distributed. It was superseded by Executive Order No. 6657-A . Below is a letter from the Secretary of State and text of the signed order. See also the downloadable PDF file of internal State Department notes. This order and all notes were obtained from the archives of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library. ] DEPARTMENT OF STATE Washington Executive Order No. 6657, March 27, 1934, was signed by the President. There were, however, some changes which were necessary and some omissions to be inserted, and as a result the order was immediately superseded by Executive Order No. 6657-A of the same date, March 27, 1934. Therefore, Executive Order No. 6657 was never actually in operation. CORDELL HULL Secretary of State. Executive Order ------- Regulations for Payment of Losses Sustained by Officers, Enlisted Men, and Employees of the United States in Foreign Countries Due to Appreciation of Foreign Currencies in Their Relation to the American Dollar Pursuant to the authority vested in me by the act entitled "An Act to authorize annual appropriations to meet losses sustained by officers and employees of the United States in foreign countries due to appreciation of foreign currencies in their relation to the American dollar, and for other purposes", approved March 26, 1934, and in order to afford immediate relief, I prescribe the following temporary regulations, which shall apply to all officers, enlisted men, and employees of the United States while in service in foreign countries. DEFINITION 1. The words in the act "while in service in foreign countries", for the purpose of these regulations, shall be understood to mean ( a ) while employed in or on assignment or detail to a post of duty in a foreign country, ( b ) while en route through a foreign country or on a foreign vessel to or from such post, ( c ) while, during such assignment or detail abroad, on leave of absence with pay in a foreign country, ( d ) while traveling in foreign countries under official orders, or ( e ) while attached to and serving on board United States vessels stationed in foreign waters for not less than 30 consecutive days. PURPOSE OF THE ACT 2. The purpose of the Act and these regulations is to provide for reimbursement to officers, enlisted men, and employees of the United States (hereinafter referred to as employees), for losses sustained from appreciation of foreign currencies in their relation to the American dollar. METHOD OF COMPUTATION OF PAYMENT OF LOSSES 3. ( a ) The loss above referred to is that sustained by the conversion into foreign currency of that portion of the employee's salary expended abroad. For purposes of these temporary regulations and until further regulations shall have been made, the proportion of the employee's salary so converted and expended shall be deemed to be 75% of his total net salary, except as provided in paragraphs ( c ) and ( d ) of this section. ( b ) In addition to the foregoing, losses shall be deemed to have been incurred by conversion and expenditure abroad of all allowances, except as provided in paragraph ( c ) of this section. ( c ) In case of employees serving under the War and Navy Departments (with the exception of military and naval attaches and other employees attached to their offices, who shall be governed by paragraphs ( a ) and ( b ) of this section), the loss by conversion into foreign currency shall be deemed to have been incurred on 80% of the total net pay and allowances. ( d ) In case of employees traveling in foreign countries under official orders not employed in or on assignment or detail to a post of duty in a foreign country, no part of the employee's salary shall be deemed to be converted or expended abroad for the purposes of these regulations. ( e ) In case of employees who sustained losses arising from the conversion of salaries or allowances (including those paid from fees either in foreign or American currency) during the period from July 15, 1933, to the effective date of this order, the losses sustained