[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4307 Introduced in House (IH)]







                                    


104th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4307

 To prohibit the importation of soccer balls manufactured or assembled 
                           with child labor.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 28, 1996

Mr. Kennedy of Massachusetts (for himself, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. 
 Brown of California, Mr. Moran, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Evans, and Mr. Frank 
of Massachusetts) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
 the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on 
International Relations, for a period to be subsequently determined by 
the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To prohibit the importation of soccer balls manufactured or assembled 
                           with child labor.

    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 ``Forcing Out Underage Labor Act of 
1996''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON IMPORTATION OF SOCCER BALLS MANUFACTURED OR 
              ASSEMBLED WITH CHILD LABOR.

    (a) Identification of Countries.--The Secretary of Labor shall 
identify those countries in which soccer balls are manufactured or 
assembled, in whole or in part, with the use of child labor.
    (b) Prohibition on Imports.--
            (1) Prohibition.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall 
        prohibit the entry of any soccer balls manufactured or 
        assembled, in whole or in part, in a country identified by the 
        Secretary of Labor under subsection (a). For purposes of this 
        subsection and subsection (a), the term ``assembled'' includes, 
        but is not limited to, stitching.
            (2) Exception.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply to the entry 
        of any article for which a certification that meets the 
        requirements of subsection (c) is provided and the article, or 
        the packaging in which it is offered for sale, contains, in 
        accordance with regulations prescribed by the Secretary of 
        Labor, a label stating that the article is not a product of 
        child labor.
    (c) Certification That Article Is Not a Product of Child Labor.--
            (1) Form and content.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall 
        prescribe the form and content of documentation, for submission 
        in connection with the entry of an article, that satisfies the 
        Secretary that the exporter of the article to the United 
        States, and the importer of the article into the customs 
        territory of the United States, have undertaken reasonable 
        steps to ensure that the article is not a product of child 
        labor.
            (2) Reasonable steps.--For purposes of paragraph (1), 
        ``reasonable steps'' includes--
                    (A) in the case of the exporter of an article--
                            (i) having entered into a contract with an 
                        organization described in paragraph (4) in the 
                        country concerned for allowing inspections for 
                        the purpose of certifying both that the article 
                        is not a product of child labor, and that a 
                        label, protected under the copyright or 
                        trademark laws of that country, that contains 
                        such certification is affixed to the article; 
                        and
                            (ii) having affixed to the article a label 
                        described in clause (i); and
                    (B) in the case of the importer of an article into 
                the customs territory of the United States, having 
                required the certification and label described in 
                subparagraph (A) in the agreement setting forth the 
                terms and conditions of the acquisition or provision of 
                the imported article.
            (3) Written evidence.--The documentation required by the 
        Secretary under paragraph (1) shall include written evidence 
        that the reasonable steps set forth in paragraph (2) have been 
        taken.
            (4) Certifying organizations.--The Secretary of the 
        Treasury shall compile and maintain a list of independent 
        professional, internationally credible organizations, in 
        foreign countries, that have been established for the purpose 
        of conducting inspections, certifying, and labeling that 
        articles to be exported from those countries are not products 
        of child labor. Each such organization may consist of, but not 
        be limited to, representatives of nongovernmental child welfare 
        and human rights organizations, manufacturers, exporters, 
        independent trade unions, national governments, and neutral 
        international organizations.

SEC. 3. PENALTIES.

    (a) Unlawful Acts.--It is unlawful--
            (1) to attempt to enter any soccer ball if the entry is 
        prohibited under section 2(b)(1); or
            (2) to violate any regulation prescribed under section 4.
    (b) Civil Penalty.--Any person who commits any unlawful act set 
forth in subsection (a) is liable for a civil penalty of not to exceed 
$25,000.
    (c) Criminal Penalty.--In addition to being liable for a civil 
penalty under subsection (b), any person who intentionally commits any 
unlawful act set forth in subsection (a) is, upon conviction, liable 
for a fine of not less than $10,000 and not more than $35,000, or 
imprisonment for not more than 1 year, or both.
    (d) Construction.--The violations set forth in subsection (a) shall 
be treated as violations of the customs laws for purposes of applying 
the enforcement provisions of the Tariff Act of 1930, including--
            (1) the search, seizure, and forfeiture provisions;
            (2) section 592 (relating to penalties for entry by fraud, 
        gross negligence, or negligence); and
            (3) section 619 (relating to compensation to informers).

