• • • 718 WEST 5th ST AUSTIN, TEXAS 78701 47765 Times 1i Paso Texas i 2 0 1987 Clements asks Reagan to back peso program to boost border Times combined sources Gov. Bill Clements has asked President Reagan to back a peso exchange program in which the U.S. government would buy pesos from border financial institutions. Though Clements was in El Paso Tuesday, he did not discuss the program. After he left his El Paso press conference, a press aide handed out copies of the letter. Dated Oct. 1, the letter to Reagan said peso devaluation has crippled sales in border cities. Clements told the president that retail business in El Paso has dropped by 20 per- cent and by 60 percent in McAllen and Eagle Pass. "Most analysts predict a continuation of Mexico's present economic plight for at least the remainder of the year," the letter said. "If that timetable holds, then businesses de- pendent on Mexican trade will be forced to either retrench or close. Clearly, this is an international problem." The governor proposed a "federally ad- ministered currency exchange mechanism that would permit U.S. border financial insti- tutions to accept pesos from the local popu- lace, merchants and tourists." Clements said his program could remove many of the restrictions on "the flow of capi- tal that is hampering the day-to-day transac- tions along the border." Clements recommended meetings between U.S. and Mexican officials to set a daily max- imum peso exchange quota. "It is imperative that some stability be provided as soon as possible so that com- merce between the two countries can contin- ue," he said.