[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1302 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1302

   To restore competitiveness to the sugar industry by reforming the 
   Federal sugar program and thereby ensuring that consumers have an 
   uninterupted supply of sugar at reasonable prices, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            October 10, 1995

 Ms. Mikulski introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To restore competitiveness to the sugar industry by reforming the 
   Federal sugar program and thereby ensuring that consumers have an 
   uninterupted supply of sugar at reasonable prices, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 ``Sugar Competitiveness Act of 1995''.

SEC. 2. MARKET-ORIENTED SUGAR PROGRAM LOANS.

    (a) In General.--Section 206 of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7 
U.S.C. 1446g) is amended--
            (1) by striking the section heading, subsections (a) 
        through (h), and subsection (j);
            (2) by inserting before subsection (i) the following:

``SEC. 206. RECOURSE LOANS TO PROCESSORS OF SUGARCANE AND SUGAR BEETS.

    ``(a) Sugarcane Processor Loans.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall make recourse loans 
        available to processors of sugarcane on raw cane sugar 
        processed from the 1995 and succeeding crops of sugarcane.
            ``(2) Loan rates.--Recourse loans under this subsection 
        shall be make at the rate of 18 cents per pound of raw cane 
        sugar for the 1995 crop of sugarcane; 16 cents per pound of raw 
        cane sugar for the 1996 crop of sugarcane; 14 cents per pound 
        for the 1997 crop of sugarcane; and 12 cents per pound for the 
        1998 and succeeding crops of sugarcane.
    ``(b) Sugar Beet Processor Loans.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall make recourse loans 
        available to processors of sugar beets on refined sugar 
        processed from the 1995 and succeeding crops of sugar beets.
            ``(2) Loan rates.--Recourse loans under this subsection for 
        sugar refined from a crop of sugar beets shall be made at a 
        rate, per pound of refined sugar, that reflects--
                    ``(A) an amount that bears the same relation to the 
                loan rate in effect under subsection (a)(2) as the 
                weighted average of producer returns for sugar beets 
                bears to the weighted average of producer returns for 
                sugarcane, expressed on a cents per pound basis for 
                refined beet sugar and raw cane sugar, for the most 
                recent 5-year period for which data are available; plus
                    ``(B) an amount that covers sugar beet processor 
                fixed marketing expenses.
    ``(c) Administrative Rules.--
            ``(1) National loan rates.--Recourse loans under this 
        section shall be made available at all locations nationally at 
        the rates specified in this section, without adjustment to 
        provide regional differentials.
            ``(2) Length of loans.--Each recourse loan made under this 
        section shall be for a term of 3 months, and may be extended 
        for additional 3-month terms, except that--
                    ``(A) no loan may have a cumulative term in excess 
                of 9 months or a term that extends beyond September 30 
                of the fiscal year in which the loan is made; and
                    ``(B) a processor may terminate a loan and redeem 
                the collateral for the loan at any time by payment in 
                full of principal, interest, and fees then owing.
    ``(d) Prohibition on Price Support.--The Secretary may not make 
price support available, whether in the form of nonrecourse loans, 
payments, purchases, or other operations, for the 1995 or subsequent 
crops of sugarcane or sugar beets by using the funds of the Commodity 
Credit Corporation.
    ``(e) Use of Commodity Credit Corporation.--The Secretary shall use 
the funds, facilities, and authorities of the Commodity Credit 
Corporation to carry out this section.''.
    (b) Effect on Existing Loans.--
            (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), section 206 of the 
        Agricultural Act of 1949 (7 U.S.C. 1446g), as in effect on the 
        day before the date of the enactment of this Act, shall 
        continue to apply with respect to nonrecourse loans made under 
        such section before such date.
            (2) Any loan in effect on the day before the date of the 
        enactment of this Act that is extended on or after the date of 
        enactment shall be converted, when extended, into a recourse 
        loan at the loan rate specified in section 206(a), as amended 
        by this Act, and any loan made on or after the date of 
        enactment shall be a recourse loan.
    (c) Extension and Modification of Marketing Assessment.--Subsection 
(i) of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7 U.S.C. 1446g) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``(i)'' and inserting ``(f)'';
            (2) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) by striking ``1992 through 1996'' and inserting 
                ``1992 through 2003'';
                    (B) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``subsection 
                (b)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)''; and
                    (C) in subparagraph (B)--
                            (i) by striking ``subsection (b)'' and 
                        inserting ``subsection (a)'';
