[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1988 Introduced in House (IH)]

  1st Session
                                H. R. 1988

 To amend United States trade laws to address more effectively import 
                                crises.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 24, 2001

  Mr. English (for himself, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Houghton, and Mr. Levin) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                             Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend United States trade laws to address more effectively import 
                                crises.

    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 ``Trade Law Reform Act of 2001''.

                     TITLE I--SAFEGUARD AMENDMENTS

SEC. 101. AMENDMENTS TO CHAPTER 1 OF TITLE II OF THE TRADE ACT OF 1974.

    (a) Test for Positive Adjustments to Import Competition.--Section 
201(a) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2251(a)) is amended by 
striking ``be a substantial cause of serious injury, or the threat 
thereof,'' and inserting ``cause or threaten to cause serious injury''.
    (b) Investigations and Determinations.--Section 202 of such Act (19 
U.S.C. 2252) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)(1)(A), by striking ``be a substantial 
        cause of serious injury, or the threat thereof,'' and inserting 
        ``cause or threaten to cause serious injury'';
            (2) by amending subsection (b)(1)(B) to read as follows:
            ``(B) For purposes of this section, the term `cause' refers 
        to a cause that contributes significantly to serious injury, or 
        the threat thereof, to the domestic industry but need not be 
        equal to or greater than any other cause.'';
            (3) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) by amending paragraph (1)(A) to read as 
                follows:
                    ``(A) with respect to serious injury--
                            ``(i) change in the level of sales, 
                        production, productivity, capacity utilization, 
                        profits and losses, and employment,
                            ``(ii) the significant idling of productive 
                        facilities in the domestic industry,
                            ``(iii) the inability of a significant 
                        number of firms to carry out domestic 
                        production operations at a reasonable level of 
                        profit, and
                            ``(iv) significant unemployment or 
                        underemployment within the domestic 
                        industry;'';
                    (B) in paragraph (1)(B)--
                            (i) in clause (iii) by striking ``; and'' 
                        and inserting ``, and''; and
                            (ii) by inserting after clause (iii) the 
                        following:
                            ``(iv) foreign production capacity, foreign 
                        inventories, the level of demand in third 
                        country markets, and the availability of other 
                        export markets to absorb any additional 
                        exports; and'';
                    (C) by amending paragraph (1)(C) to read as 
                follows:
                    ``(C) with respect to cause--
                            ``(i) the rate, amount, and timing of the 
                        increase in imports of the product concerned in 
                        absolute and relative terms, including whether 
                        there has been a substantial increase in 
                        imports over a short period of time, and
                            ``(ii) the share of the domestic market 
                        taken by increased imports.'';
                    (D) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (6) as 
                paragraphs (5) through (8), respectively;
                    (E) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the 
                following:
            ``(2) In making determinations under paragraph (1)(A) and 
        (B), if domestic producers internally transfer, including to 
        affiliated persons as defined in section 771(33) of the Tariff 
        Act of 1930, significant production of the article like or 
        directly competitive with the imported article for the 
        production of a downstream article and sell significant 
        production of the article like or directly competitive with the 
        imported article in the merchant market, then the Commission, 
        in determining market share and the factors affecting financial 
        performance set forth in paragraph (1)(A) and (B), shall focus 
        primarily on the merchant market for the article like or 
        directly competitive with the imported article.
            ``(3) In making determinations under subsection (b), the 
        Commission shall--
                    ``(A) consider the condition of the domestic 
                industry over the course of the relevant business 
                cycle, but may not aggregate the causes of declining 
                demand associated with a recession or economic downturn 
                in the United States economy into a single cause of 
                serious injury or threat of injury; and
                    ``(B) examine factors other than imports which may 
                cause or threaten to cause serious injury to the 
                domestic industry.
         The Commission shall include the results of its examination 
        under subparagraph (B) in the report submitted by the 
        Commission to the President under subsection (e).
            ``(4) In making determinations under subsection (b), the 
