[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 624 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 624

To authorize the extension of nondiscriminatory treatment (normal trade 
relations treatment) to the products of the Russian Federation, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 13, 2003

 Mr. Baucus (for himself and Mr. Levin) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To authorize the extension of nondiscriminatory treatment (normal trade 
relations treatment) to the products of the Russian Federation, 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. FINDINGS.

     The Congress finds that--
            (1) the Russian Federation has adopted constitutional 
        protections and statutory and administrative procedures that 
        accord its citizens the right and opportunity to emigrate, free 
        of anything more than a nominal tax on emigration or on the 
        visas or other documents required for emigration and free of 
        any tax, levy, fine, fee, or other charge on any citizens as a 
        consequence of the desire of such citizens to emigrate to the 
        country of their choice or to return to the Russian Federation;
            (2) the Russian Federation has been found to be in full 
        compliance with the freedom of emigration requirements under 
        title IV of the Trade Act of 1974 since 1994;
            (3) the Russian Federation has taken important steps toward 
        the creation of democratic institutions and a free-market 
        economy and, as a participating state of the Organization for 
        Security and Cooperation in Europe (in this Act referred to as 
        the ``OSCE''), is committed to developing a system of 
        governance in accordance with the principles regarding human 
        rights and humanitarian affairs that are set forth in the Final 
        Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe 
        (also known as the ``Helsinki Final Act'') and successive 
        documents;
            (4) the Russian Federation is committed to addressing 
        issues relating to its national and religious minorities as a 
        participating state of the OSCE, to adopting measures to ensure 
        that persons belonging to national minorities have full 
        equality both individually and communally, and to respecting 
        the independence of minority religious communities, although 
        problems still exist regarding the registration of religious 
        groups, visa, and immigration requirements, and other laws, 
        regulations, and practices that interfere with the activities 
        or internal affairs of minority religious communities;
            (5) the Russian Federation has enacted legislation 
        providing protection against discrimination or incitement to 
        violence against persons or groups based on national, racial, 
        ethnic, or religious discrimination, including anti-Semitism;
            (6) the Russian Federation has committed itself, including 
        through exchanges of letters, to ensuring freedom of religion, 
        equal treatment of all religious groups, and combating racial, 
        ethnic, and religious intolerance and hatred, including anti-
        Semitism;
            (7) the Russian Federation has engaged in efforts to combat 
        ethnic and religious intolerance by cooperating with various 
        United States nongovernmental organizations;
            (8) the Russian Federation is continuing the restitution of 
        religious properties, including religious and communal 
        properties confiscated from national and religious minorities 
        during the Soviet era, facilitating the reemergence of these 
        minority groups in the national life of the Russian Federation, 
and has committed itself, including through exchanges of letters, to 
continue the restitution of such properties;
            (9) the Russian Federation has received normal trade 
        relations treatment since concluding a bilateral trade 
        agreement with the United States that entered into force on 
        June 17, 1992;
            (10) the Russian Federation is making progress toward 
        accession to the World Trade Organization, recognizing that 
        many central issues remain to be resolved, including removal of 
        unjustified restrictions on agricultural products of the United 
        States, commitments relating to tariff reductions for goods, 
        trade in services, protection of intellectual property rights, 
        reform of the industrial energy sector, elimination of export 
        incentives for industrial goods, reform of customs procedures 
        and technical, sanitary, and phytosanitary measures, and 
        inclusion of trade remedy provisions;
            (11) the Russian Federation has enacted some protections 
        reflecting internationally recognized labor rights, but serious 
        gaps remain both in the country's legal regime and its 
        enforcement record;
            (12) the Russian Federation has provided constitutional 
        guarantees of freedom of the press, although infringements of 
        this freedom continue to occur; and
            (13) the Russian Federation has demonstrated a strong 
        desire to build a friendly and cooperative relationship with 
        the United States.

SEC. 2. TERMINATION OF APPLICATION OF TITLE IV OF THE TRADE ACT OF 1974 
              TO THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION.

    (a) Presidential Determinations and Extensions of Nondiscriminatory 
Treatment.--Notwithstanding any provision of title IV of the Trade Act 
of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2431 et seq.), the President may--
            (1) determine that such title should no longer apply to the 
        Russian Federation; and
            (2) after making a determination under paragraph (1) with 
        respect to the Russian Federation, proclaim the extension of 
        nondiscriminatory treatment (normal trade relations treatment) 
        to the products of that country.
    (b) Termination of Application of Title IV.--On and after the 
effective date of the extension under subsection (a)(2) of 
nondiscriminatory treatment to the products of the Russian Federation, 
chapter 1 of title IV of the Trade Act of 1974 shall cease to apply to 
that country.

SEC. 3. POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES.