SEC. 4. REGULATIONS.

    The Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of the Treasury shall 
issue such regulations as are necessary to carry out this Act.

SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

    As used in this Act:
            (1) Child labor.--The term ``child labor'' means the 
        performance of services in exchange for remuneration (without 
        regard to whom paid), subsistence, goods, or services, or any 
        combination thereof, or under circumstances tantamount to 
        involuntary servitude--
                    (A) by persons who have not attained the minimum 
                age, except for--
                            (i) light work by persons no more than 2 
                        years younger than the minimum age that is not 
                        likely to harm their health or development and 
                        which does not prejudice their attendance at 
                        school, their participation in vocational 
                        orientation or training programs approved by 
                        the competent authority in the country 
                        concerned, or their capacity to benefit from 
                        the instruction received,
                            (ii) work on family and small-scale 
                        agricultural holdings which produce for local 
                        consumption and do not regularly employ hired 
                        workers,
                            (iii) work done by persons at least 14 
                        years of age in schools or other training 
                        institutions for general, vocational, or 
                        technical education,
                            (iv) work done by persons at least 14 years 
                        of age as an integral part of a program of 
                        education, training, or occupational guidance 
                        carried out in accordance with conditions 
                        prescribed by the competent authority in the 
                        country concerned, and
                            (v) participation in artistic performances 
                        pursuant to permits granted in individual cases 
                        by the competent authority in the country 
                        concerned; and
                    (B) by persons under the age of 18 if such services 
                would likely jeopardize the health, safety, or moral 
                character of a young person, except for the performance 
                of such services by individuals at least 16 years of 
                age where--
                            (i) the country concerned has expressly 
                        authorized such employment by national laws or 
                        regulation;
                            (ii) the health, safety, and morals of the 
                        individuals involved are fully protected; and
                            (iii) the individuals involved have 
                        received adequate specific instruction or 
                        vocational training in the relevant branch of 
                        activity.
            (2) Minimum age.--The term ``minimum age'' means the age at 
        which children complete compulsory schooling under the national 
        laws of the country concerned, or the age of 15, whichever is 
        older, except that when a country whose economy and educational 
        facilities are insufficiently developed has specified, pursuant 
        to an international agreement, a minimum age of 14 years for a 
        period of limited and specifically identified duration, the 
        term ``minimum age'' means the age of 14 years during that 
        period with respect to that country.
            (3) Product of child labor.--An article shall be treated as 
        being manufactured or assembled with the use of child labor if 
        the article--
                    (A) was fabricated, assembled, or processed, in 
                whole or part, or
                    (B) contains any part that was fabricated, 
                assembled, or processed, in whole or in part,
        with child labor.
            (4) Entry.--The term ``entry'' means entry, or withdrawal 
        from warehouse for consumption, in the customs territory of the 
        United States.

SEC. 6. UNITED STATES SUPPORT FOR DEVELOPMENTAL ALTERNATIVES FOR 
              UNDERAGE CHILD WORKERS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated to the President the sum 
of--
            (1) $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1997 through 2000 
        for a United States contribution to the International Labor 
        Organization for the activities of the International Program on 
        the Elimination of Child Labor; and
            (2) $100,000 for fiscal year 1997 for a United States 
        contribution to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights 
        for those activities relating to bonded child labor that are 
        carried out by the Subcommittee and Working Group on 
        Contemporary Forms of Slavery.
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