        Commission shall consider whether any change in the volume of 
        imports that has occurred since a petition under subsection (a) 
        was filed or a request under subsection (b) was made is related 
        to the pendency of the investigation, and if so, the Commission 
may reduce the weight accorded to the data for the period after the 
petition under subsection (a) was filed or the request under subsection 
(b) was made in making its determination of serious injury, or the 
threat thereof.''; and
                    (F) in paragraph (5), as so redesignated--
                            (i) by striking ``and (B)'' and inserting 
                        ``, (B), and (C)''; and
                            (ii) by striking ``be a substantial cause 
                        of serious injury, or the threat thereof,'' and 
                        inserting ``cause or threaten to cause serious 
                        injury'';
            (4) in subsection (d)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)(A)(ii), by striking ``be, or 
                likely to be a substantial cause of serious injury, or 
                the threat thereof,'' and inserting ``cause, or be 
                likely to cause, or threaten to cause, or be likely to 
                threaten to cause, serious injury'';
                    (B) in paragraph (1)(C), in the matter following 
                clause (ii), by striking ``a substantial cause of 
                serious injury, or the threat thereof,'' and inserting 
                ``causing or threatening to cause serious injury'';
                    (C) by amending paragraph (2)(A) to read as 
                follows:
            ``(2)(A) When a petition filed under subsection (a) or a 
        request filed under subsection (b) alleges that critical 
        circumstances exist and requests that provisional relief be 
        provided under this subsection with respect to imports of the 
        article identified in the petition or request, the Commission 
        shall, not later than 45 days after the petition or request is 
        filed, determine, on the basis of available information, 
        whether--
                    ``(i) there is clear evidence that increased 
                imports (either actual or relative to domestic 
                production) of the article are causing or threatening 
                to cause serious injury to the domestic industry 
                producing an article like or directly competitive with 
                the imported article; and
                    ``(ii) delay in taking action under this chapter 
                would cause damage to that industry that would be 
                difficult to repair.
        In making the evaluation under clause (ii), the Commission 
        should consider, among other factors that it considers 
        relevant, the timing and volume of the imports, including 
        whether there has been a substantial increase in imports over a 
        short period of time, and any other circumstances indicating 
        that delay in taking action under this chapter would cause 
        damage to the industry that would be difficult to repair.''; 
        and
                    (D) in paragraph (2)(D), by striking ``30'' and 
                inserting ``20''.
    (c) Presidential Determinations.--
            (1) Action by president.--Section 203(a) of the Trade Act 
        of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2253(a)) is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ``and provide 
                greater economic and social benefits than costs'' and 
                inserting ``and will not have an adverse impact on the 
                United States clearly greater than the benefits of such 
                action'';
                    (B) in paragraph (2)(F), by striking 
                ``compensation;'' at the end of clause (iii) and 
                inserting the following: ``compensation, except that 
                the President shall give substantially greater weight 
                to the factors set out in clause (i) than to those set 
                out in clauses (ii) and (iii);''; and
                    (C) by amending paragraph (2)(I) to read as 
                follows:
                    ``(I) the potential for harm to the national 
                security of the United States; and''.
            (2) Implementation of action recommended by commission.--
        (A) Section 203(c) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2253(c)) 
        is amended by striking ``90'' and inserting ``60''.
            (B) Section 152(c)(1) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 
        2192(c)(1)) is amended by striking ``not counting any day which 
        is excluded under section 154(b),'' and inserting ``counting 
        all calendar days in the case of a resolution described in 
        subsection (a)(1)(A), and not counting any day which is 
        excluded under section 154(b) in the case of a resolution 
        described in subsection (a)(1)(B),''.
    (d) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Section 203(e)(6)(B) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 
        U.S.C. 2253(e)(6)(B)) is amended by striking ``substantially''.
            (2) Section 264(c) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 
        2354(c)) is amended by striking ``a substantial cause of 
        serious injury or threat thereof'' and inserting ``causing or 
        threatening to cause serious injury''.
            (3) Section 154(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 
        2194(b)) is amended by striking the matter that precedes 
        paragraph (1) and inserting the following:
    ``(b) The 60-day period referred to in section 203(c) and the 90-
day period referred to in section 407(c)(2) shall be computed by 
excluding--''.

