[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2115 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2115

 To ensure adequate monitoring of the commitments made by the People's 
Republic of China in its accession to the World Trade Organization and 
 to create new procedures to ensure compliance with those commitments.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 29, 2000

 Mr. Baucus (for himself, Mr. Murkowski, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. Akaka, Mr. 
 Wyden, and Mr. Dorgan) introduced the following bill; which was read 
             twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To ensure adequate monitoring of the commitments made by the People's 
Republic of China in its accession to the World Trade Organization and 
 to create new procedures to ensure compliance with those commitments.

    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 ``China-World Trade Organization 
Compliance Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) On November 15, 1999, the United States Trade 
        Representative announced the completion of a bilateral 
        agreement with the People's Republic of China regarding 
        accession of the People's Republic of China to the World Trade 
        Organization.
            (2) Congress must grant the People's Republic of China 
        permanent normal trade relations status in order for the United 
        States to receive all the benefits of China's accession to the 
        World Trade Organization.
            (3) The People's Republic of China has been a centrally 
        planned, nonmarket economy since its founding in 1949.
            (4) In 1978, the People's Republic of China initiated the 
        first in a series of economic reforms and has made some 
        meaningful and desirable progress in opening up its economy to 
        imports, exports, and investment.
            (5) Granting permanent normal trade relations to China 
        would help cement the economic reforms that have taken place 
        thus far and would help those Chinese leaders who are committed 
        to economic reform to institutionalize these reforms.
            (6) Despite these reforms, the People's Republic of China 
        is still largely a nonmarket economy and the People's Republic 
        of China is still a long way from meeting international 
        standards of transparency, legal accountability, reliability of 
        statistics, and uniform application of law.
            (7) The viability and credibility of the World Trade 
        Organization and the health of the world trading system require 
        that the People's Republic of China adheres fully to the 
        bilateral and multilateral commitments it makes during the 
        accession process.
            (8) Current trade monitoring and enforcement mechanisms 
        within the United States Government and within the World Trade 
        Organization are not designed to take account of the unique 
        Chinese economic structure.
            (9) The General Accounting Office has reported that even 
        simple recordkeeping of agreements in various executive 
        agencies is inadequate and incomplete.
            (10) It is necessary to establish new mechanisms, both 
        within the executive branch and within Congress, to ensure 
        adequate and continual monitoring and enforcement of China's 
        commitments at the World Trade Organization.
            (11) The opaque features of the Chinese economy, the 
        nonuniform implementation of Chinese Government economic 
        policies, the decentralized nature of Chinese Government 
        economic management, and the new nature of Chinese Government 
        commitments under the World Trade Organization, make it 
        necessary to create a comprehensive, multiagency effort to 
        monitor China's compliance with its commitments.
            (12) Various Federal agencies should be tasked with 
        different aspects of monitoring China's compliance with its 
        commitments.

SEC. 3. MONITORING.

    (a) Plan.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the date that 
        the People's Republic of China accedes to the World Trade 
        Organization, the President shall submit a detailed plan to 
        Congress for monitoring the People's Republic of China's 
        compliance with the commitments it makes as part of that 
        accession.
            (2) Content of plan.--The plan described in paragraph (1) 
        shall--
                    (A) include specific assignments to Federal 
                agencies with respect to monitoring China's compliance; 
                and
                    (B) provide for a mechanism to assure public 
                participation in evaluating China's compliance with its 
                commitments.
            (3) Estimate of costs for monitoring activities.--The 
        President shall submit to Congress, as part of the plan 
        described in paragraph (1), an estimate of the cost for 
        conducting the monitoring activities required under this Act.
            (4) Annual updates.--The President shall annually submit to 
        Congress an updated and revised plan as part of the President's 
        report to Congress described in section 4.
    (b) GAO Survey and Report.--
            (1) In general.--In order to determine the degree to which 
        the People's Republic of China is complying with its World 
        Trade Organization commitments and to obtain information about 
        any problems encountered by United States businesses, the 
        Comptroller General of the United States shall survey annually 
        the 50 United States companies doing the most business with the 
        People's Republic of China in each of the following categories:
                    (A) Exporting nonagricultural goods.
                    (B) Exporting agricultural goods.
                    (C) Exporting or providing services.
                    (D) Investing.
                    (E) Importing goods.
            (2) Report.--The Comptroller General shall submit a report 
        to Congress on the results of the survey described in paragraph 
        (1).
    (c) Report by ITC.--The International Trade Commission shall report 
annually to Congress on United States-China bilateral export and import 
statistics, including, to the extent practicable, reconciling any 
differences in United States-source and Chinese-source data.

