[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4372 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4372

  To amend the Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act to 
 improve the procedures for restricting imports of archaeological and 
                         ethnological material.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 3, 2000

  Mr. Rangel introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act to 
 improve the procedures for restricting imports of archaeological and 
                         ethnological material.

    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 ``Cultural Property Procedural Reform 
Act''.

SEC. 2. PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 303(f) of the Convention on Cultural 
Property Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 2602(f)) is amended to read as 
follows:
    ``(f) Procedures.--
            ``(1) In general.--In the case of any request described in 
        subsection (a) made by a State Party or in the case of a 
        proposal by the President to extend any agreement under 
        subsection (e), the President shall--
                    ``(A) publish notification of the request or 
                proposal in the Federal Register;
                    ``(B) submit to the Committee such information 
                regarding the request or proposal (including, if 
                applicable, information from the State Party with 
                respect to the implementation of emergency action under 
                section 304) as is appropriate to enable the Committee 
                to carry out its duties under section 306;
                    ``(C) provide interested parties an opportunity to 
                comment on the findings and recommendations of the 
                Committee; and
                    ``(D) consider, in taking action on the request or 
                proposal, the views and recommendations contained in 
                any Committee report--
                            ``(i) required under section 306(f) (1) or 
                        (2); and
                            ``(ii) submitted to the President before 
                        the close of the 150-day period beginning on 
                        the day on which the President submitted 
                        information on the request or proposal to the 
                        Committee under subparagraph (B).
            ``(2) Content of notice.--Each notice required by paragraph 
        (1)(A) shall include a statement of the relief sought by the 
        State Party, a detailed description of the archaeological or 
        ethnological material that the State Party seeks to protect, 
        and a comprehensive description of the evidence submitted in 
        support of the request.''.
    (b) Proceedings Before Committee.--Section 306(f)(1) of the 
Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 
2605(f)(1)) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(1) The Committee shall, with respect to each request by 
        a State Party referred to in section 303(a), undertake a fact-
        finding investigation and a deliberative review with respect to 
        matters referred to in section 303(a)(1) as the matters relate 
        to the State Party or the request. The Committee shall provide 
        notice and opportunity for comment to all interested parties in 
        the fact-finding phase of the Committee's actions. The 
        Committee shall prepare and publish in the Federal Register a 
        report setting forth--
                    ``(A) the results of the investigation and review 
                and its findings with respect to each of the criteria 
                described in section 303(a)(1);
                    ``(B) the Committee's findings as to the nations 
                individually having a significant import trade in the 
                relevant material; and
                    ``(C) the Committee's recommendation, together with 
                the reasons therefore, as to whether an agreement 
                should be entered into under section 303(a) with 
                respect to the State Party.''.
    (c) Import Restrictions.--Section 303(a)(1) of such Act (19 U.S.C. 
2602(a)(1)) is amended--
            (1) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows:
                    ``(A) that particular objects of the cultural 
                patrimony of the State Party are in jeopardy from 
                pillaging of archaeological or ethnological materials 
                of the State Party;''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following: ``Historical 
        evidence of pillaging shall not be sufficient to make a 
        determination under subparagraph (A).''.
    (d) Continuing Review.--Section 306(g) of such Act (19 U.S.C. 
2605(g)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``a continuing'' and 
        inserting ``an annual'';
            (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
            ``(2) Action by committee.--
                    ``(A) In general.--If the Committee finds, as a 
                result of such review, that--
                            ``(i) cause exists under section 303(d) for 
                        suspending the import restrictions imposed 
                        under an agreement,
                            ``(ii) any agreement or emergency action is 
                        not achieving the purposes for which the 
                        agreement or action was entered into or 
                        implemented, or
                            ``(iii) changes are required to this title 
                        in order to implement fully the obligations of 
                        the United States under the Convention,
                the Committee shall submit to Congress and the 
                President and publish in the Federal Register a report 
                setting forth the Committee's recommendations for 
                suspending such import restrictions or for improving 
                the effectiveness of any such agreement or emergency 
                action or this title.
                    ``(B) Agreements reviewed where no action 
                proposed.--In any case in which the Committee 
                undertakes a review but concludes that the agreement 
meets the applicable statutory criteria of effectiveness, the Committee 
shall submit to Congress and the President and publish in the Federal 
Register a report setting forth the Committee's findings and 
conclusions as to the effectiveness of the agreement.
                    ``(C) Agreements not reviewed.--The report required 
                by subparagraph (A) shall contain a list of any 
                agreement not reviewed during the year preceding the 
                submission of the report and the reasons why such 
                agreement was not reviewed.''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(3) Requirements for review.--In each annual review 
        conducted under this subsection, the Committee shall--
                    ``(A) undertake a fact-finding investigation and a 
                deliberative review with respect to the effectiveness 
                of the agreement under review;
                    ``(B) provide notice and opportunity for comment to 
                all interested parties in the fact-finding phase of 
                Committee's action; and
                    ``(C) publish notice of the review in the Federal 
                Register that includes a detailed description of the 
                information submitted to the Committee concerning the 
                effectiveness of the agreement.''.
    (e) Multinational Response.--Section 303(g)(2) of such Act (19 
U.S.C. 2602(g)(2)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (B);
            (2) by striking the period at the end of subparagraph (C) 
        and inserting ``, and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(D) if the President determines that the 
                application of import restrictions by other nations, as 
                required by subsection (c)(1), is not essential to 
                deter a serious situation of pillage, the reasons for 
                such determination.''.
    (f) Consultation by Committee Members.--Section 306(e) of such Act 
(19 U.S.C. 2605(e)) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph:
            ``(3) Members of the Committee may consult with any person 
        to obtain expert advice and may, in such consultations, share 
        information obtained from a country in support of the request 
        filed under this title to the extent that the information is 
        otherwise publicly available. Any consultations conducted 
        pursuant to this paragraph shall be reported in the record of 
        the Committee's actions.''.

