Metric Conversion Act

The Metric Conversion Act is an Act of Congress that U.S. President Gerald Ford signed into law on December 23, 1975.[1] It declared the metric system "the preferred system of weights and measures for United States trade and commerce", but permitted the use of United States customary units in all activities. As Ford's statement on the signing of the act emphasizes, all conversion was to be "completely voluntary."[1] The Act also established the United States Metric Board with representatives from scientific, technical, and educational institutions, as well as state and local governments to plan, coordinate, and educate the U.S. people for the Metrication of the United States.

Metric Conversion Act
Long titleAn Act to declare a national policy of coordinating the increasing use of the metric system in the United States, and to establish a United States Metric Board to coordinate the voluntary conversion to the metric system
Acronyms (colloquial)MCA
NicknamesMetric Conversion Act of 1975
Enacted bythe 94th United States Congress
EffectiveDecember 23, 1975
Citations
Public law94-168
Statutes at Large89 Stat. 1007
Codification
Titles amended15 U.S.C.: Commerce and Trade
U.S.C. sections created15 U.S.C. ch. 6, subch. II § 205a et seq.
Legislative history
  • Introduced in the House as H.R. 8674 by Olin E. Teague (D–TX) on July 16, 1975
  • Committee consideration by House Science and Technology Committee
  • Passed the House on September 5, 1975 (308-71)
  • Passed the Senate on December 8, 1975 (passed, in lieu of S. 100) with amendment
  • House agreed to Senate amendment on December 11, 1975 (agreed)
  • Signed into law by President Gerald Ford on December 23, 1975

Executive Order 12770, which cites the Metric Conversion Act of 1975, directed departments and agencies within the executive branch of the United States Government to "take all appropriate measures within their authority" to use the metric system "as the preferred system of weights and measures for United States trade and commerce."

The metrification board was abolished in 1982 by President Ronald Reagan, largely on the suggestion of Frank Mankiewicz and Lyn Nofziger.[2]

See also

References
  1. Ford, Gerald R. (December 23, 1975). "Statement on Signing the Metric Conversion Act of 1975 - December 23, 1975". Internet Archive. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Service. pp. 1996–1997.
  2. Mankiewicz, Frank (2006-03-29). "Nofziger: A Friend with Whom It Was a Pleasure to Disagree".
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