      TITLE II--AMENDMENTS TO TITLE VII OF THE TARIFF ACT OF 1930

SEC. 201. CAPTIVE PRODUCTION.

    Section 771(7)(C)(iv) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
1677(7)(C)(iv)) is amended to read as follows:
                            ``(iv) Captive production.--If domestic 
                        producers transfer internally, including to 
                        affiliated persons as defined in paragraph 
                        (33), significant production of the domestic 
                        like product for the production of a downstream 
                        article and sell significant production of the 
                        domestic like product in the merchant market, 
                        then the Commission, in determining market 
                        share and the factors affecting financial 
                        performance set forth in clause (iii), shall 
                        focus primarily on the merchant market for the 
                        domestic like product.''.

SEC. 202. PRICE.

    Section 771(7)(C)(ii) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
1677(7)(C)(ii)) is amended by adding at the end the following flush 
sentence:
                        ``The Commission shall not conclude that 
                        imports of the subject merchandise do not have 
                        a significant effect on prices merely because 
                        of the volume of imports of the subject 
                        merchandise.''.

SEC. 203. VULNERABILITY OF INDUSTRY.

    Section 771(7)(C)(iii) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
1677(7)(C)(iii)) is amended in the last sentence by striking the period 
at the end and inserting ``, including whether the industry is 
vulnerable to the effects of imports of the subject merchandise.''.

SEC. 204. CAUSAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN IMPORTS AND INJURY.

    Section 771(7)(E)(ii) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
1677(7)(E)(ii)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``The 
Commission need not determine the significance of imports of the 
subject merchandise relative to other economic factors.''.

SEC. 205. PREVENTION OF CIRCUMVENTION.

    Section 781(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1677j(c)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(3) Special rule.--The administering authority shall 
        apply paragraph (1) with respect to altered merchandise 
        excluded from or not specifically included in the merchandise 
        description used in an outstanding order or finding, if such 
        application is not inconsistent with the affirmative 
        determination of the Commission on which the order or finding 
        is based.''.

SEC. 206. PERISHABLE AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS.

    (a) Definition of Industries.--Section 771(4)(A) of the Tariff Act 
of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1677(4)(A)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following: ``If the Commission determines that an agricultural product 
has a short shelf life and is a perishable product, the Commission 
shall treat the producers of the product in a defined period or season 
as the domestic industry. If the subheading under the Harmonized Tariff 
Schedules of the United States for an agricultural product has a 6- or 
8-digit classification based on the period of time during the calendar 
year in which the product is harvested or imported, such periods of 
time constitute a defined period or season for purposes of this 
paragraph.''.
    (b) Determination of Injury.--Section 771(7)(D) of the Tariff Act 
of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1677(7)(D)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new clauses:
                            ``(iii) In the case of an agricultural 
                        industry involving a perishable product with a 
                        short shelf life, if a request for seasonal 
                        evaluation has been made by the petitioners, 
                        the Commission shall consider the factors in 
                        subparagraph (C) on a seasonal basis during the 
                        period identified as relevant.
                            ``(iv) In the case of agricultural 
                        products, partially picked or unpicked crops 
                        and abandoned acreage may be considered in lieu 
                        of other measures of capacity and capacity 
                        utilization.
                            ``(v) The impact of other factors, such as 
                        weather, on agricultural production and 
                        producers shall not be weighed against the 
                        contribution of the imported subject 
                        merchandise to the condition of the domestic 
                        industry.''.

SEC. 207. FULL RECOGNITION OF SUBSIDY CONFERRED THROUGH PROVISION OF 
              GOODS AND SERVICES AND PURCHASE OF GOODS.

    Section 771(5)(E) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1677(5)(E)) 
is amended by adding at the end the following: ``If transactions in the 
country which is the subject of the investigation or review do not 
reflect market conditions due to government action associated with 
provision of the good or service or purchase of the goods, 
determination of the adequacy of remuneration shall be through 
comparison with the most comparable market price elsewhere in the 
world.''.