SEC. 3. CULTURAL PROPERTY ADVISORY COMMITTEE.

    (a) In General.--Section 306(b)(1) (B) and (C) of the Convention on 
Cultural Property Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 2605(b)(1) (B) and (C)) 
are amended to read as follows:
                    ``(B) Three members who shall represent the fields 
                of archaeology, anthropology, ethnology, or related 
                areas.
                    ``(C) Three members who shall represent the 
                international sale of archaeological, ethnological, and 
                other cultural property.''.
    (b) Conflict of Interest Provisions.--Section 306(b) of the 
Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 2605(b)) 
is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(4) Members of the Committee who are not otherwise 
        officers or employees of the Federal Government shall serve in 
        a representative capacity and shall not be considered officers, 
        employees, or special Government employees for any purpose.''.
    (c) Application of Federal Advisory Committee Act.--Section 306(h) 
of the Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 
2605(h)) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(h) Federal Advisory Committee Act.--In order to provide for open 
meetings and public participation, the provisions of the Federal 
Advisory Committee Act (Public Law 92-463; 5 U.S.C. App.) shall apply 
to the fact-finding phase of the Committee's actions including the 
requirements of subsections (a) and (b) of section 10 and section 11 
(relating to open meetings, public notice, public participation, and 
public availability of documents). The requirements of subsections (a) 
and (b) of section 10 and section 11 shall not apply to the 
deliberative phase of the Committee's actions if it is determined by 
the President or the President's designee that the disclosure of 
matters involved in the Committee's deliberations would compromise the 
Government's negotiating objectives or bargaining positions on the 
negotiation of any agreement authorized by this title.''.

SEC. 4. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Sections 306(e) (1) and (2), 306(i)(1)(A) and 306(i)(2) of the 
Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 2605(e) 
(1) and (2), 2605(i)(1)(A), and 2605(i)(2)) are each amended by 
striking ``Director of the United States Information Agency'' each 
place it appears and inserting ``Secretary of State''.
    (b) Section 305 of the Convention on Cultural Property 
Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 2604) is amended--
            (1) in the first sentence, by inserting ``, after 
        consultation with the Secretary of State,'' after 
        ``Secretary''; and
            (2) in the second sentence, by striking ``archeological'' 
        and inserting ``archaeological''.
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