[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 75 (Wednesday, April 17, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16759-16760]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-9407]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Technology Administration


Interagency Council on Metric Policy; Metric Town Meetings and 
Workshops

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce and the Interagency Council on 
Metric Policy will sponsor six regional Metric Town Meetings and 
Workshops. At each meeting, participants will have the opportunity to 
hear from local and national experts on the benefits of using the 
metric system to increase our global competitiveness, commercialize new 
technologies, and enhance the job skills of America's workforce. Open 
forum

[[Page 16760]]

discussions will probe critical metrication issues. The meetings will 
build on the key themes--trade, education, and public awareness--that 
emerged from the first National Metric Town Meeting held March 27-28, 
1995, at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in 
Gaithersburg, Maryland. While written submissions of issues and views 
are welcome, interested organizations and individuals are encouraged to 
participate in person to benefit from the sharing of views.

DATES: The first two Metric Town Meetings and Workshops will be held:
     April 26-27, 1996, in Atlanta, Georgia, at Georgia State 
University's Urban Life Center
     May 17-18, 1996, in Boston, Massachusetts, at the 
Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Stratton Student Center
    The subsequent regional meetings will be held on the following 
schedule:

    September 1996--Seattle, WA
    October 1996--Chicago, IL
    November 1996--San Francisco, CA
    January 1997--Dallas, TX

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Organizations and individuals 
interested in participating should contact the Director, Metric 
Program, U.S. Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards 
and Technology, Building 820, Room 306, Gaithersburg, MD 20899, as 
early as possible. Phone (301-975-3690) and FAX (301-948-1416) 
inquiries will be accepted. E-mail may be sent to: 
[email protected]. Additional information and updates will be 
available on the Internet at: http://www.nist.gov/metric.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The International System of Units (SI), the 
modern ``metric system,'' is the international system of measurement. 
The United States is the only industrialized nation that does not use 
SI as the predominant measurement system in its commercial and 
standards activities. Adoption of the metric system in U.S. trade and 
commerce will increase the competitiveness of our products and services 
in the global marketplace.
    Understanding the necessity for national metrication, Congress, in 
1988 amendments to the Metric Conversion Act of 1975, declared the 
metric system to be the preferred system of measurement for U.S. trade 
and commerce. These amendments state that the Federal Government has a 
responsibility to assist industry, especially small business, as it 
voluntarily converts to the metric system of measurement.
    Working with the Interagency Council on Metric Policy, the 
Department of Commerce Metric Program is implementing a plan that 
encourages a broad national dialogue on metric conversion. Under the 
banner ``Toward a Metric America,'' the plan includes six regional 
meetings and workshops, information and awareness campaigns, 
consultations with industry and the public, and other outreach 
programs.
    As part of this plan, the Metric Town Meetings and Workshops will 
work to build state and regional partnerships (1) to accelerate 
adoption of the metric system in trade and commerce; (2) to encourage 
use of the metric system in all facets of education, including honing 
of worker skills; and (3) to develop positive and enjoyable programs of 
public awareness.
    Each meeting will devote a half day to each of these areas--Friday 
morning to trade and commerce, Friday afternoon to public awareness, 
and Saturday morning to education--seeking to develop joint strategies 
to advance the Nation's metrication.

(15 U.S.C. 205(b) and (c))

    Dated: April 4, 1996.

Gary R. Bachula,

Acting Under Secretary for Technology.

[FR Doc. 96-9407 Filed 4-16-96; 8:45 am]

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