[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 346 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 346

 To require that the United States Government hold certain discussions 
  and report to the Congress with respect to the secondary boycott of 
                       Israel by Arab countries.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 5, 1993

 Mr. Schumer introduced the following bill; which was referred jointly 
        to the Committees on Ways and Means and Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require that the United States Government hold certain discussions 
  and report to the Congress with respect to the secondary boycott of 
                       Israel by Arab countries.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Procompetitiveness and Antiboycott 
Act of 1993''.

SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) the boycott of Israel by Arab countries has distorted 
        international trade and investment;
            (2) the secondary boycott of Israel by Arab countries has 
        put at a competitive disadvantage those United States business 
        enterprises that refuse to comply with the Arab boycott of 
        Israel;
            (3) the secondary boycott has stifled foreign investment in 
        Israel;
            (4) business enterprises that comply with the boycott of 
        Israel by Arab countries contribute to the distortion of 
        international commerce and investment; and
            (5) it is in the interest of all countries to have free 
        trade and a liberal climate for investment.

SEC. 3. OECD REPORT.

    (a) Discussions at the OECD.--The United States Ambassador to the 
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) shall 
enter into discussions with representatives from other countries that 
are members of OECD concerning--
            (1) the extent to which business enterprises, both public 
        and private, comply with the boycott of Israel by Arab 
        countries;
            (2) the effectiveness, with respect to the secondary 
        boycott, of antiboycott laws of those countries that currently 
        have or have had such laws;
            (3) the extent to which the secondary boycott has skewed 
        global trade and investment, as well as regional trade and 
        investment in the Middle East;
            (4) the extent to which business enterprises not complying 
        with the boycott of Israel by Arab countries are placed at a 
        competitive disadvantage as a result of the secondary boycott;
            (5) the extent to which the secondary boycott contradicts 
        OECD trade and investment policy; and
            (6) the development of a set of guidelines, comparable to 
        the prohibitions set forth in section 8(a) of the Export 
        Administration Act of 1979 on actions taken to comply with, 
        further, or support a boycott imposed by a foreign country, 
        that countries that are members of OECD can agree on as a way 
        to eliminate compliance with the boycott of Israel by Arab 
        countries.
    (b) Report to Congress.--The United States Ambassador to the OECD 
shall submit to the Congress, not later than 6 months after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, a report on the progress of the discussions 
described in subsection (a).

SEC. 4. GATT REPORT.

    (a) In General.--The United States Trade Representative shall enter 
into discussions with representatives from countries that are members 
of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) to determine the 
extent to which--
            (1) the secondary boycott has distorted trade;
            (2) members of and observers to the GATT encourage actions, 
        including the furnishing of information or entering into 
        implementing agreements, which have the effect of furthering or 
        supporting the boycott of Israel by Arab countries;
            (3) the GATT can and should work to eliminate the secondary 
        boycott; and
            (4) provisions of the GATT, specifically Articles I and XI, 
        can be used to eliminate compliance with the boycott of Israel 
        by Arab countries and what additional measures, including 
        penalties, can be applied to countries imposing and complying 
        with the boycott of Israel by Arab countries.
    (b) Report to Congress.--The United States Trade Representative 
shall submit to the Congress, not later than 6 months after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, a report on the discussions described in 
subsection (a).

SEC. 5. PRESIDENTIAL REPORT.

    Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the President shall submit a report to the Congress on--
            (1) what progress has been made in terminating the 
        secondary boycott, and
            (2) what progress has been made in terminating the 
        compliance by countries other than Arab countries with the 
        boycott of Israel by Arab countries.

SEC. 6. BOYCOTT REPORT.

    Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the Secretary of State 
and the Secretary of the Treasury, shall submit to the Congress a 
report on those OECD member countries that encourage or fail to 
discourage compliance with the boycott of Israel by Arab countries. 
Such report shall include--
            (1) a list of foreign countries which encourage or fail to 
        discourage compliance with the boycott of Israel by Arab 
        countries; and
            (2) for each foreign country included in the list under 
        paragraph (1), a description of the policies, regulations, 
        practices, and laws of the government of that country which 
        encourage or fail to discourage compliance with the boycott of 
        Israel by Arab countries.

SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act--
            (1) the term ``secondary boycott'' means the boycott by the 
        governments of Arab countries of--
                    (A) business enterprises which--
                            (i) provide goods or services to Israeli 
                        nationals or business enterprises organized 
                        under the laws of Israel or owned or controlled 
                        by Israeli nationals, or
                            (ii) invest in Israel or business 
                        enterprises described in clause (i);
                    (B) ships that call at Israeli ports; or
                    (C) goods and services of people or entities which 
                support the State of Israel; and
            (2) a business enterprise complies with the boycott of 
        Israel by Arab countries when, as a condition of doing business 
        directly or indirectly within a country or with the government 
        of, a national of, or a business enterprise organized under the 
        laws of, a country, that business enterprise--
                    (A) agrees to refrain from doing business with or 
                in Israel or with the government or nationals of Israel 
                or business enterprises organized under the laws of 
                Israel or owned or controlled by Israeli nationals; or
                    (B) agrees to furnish information about its past, 
                present, or future business relationships with Israel 
                or with the government or nationals of Israel or 
                business enterprises described in subparagraph (A).

                                 <all>