 TITLE III--STEEL IMPORT NOTIFICATION AND MONITORING; EARLY RELEASE OF 
                              IMPORT DATA

SEC. 301. STEEL IMPORT NOTIFICATION AND MONITORING PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with 
the Secretary of the Treasury, shall establish and implement a steel 
import notification and monitoring program. The program shall include a 
requirement that any person importing a product classified under 
chapter 72 or 73 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States 
obtain an import notification certificate before such products are 
entered into the United States.
    (b) Steel Import Notification Certificates.--
            (1) In general.--In order to obtain a steel import 
        notification certificate, an importer shall submit to the 
        Secretary of Commerce an application containing--
                    (A) the importer's name and address;
                    (B) the name and address of the supplier of the 
                goods to be imported;
                    (C) the name and address of the producer of the 
                goods to be imported;
                    (D) the country of origin of the goods;
                    (E) the country from which the goods are to be 
                imported;
                    (F) the United States Customs port of entry where 
                the goods will be entered;
                    (G) the expected date of entry of the goods into 
                the United States;
                    (H) a description of the goods, including the 
                classification of such goods under the Harmonized 
                Tariff Schedule of the United States;
                    (I) the quantity (in kilograms and net tons) of the 
                goods to be imported;
                    (J) the cost insurance freight (CIF) and free 
                alongside ship (FAS) values of the goods to be entered;
                    (K) whether the goods are being entered for 
                consumption or for entry into a bonded warehouse or 
                foreign trade zone;
                    (L) a certification that the information furnished 
                in the certificate application is correct; and
                    (M) any other information the Secretary of Commerce 
                determines to be necessary and appropriate.
            (2) Entry into customs territory.--In the case of 
        merchandise classified under chapter 72 or 73 of the Harmonized 
        Tariff Schedule of the United States that is initially entered 
        into a bonded warehouse or foreign trade zone, a steel import 
        notification certificate shall be required before the 
        merchandise is entered into the customs territory of the United 
        States.
            (3) Issuance of steel import notification certificate.--The 
        Secretary of Commerce shall issue a steel import notification 
        certificate to any person who files an application that meets 
        the requirements of this section. Such certificate shall be 
        valid for a period of 30 days from the date of issuance.
    (c) Statistical Information.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Commerce shall compile 
        and publish on a weekly basis information described in 
        paragraph (2).
            (2) Information described.--Information described in this 
        paragraph means information obtained from steel import 
        notification certificate applications concerning steel imported 
        into the United States and includes with respect to such 
        imports the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States 
        classification (to the tenth digit), the country of origin, the 
        port of entry, quantity, value of steel imported, and whether 
        the imports are entered for consumption or are entered into a 
        bonded warehouse or foreign trade zone. Such information shall 
        also be compiled in aggregate form and made publicly available 
        by the Secretary of Commerce on a weekly basis by public 
        posting through an Internet website. The information provided 
        under this section shall be in addition to any information 
        otherwise required by law.
    (d) Fees.--The Secretary of Commerce may prescribe reasonable fees 
and charges to defray the costs of carrying out the provisions of this 
section, including a fee for issuing a certificate under this section.
    (e) Single Producer and Exporter Countries.--Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, the Secretary of Commerce shall make publicly 
available all information required to be released pursuant to 
subsection (c), including information obtained regarding imports from a 
foreign producer or exporter that is the only producer or exporter of 
goods subject to this section from a foreign country.
    (f) Regulations.--The Secretary of Commerce may prescribe such 
rules and regulations relating to the steel import notification and 
monitoring program as may be necessary to carry the provisions of this 
section.

SEC. 302. AMENDMENTS TO SECTION 332 OF THE TARIFF ACT OF 1930.

    Section 332 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1332) is amended 
by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h)(1) Any entity, including a trade association, firm, certified 
or recognized union, or group of workers, which is representative of a 
domestic industry that produces an article that is like or directly 
competitive with an imported article, may file a request with the 
President pursuant to paragraph (2) for the monitoring of imports of 
such article under subsection (g).
    ``(2) If the request filed under paragraph (1) alleges that an 
article is being imported into the United States in such increased 
quantities as to cause serious injury, or threat thereof, to a domestic 
industry, the President, within 45 days after receiving the request, 
shall determine if monitoring is appropriate.
    ``(3) If the determination under paragraph (2) is affirmative, the 
President shall request, under subsection (g), the Commission to 
monitor and investigate the imports concerned for a period not to 
exceed 2 years.''.

SEC. 303. EARLY RELEASE OF IMPORT DATA.

    In order to facilitate the early identification of potentially 
disruptive import surges, the Director of the Office of Management and 
Budget may grant an exception to the publication dates established for 
the release of data on United States international trade in goods and 
services in order to permit public access to preliminary international 
trade import data, if the Director notifies the Congress of the early 
release of the data.

                   TITLE IV--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

SEC. 401. CONSTRUCTION.

    The amendments made by this Act shall not be construed to create 
any inference with respect to the interpretation of the provisions of 
law amended by this Act as such provisions were in effect before the 
enactment of this Act.

SEC. 402. APPLICATION TO GOODS FROM CANADA AND MEXICO.

    Pursuant to section 1902 of the North American Free Trade Agreement 
and section 408 of the North American Free Trade Agreement 
Implementation Act, the amendments made by this Act shall apply to 
goods from Canada and Mexico.
                                 <all>