through conversion shall be calculated as provided in paragraphs ( a ), ( b ), ( c ) and ( d ) of this section. Claim for reimbursement for such loss shall be accompanied by the best evidence, available to the employee, of the rate at which conversion was made. ( f ) As used in this section: The term "net salary" means the base salary less any deduction for contribution to the retirement or other fund, or on account of percentage deductions in compensation. The term "net pay and allowances" means the employee's full pay, including extra or additional pay, and all allowances (other than those furnished in kind) less deductions therefrom on account of allotments, fines and forfeitures, clothing, hospital, Civil Service Retirement Fund, percentage deductions in compensation, and other sundry checkages. BASIC EXCHANGE RATES FOR COMPUTATION OF LOSSES 4. For the basis of computation of losses as referred to in the foregoing Act, the following rates are prescribed as the basic rates for foreign currencies: COUNTRY MONETARY UNIT BASIC RATE Albania Gold Fr. 19.303 Argentina Peso 29.529 Austria Schilling 14.0177 Belgium Belga 13.9315 Bolivia Boliviano 36.5 Brazil Milreis 7.8883 Bulgaria Lev .7187 Canada Dollar 93.5456 Chile Peso 10.1827 China Yuan 23.5143 Colombia Peso 95.743 Costa Rica Colon 25.00 Cuba Peso 100.00 Czechoslovakia Koruna 2.9631 Danzig Gulden 19.4052 Denmark Krone 22.6408 Dominican Republic Dollar 100.00 Ecuador Sucre 20.00 Egypt Pound 428.6069 El Salvador Colon 50.00 Estonia Kroon 26.6161 Ethiopia M. T. Dollar 21.6288 France Franc 3.9243 France (Possessions) Algiers Franc 3.9243 Martinique Franc 3.9243 Saigon Franc 3.9243 Tahiti Franc 3.9243 Tunis Franc 3.9243 Finland Markka 2.0674 Germany Reichsmark 23.74 Great Britain Pound 417.9441 Great Britain (Possessions) Aden Rupee 31.4953 Australia Pound 346.1882 Barbados Dollar 76.36 Belize Dollar 100.00 Colombo Rupee 31.5507 Gibraltar Pound 423.4492 Hamilton, Bermuda Pound 417.9441 Hong Kong Dollar 25.8643 India Rupee 31.1568 Kingston, Jamaica Pound 417.9441 Lagos Pound 422.1153 Malta Pound 423.0069 Nassau Pound 417.9441 Nairobi Pound 423.2107 Newfoundland Dollar 100.00 New Zealand Pound 357.9337 Penang Dollar 48.2202 Singapore Dollar 48.2202 Trinidad Dollar 100.00 Greece Drachma 1.0784 Guatemala Quetzal 100.00 Haiti Gourde 20.00 Honduras Lempira 50.00 Hungary Pengo 17.4601 Iraq Pound Irish Free State Pound 417.9441 Italy Lira 5.1804 Japan Yen 39.7627 Latvia Lat 19.2915 Liberia Pound 399.00 Lithuania Litas 9.9969 Luxemburg Franc 2.69 Mexico Peso 35.5555 Morocco Franc 3.84 Netherlands Florin 40.2597 Netherlands (Possessions) Surabaya Florin 40.2597 Curacao Florin 40.2597 Batavia Florin 40.2597 Medan Florin 40.2597 Nicaragua Cordoba 100.00 Norway Krone 22.4995 Palestine Pound Panama Balboa 100.00 Paraguay Peso 1.52 Persia Rial 5.539 Peru Sol 29.723 Poland Zloty 11.1939 Portugal Escudo 3.8608 Portugal (Possessions) Lourenco Marques Pound 478.24 Rumania Leu .5957 Siam Baht 37.78 Spain Peseta 9.3863 Switzerland Gold franc 19.3961 Sweden Krona 22.8103 Syria Syrian Lb. 78.54 Turkey Lira 47.1906 Union So. Africa Pound 463.2315 Uruguay Peso 59.1743 U.S.S.R. Ruble Venezuela Bolivar 18.71 Yugoslavia Dinar 1.6923 Yunnanfu Piaster 38.00 METHOD OF PAYMENT TO EMPLOYEES 5. From and after the effective date of this order, each employee shall be entitled to receive in foreign currency such amount as he would have received by converting into such foreign currency, at the basic rates specified in section 4, that portion of his allowances and net salary deemed to have been converted as provided in section 3. AUTHORITY TO MODIFY 6. The foregoing regulations are temporary and subject to change hereafter, and for the purpose of further adjustment future orders or regulations may, with respect to compensation for exchange losses, be retroactive to the date of this order or to July 15, 1933. EFFECTIVE DATE 7. This order shall take effect as of April 1, 1934. FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT The White House, March 27, 1934.