    It is the policy of the United States to remain fully committed to 
a multifaceted engagement with the Russian Federation, including by--
            (1) urging the Russian Federation to ensure that its 
        national, regional, and local laws, regulations, practices, and 
        policies fully, and in conformity with the standards of the 
        OSCE--
                    (A) provide for the free emigration of its 
                citizens;
                    (B) safeguard religious liberty throughout the 
                Russian Federation, including by ensuring that the 
                registration of religious groups, visa and immigration 
                requirements, and other laws, regulations, and 
                practices are not used to interfere with the activities 
                or internal affairs of minority religious communities;
                    (C) enforce and enhance existing Russian laws at 
                the national and local levels to combat ethnic, 
                religious, and racial discrimination and related 
                violence;
                    (D) expand the restitution of religious and 
                communal properties, including by establishing a legal 
                framework for the timely completion of such 
                restitution; and
                    (E) respect fully freedom of the press;
            (2) working with the Russian Federation, including through 
        the Secretary of Labor and other appropriate executive branch 
        officials, to address the issues described in section 1(11); 
        and
            (3) continuing rigorous monitoring by the United States of 
        human rights issues in the Russian Federation, including the 
        issues described in paragraphs (1) and (2), providing 
        assistance to nongovernmental organizations and human rights 
        groups involved in human rights activities in the Russian 
        Federation, and promoting annual discussions and ongoing dialog 
        with the Russian Federation regarding those issues, including 
        the participation of United States and Russian nongovernmental 
        organizations in such discussions.

SEC. 4. REPORTING REQUIREMENT.

     The reports required by sections 102(b) and 203 of the 
International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6412(b) and 
6433) shall include an assessment of the status of the issues described 
in subparagraphs (A) through (D) of section 3(1).

SEC. 5. CONTINUED ENJOYMENT OF RIGHTS UNDER THE JUNE 17, 1992, 
              BILATERAL TRADE AGREEMENT.

    (a) Finding.--The Congress finds that the trade agreement between 
the United States and the Russian Federation that entered into force on 
June 17, 1992, remains in force between the 2 countries and provides 
the United States with important rights, including the right to use 
specific safeguard rules to respond to import surges from the Russian 
Federation.
    (b) Applicability of Safeguard.--Section 421 of the Trade Act of 
1974 (19 U.S.C. 2451) shall apply to the Russian Federation to the same 
extent as such section applies to the People's Republic of China.

SEC. 6. EXERCISE OF CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT OVER WTO ACCESSION 
              NEGOTIATIONS.

    (a) Notice of Agreement on Accession to WTO by Russian 
Federation.--Not later than 5 days after the date on which the United 
States has entered into a bilateral agreement with the Russian 
Federation on the terms of accession by the Russian Federation to the 
World Trade Organization, the President shall so notify the Congress, 
and the President shall transmit to the Congress, not later than 15 
days after that agreement is entered into, a report that sets forth the 
provisions of that agreement.
    (b) Resolution of Disapproval.--
            (1) Introduction.--If a resolution of disapproval is 
        introduced in the House of Representatives or the Senate during 
        the 30-day period (not counting any day which is excluded under 
        section 154(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2194(b)), 
        beginning on the date on which the President first notifies the 
        Congress under subsection (a) of the agreement referred to in 
        that subsection, that resolution of disapproval shall be 
        considered in accordance with this subsection.
            (2) Resolution of disapproval.--In this subsection, the 
        term ``resolution of disapproval'' means only a joint 
        resolution of the two Houses of the Congress, the matter after 
        the resolving clause of which is as follows: ``That the 
        Congress does not approve the agreement between the United 
        States and the Russian Federation on the terms of accession by 
        the Russian Federation to the World Trade Organization, of 
        which Congress was notified on ____.'', with the blank space 
        being filled with the appropriate date.
            (3) Procedures for considering resolutions.--
                    (A) Introduction and referral.--Resolutions of 
                disapproval--
                            (i) in the House of Representatives--
                                    (I) may be introduced by any Member 
                                of the House;
                                    (II) shall be referred to the 
                                Committee on Ways and Means and, in 
                                addition, to the Committee on Rules; 
                                and
                                    (III) may not be amended by either 
                                Committee; and
                            (ii) in the Senate--
                                    (I) may be introduced by any Member 
                                of the Senate;
                                    (II) shall be referred to the 
                                Committee on Finance; and
                                    (III) may not be amended.
                    (B) Committee discharge and floor consideration.--
                The provisions of subsections (c) through (f) of 
                section 152 of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2192(c) 
                through (f)) (relating to committee discharge and floor 
                consideration of certain resolutions in the House and 
                Senate) apply to a resolution of disapproval to the 
                same extent as such subsections apply to resolutions 
                under such section.
    (c) Rules of House of Representatives and Senate.--Subsection (b) 
is enacted by the Congress--
            (1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of the House of 
        Representatives and the Senate, respectively, and as such are 
        deemed a part of the rules of each House, respectively, and 
        such procedures supersede other rules only to the extent that 
        they are inconsistent with such other rules; and
            (2) with the full recognition of the constitutional right 
        of either House to change the rules (so far as relating to the 
        procedures of that House) at any time, in the same manner, and 
        to the same extent as any other rule of that House.
                                 <all>