                            (ii) by striking ``1998'' and inserting 
                        ``2003'';
                            (iii) by striking ``1.1 percent'' and 
                        inserting ``1.5 percent''; and
                            (iv) by striking ``(but not more than .198 
                        cents per pound of raw cane sugar)'' and 
                        inserting ``as of October 1, 1995'';
            (3) in paragraph (2)--
                    (A) by striking ``1992 through 1996'' and inserting 
                ``1992 through 2003''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (B)--
                            (i) by striking ``1998'' and inserting 
                        ``2003'';
                            (ii) by striking ``1.1794 percent'' and 
                        inserting ``1.6083 percent'';
                            (iii) by striking ``(but not more than 
                        .2123 cents per pound of beet sugar)'' and 
                        inserting ``as of October 1, 1995''; and
                            (iv) adding at the end the following new 
                        paragraph:
            ``(7) Imported sugar.--Effective only for imports of raw 
        cane sugar and refined sugar during the 1996 through 2003 
        fiscal years, each exporter of raw cane sugar or refined sugar 
        to be imported into the United States shall remit to the 
        Commodity Credit Corporation a nonrefundable marketing 
        assessment in an amount equal--
                    ``(A) in the case of imports of raw cane sugar, 1.5 
                percent of the loan level established under subsection 
                (a) per pound of raw cane sugar as of October 1, 1995;
                    ``(B) in the case of imports of refined sugar, 
                1.6083 percent of the loan level established under 
                subsection (b) per pound of refined sugar as of October 
                1, 1995.''.
    (d) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Price support for designated nonbasic agricultural 
        commodities.--Section 201(a) of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7 
        U.S.C. 1446(a)) is amended by striking out ``milk, sugar beets, 
        and sugarcane'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``and milk''.
            (2) Price support benefits to producers.--
                    (A) In general.--Section 401(e) of such Act (7 
                U.S.C. 1421(e)) is amended by striking out ``(1)'' in 
                paragraph (1) and striking out paragraph (2).
                    (B) Technical amendment.--Section 405(b) of such 
                Act (7 U.S.C. 1425(b)) is amended by striking out the 
                last sentence.
            (3) Title iii of the agricultural act of 1949.--Section 301 
        of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7 U.S.C. 1447) is amended by 
        inserting ``(other than sugarcane and sugar beets)'' before 
        ``at a level''.
            (4) Powers of commodity credit corporation.--Section 5(a) 
        of the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act (15 U.S.C. 
        714c(a)) is amended by inserting ``(except for sugarcane and 
        sugar beets of the 1996 and subsequent crops)'' after 
        ``agricultural commodities''.
            (5) Section 32 activities.--The second sentence of the 
        first paragraph of section 32 of the Act of August 24, 1935 (7 
        U.S.C. 612c) is amended by inserting ``(other than sugarcane 
        and sugar beets)'' after ``commodity'' the last place it 
        appears.
    (e) CCC Sales Price Restrictions.--Section 407(c) of such Act (7 
U.S.C. 1427(c)) is amended by adding at the end a new paragraph as 
follows:
            ``(6) Sugar.--The Corporation may sell for unrestricted use 
        sugar surrendered to it under the loan programs provided for in 
        section 351 at such price as the Corporation determines 
        appropriate to maintain and expand export and domestic markets 
        for sugar and to avoid undue disruption of commercial sales of 
        sugar.''.
    (f) Assurance of Adequate Supplies of Sugar.--Effective October 1, 
1996, section 902(a) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 1446g 
note) is amended to read as follows: ``Beginning with the quota year 
for sugar imports that begins after the 1994/1995 quota year, the 
President and the Secretary of Agriculture shall use all authorities 
available to the President and the Secretary, as the case may be, to 
ensure that adequate supplies of raw cane sugar are made available to 
the United States market at prices no greater than the higher of--
            ``(1) the world sugar price (adjusted to a delivered 
        basis); or
            ``(2) the raw cane sugar loan rate in effect under section 
        206(a) of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (plus interest).''.

SEC. 3. TERMINATION OF MARKETING QUOTA AND ALLOTMENTS.

    (a) Termination.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), part VII of 
        subtitle B of title III of the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 
        1938 (7 U.S.C. 1359aa-1359jj) is repealed.
            (2) Effective date.--Paragraph (1) shall be effective 
        October 1, 1996, for sugar marketed on or after such date.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 344(f)(2) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 
1344(f)(2)) is amended by striking out ``sugar cane for sugar; sugar 
beets for sugar;''.
                                 <all>