1.This Act may be cited as
the Balanced Trade Restoration Act of
2006
.
2.Congress makes the following
findings:
(1)Since the 1990s,
the United States has experienced record trade deficits that has made the
United States the largest debtor country in the world.
(2)In 2005, the
merchandise trade deficit of the United States was a record $767,000,000,000,
and in 2006, the merchandise trade deficit of the United States is projected to
surpass the record set in 2005.
(3)The surging trade
deficits could soon create a balance of payments crisis for the United States,
which could wreak havoc with the economy of the United States.
(4)Article XII of
the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT 1994), annexed to the Agreement
Establishing the World Trade Organization entered into on April 15, 1994,
permits any member country to restrict the quantity or value of imports in
order to safeguard the external financial position and the balance of payments
of the member country.
(5)In accordance
with Article XII of the GATT 1994, the United States should take steps to
restore balance to its merchandise trade, and safeguard its external financial
position and its balance of payments.
(6)The imposition of
import restrictions should be phased in to allow the economy of the United
States to absorb the impact of import restrictions with minimal
disruption.
3.In this Act:
(1)Balanced Trade
Certificate; CertificateThe terms Balanced Trade
Certificate and Certificate mean a certificate issued
pursuant to section
4 that provides the holder of the certificate with a license to
import into the United States a good with an appraised value that is equal to
or less than the face value of the certificate.
(2)The
term Department means the Department of Commerce.
(3)The term oil or gas means any good classifiable
under—
(A)heading 2709 of
the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (relating to petroleum oils
and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude);
(B)heading 2710 of
the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (relating to petroleum oils
and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, other than crude); and
(C)heading 2711 of
the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (relating to light oils and
preparations).
(4)The
term Program means the Balanced Trade Certificate Program
established under section 4.
(5)The
term Secretary means the Secretary of Commerce.
4.Establishment of
Balanced Trade Program
(a)Not later than 180
days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall, in
cooperation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, establish a Balanced Trade
Certificate Program within the International Trade Administration of the
Department. The purpose of the Program is to create gradually balance between
the dollar value of goods imported into the United States and goods exported
from the United States.
(b)The Secretary, in
cooperation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall promulgate
regulations in accordance with
section
5 that provide for—
(1)issuing Certificates to exporters;
(2)collecting Certificates from
importers;
(3)valuing the Certificates issued and
collected; and
(4)trading
Certificates.
5.
(a)
(1)The Program established under
section
4 shall provide for the issuance of a Certificate to any person
who exports a good from the United States with a face value equivalent to a
multiple of the appraised value of the good determined pursuant to
paragraph
(2).
(2)Value of
Balanced Trade Certificates
(A)The Secretary shall establish a system for the valuation
of Certificates. To the extent practicable, the value of a Certificate shall be
based upon the appraised value declared on the shipper's export declaration
(SED), in accordance with
subparagraph
(B);
(B)The value of a Certificate shall be determined in
accordance with the following table:
If a Certificate is
issued:The face
value of the Certificate is an amount equal to:
During the first year
the Program is in operation140% of the appraised value of
the good exported.
During the second year
the Program is in operation130% of the appraised value of the good
exported.
During the third year
the Program is in operation120% of the appraised value of the good
exported.
During the fourth year
the Program is in operation110% of the appraised value of the good
exported.
After the fourth year
the Program is in operation100% of the appraised value of the good
exported
(b)
(1)Except as described in paragraph (5), any person who
imports a good into the United States shall submit to the Secretary of Homeland
Security, not later than 90 days after the date on which the good enters the
United States, a Certificate with an aggregate face value equal to or greater
than the appraised value of the good imported pursuant to
paragraph
(2).
(2)Valuation of
imported goodsThe Secretary shall establish a method for the
valuation of goods imported into the United States. The method may include the
use of the declared dollar value of the goods on the Entry Summary (United
States Customs and Border Protection Form 7501).
(3)Collection of
CertificatesThe Secretary shall establish a system for the
collection of Certificates submitted by importers to the Secretary of Homeland
Security.
(4)Penalty for
failure to supply CertificatesIf a person imports a good into
the United States and fails to submit a Certificate with an aggregate face
value equal to, or greater than, the value of the good imported as required by
paragraph
(1), the Secretary of Homeland Security shall—
(A)suspend the
person from importing any good until such time as a Certificate required by
paragraph
(1) is submitted; and
(B)impose a penalty
equal to 3 times the appraised value of the good imported.
(5)
(A)During the period that begins on the date of the enactment
of this Act and ends 5 years after such date,
paragraph
(1) shall not apply to a person who imports oil or gas into the
United States.
(B)At the end of the period described in
subparagraph
(A), any person who imports oil or gas into the United States
shall submit to the Secretary of Homeland Security, not later than 90 days
after the date on which the oil or gas enters the United States, a Certificate
with an aggregate face value equal to, or greater than, the appraised value of
the oil or gas imported pursuant to
paragraph
(2), adjusted in accordance with the following table:
If the oil or gas is
imported:The
aggregate face value of the Certificate required to import the oil or gas
is:
During the sixth year
the Program is in operation60% of the appraised value of
the oil or gas imported.
During the seventh year
the Program is in operation70% of the appraised value of the oil or gas
imported.
During the eighth year
the Program is in operation80% of the appraised value of the oil or gas
imported.
During the ninth year
the Program is in operation90% of the appraised value of the oil or gas
imported.
After the ninth year
the Program is in operation100% of the appraised value of the oil or
gas imported.
(c)Management of
Certificates
(1)Certificates
removed from circulationUpon the receipt of a Certificate from a
person importing a good, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in cooperation
with the Secretary, shall permanently remove the Certificate from
circulation.
(2)Transferability
and Limitation on validity of CertificatesA Certificate issued
pursuant to this Act shall be—
(A)fully
transferable; and
(B)valid for 365
days from the date the Certificate is issued.