[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 56 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 H. R. 56

To amend the Shipping Act of 1984 to provide for equitable treatment of 
  United States ocean freight forwarders by ocean carrier conferences.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 5, 1993

 Mrs. Bentley introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
               Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Shipping Act of 1984 to provide for equitable treatment of 
  United States ocean freight forwarders by ocean carrier conferences.

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

SECTION 1. INDEPENDENT ACTION.

    Section 5(b) of the Shipping Act of 1984 (46 U.S.C. App. 1704(b)) 
is amended by striking paragraph (8) and inserting the following:
            ``(8) provide that--
                    ``(A) any member of the conference may take 
                independent action on any rate, service item, or level 
                of ocean freight forwarder compensation required to be 
                filed in a tariff under section 8(a) upon not more than 
                10 calendar days notice to the conference; and
                    ``(B) the conference will include the new rate, 
                service item, or level of ocean freight forwarder 
                compensation in its tariff for use by that member, 
                effective no later than 10 calendar days after receipt 
                of the notice, and by any other member that notifies 
                the conference that it elects to adopt the independent 
                rate, service item, or level of ocean freight forwarder 
                compensation on or after its effective date, in lieu of 
                the existing conference tariff provision for that rate, 
                service item, or level of ocean freight forwarder 
                compensation;''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON DENYING COMPENSATION.

    Section 10(c) of the Shipping Act of 1984 (46 U.S.C. App. 1709(c)), 
is amended by striking paragraph (5) and inserting the following:
            ``(5) deny in the export foreign commerce of the United 
        States compensation to an ocean freight forwarder, or limit 
        that compensation to less than 1.25 percent of the aggregate of 
        all of the rates and charges applicable under the tariff 
        assessed against the cargo on which the forwarding services are 
        provided; or''.

                                 <all>