[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3422 Introduced in House (IH)]

  2d Session
                                H. R. 3422

To amend chapter 1 of title 9 of the United States Code to permit each 
 party to certain contracts to accept or reject arbitration as a means 
               of settling disputes under the contracts.


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 9, 1996

 Mr. Bono (for himself, Mr. McCollum, Mr. Smith of Texas, Mr. Barr of 
  Georgia, and Mr. Flanagan) introduced the following bill; which was 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

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                                 A BILL


 
To amend chapter 1 of title 9 of the United States Code to permit each 
 party to certain contracts to accept or reject arbitration as a means 
               of settling disputes under the contracts.

    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 ``Fairness and Voluntary Arbitration 
Act of 1996''.

SEC. 2. ELECTION OF ARBITRATION.

    (a) Sales and Service Contracts.--Chapter 1 of title 9 of the 
United States Code is amended by adding at the end thereof the 
following new section:
``Sec. 17. Sales and service contracts
    ``(a) For purposes of this section, the term `sales and service 
contract' means a contract under which any person (including any 
manufacturer, importer or distributor) sells any product to any other 
person for resale to an ultimate purchaser and authorizes such other 
person to repair and service such product.
    ``(b) Whenever a sales and service contract provides for the use of 
arbitration to resolve a controversy arising out of or relating to the 
contract, each party to the contract shall have the option, after the 
controversy arises and before both parties commence an arbitration 
proceeding, to reject arbitration as the means of settling the 
controversy. Any such rejection shall be in writing.
    ``(c) Whenever arbitration is elected to settle a dispute under a 
sales and service contract, the arbitrator shall provide the parties to 
the contract with a written explanation of the factual and legal basis 
for the award.''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for chapter 1 of 
title 9, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end thereof 
the following new item:

``17. Sales and service contracts.''.

SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    The amendments made by section 2 shall apply to contracts entered 
into, amended, altered, modified, renewed, or extended after the date 
of the enactment of this Act.
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