SEC. 4. REPORT ON COMPLIANCE.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the People's Republic 
of China accedes to the World Trade Organization, and annually 
thereafter, the United States Trade Representative shall submit a 
report to Congress on China's compliance with its commitments made in 
connection with its accession to the World Trade Organization, 
including both multilateral commitments and any bilateral commitments 
made to the United States.
    (b) Public Participation.--In preparing the report described in 
subsection (a), the United States Trade Representative shall seek 
public participation by publishing a notice in the Federal Register and 
holding a public hearing.
    (c) Content.--The report described in subsection (a) shall include 
the results of monitoring China's compliance, and the specific 
conclusions reached by each Federal agency assigned responsibility for 
monitoring.

SEC. 5. ACTION BY COMMITTEES.

    (a) Section 301 Action.--
            (1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
        law, the Committee on Finance of the Senate and the Committee 
        on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives, after 
        considering the report described in section 4 and holding 
        hearings on the report--
                    (A) may, by majority vote of either committee, 
                instruct the United States Trade Representative to take 
                appropriate action pursuant to title III of the Trade 
                Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2411 et seq.), after initiating 
                an investigation under section 301 of such Act to 
                determine under section 304(a)(1) of such Act if--
                            (i) the rights of the United States under 
                        any trade agreement are being denied; or
                            (ii) an act, policy, or practice of the 
                        People's Republic of China--
                                    (I) violates, or is inconsistent 
                                with, the provisions of, or otherwise 
                                denies benefits to the United States 
                                under, any trade agreement; or
                                    (II) is unjustifiable and burdens 
                                or restricts United States commerce; or
                    (B) may, by majority vote of both committees, 
                instruct the United States Trade Representative to 
                initiate action before the Dispute Settlement Body (as 
                defined in section 121(5) of the Uruguay Round 
                Agreements Act).
            (2) Adverse inference.--Section 304(a) of the Trade Act of 
        1974 (19 U.S.C. 2414(a)) is amended by adding at the end the 
        following new paragraph:
            ``(5) If the foreign country against which an investigation 
        is initiated under this chapter fails or refuses to cooperate 
        in the investigation, the Trade Representative may draw an 
        inference adverse to the interests of the country for purposes 
        of making an affirmative determination under paragraph (1).''.
    (b) Initiation of Other Action.--
            (1) In general.--Upon completion of an investigation 
        described in subsection (a)(1)(B), if the United States Trade 
        Representative determines that an act, policy, or practice of 
        the People's Republic of China) violates, or is inconsistent 
with, the provisions of, or otherwise denies benefits to the United 
States under, any trade agreement (including the commitments made by 
the People's Republic of China as part of its accession to the World 
Trade Organization), the United States Trade Representative shall 
initiate an action before the Dispute Settlement Body of the World 
Trade Organization, unless there exists another, more effective action.
            (2) Consultation with congress.--Before taking the action 
        described in paragraph (1), the United States Trade 
        Representative shall consult with Congress and provide Congress 
        with the reasons for taking or not taking an action.

SEC. 6. SPECIAL WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION REVIEW OF CHINA.

    (a) In General.--It is the sense of Congress that there should be a 
special multilateral process at the World Trade Organization for 
conducting an annual review of the People's Republic of China's 
compliance with the commitments it makes as part of its accession to 
the World Trade Organization.
    (b) USTR To Propose Expanded WTO Review.--The United States Trade 
Representative is directed to propose that--
            (1) as part of the Trade Policy Review Mechanism of the 
        World Trade Organization, a thorough review of China's trade 
        policies be conducted each year;
            (2) the Trade Policy Review Mechanism be significantly 
        enhanced and expanded in connection with the review of the 
        People's Republic of China; and
            (3) the Trade Policy Review Mechanism of the People's 
        Republic of China include onsite visits and active 
        participation by representatives of World Trade Organization 
        members.

SEC. 7. INSTITUTION-BUILDING IN CHINA.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the People's Republic 
of China accedes to the World Trade Organization, the President shall 
submit to Congress a plan for providing assistance to China to build 
the institutions necessary to carry out the obligations China has made 
as part of its accession to the World Trade Organization. The plan 
shall include personnel and budget requirements needed to provide 
assistance.
    (b) Mechanisms for Providing Assistance.--It is the sense of 
Congress that the United States should provide the assistance described 
in subsection (a) through--
            (1) bilateral mechanisms; including nongovernmental 
        organizations under contract to the Federal Government;
            (2) if appropriate, multilateral mechanisms through the 
        auspices of the World Trade Organization; and
            (3) because United States businesses will be a primary 
        beneficiary of China's compliance, cost-sharing and other 
        cooperative measures with the private sector.
    (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out the provisions of this section, the lesser 
of--
            (1) $5,000,000 for each fiscal year; or
            (2) an amount equal to one-tenth of one percent of the 
        dollar value of the goods and services exported to the People's 
        Republic of China during the fiscal year preceding the fiscal 
        year for which the appropriation is made.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act other than section 7.
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