[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 499 Introduced in House (IH)]
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 499
To amend title VII of the Tariff Act of 1930 to provide that the
provisions relating to countervailing duties apply to nonmarket economy
countries, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 14, 2009
Mr. Davis of Alabama (for himself and Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite of Florida)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Rules, for a period
to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the
committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title VII of the Tariff Act of 1930 to provide that the
provisions relating to countervailing duties apply to nonmarket economy
countries, 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. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Nonmarket Economy Trade Remedy Act
of 2009''.
SEC. 2. APPLICATION OF COUNTERVAILING DUTIES TO NONMARKET ECONOMIES AND
STRENGTHENING APPLICATION OF THE LAW.
(a) In General.--Section 701(a)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19
U.S.C. 1671(a)(1)) is amended by inserting ``(including a nonmarket
economy country)'' after ``country'' each place it appears.
(b) Recognition of Countervailable Subsidies in Nonmarket Economy
Countries.--Section 771(5)(C) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C.
1677(5)(E)) is amended to read as follows:
``(C) Other factors.--(i) The determination of
whether a subsidy exists shall be made without regard
to--
``(I) whether the recipient of the
subsidy is publicly or privately owned;
``(II) whether the subsidy is
provided directly or indirectly on the
manufacture, production, or export of
merchandise; and
``(III)(aa) whether the country is
a nonmarket economy country, or
``(bb) the level of economic
reforms in a country that is a
nonmarket economy country,
at the time the subsidy is provided.
``(ii) The administering authority is not
required to consider the effect of the subsidy
in determining whether a subsidy exists under
this paragraph.''.
(c) Use of Alternate Methodologies Involving China.--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 the administering authority
encounters special difficulties in identifying and calculating the
amount of a benefit under clauses (i) through (iv) with respect to an
investigation or review involving the People's Republic of China,
irrespective of whether the administering authority determines that
China is a nonmarket economy country under paragraph (18) of this
section, the administering authority shall use methodologies to
identify and calculate the amount of the benefit that take into account
the possibility that terms and conditions prevailing in China may not
always be available as appropriate benchmarks. In applying such
methodologies, where practicable, the administering authority should
take into account and adjust terms and conditions prevailing in China
before using terms and conditions prevailing outside of China. When the
administering authority has determined that China is a nonmarket
economy country under paragraph (18) of this section, the administering
authority shall presume that special difficulties exist in calculating
the amount of a benefit under clauses (i) through (iv) with respect to
an investigation or review involving China and that it is not
practicable to take into account and adjust terms and conditions
prevailing in China, and the administering authority shall use terms
and conditions prevailing outside of China.''.
(d) Subsidies Provided to State-Owned Enterprises in the People's
Republic of China.--Section 771(5A) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19
U.S.C. 1677(5A)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``For purposes of this paragraph, subsidies provided to state-
owned enterprises in the People's Republic of China shall be
deemed to be specific if, inter alia, state-owned enterprises
are the predominant recipients of such subsidies or state-owned
enterprises receive disproportionately large amounts of such
subsidies.''.
(e) Antidumping Provisions Not Affected.--The amendments made by
this section shall not affect the status of a country as a nonmarket
economy country for the purposes of any matter relating to antidumping
duties under subtitle B of title VII of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19
U.S.C. 1673 et seq.).
(f) Rule of Construction.--The amendments made by this section
shall not be construed to affect the interpretation of any provision of
law as in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of this
Act with respect to the application of countervailing duties to
nonmarket economy countries.
(g) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section apply to
petitions filed under section 702 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C.
1671a) on or after October 1, 2006.
SEC. 3. TREATMENT OF INDIVIDUAL BUSINESS ENTERPRISES IN NONMARKET
ECONOMY COUNTRIES.
Section 771(18) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1677(18)) is
amended--
(1) by redesignating subparagraphs (D) and (E) as
subparagraph (E) and (F), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following:
``(D) Treatment of individual business
enterprises.--The administering authority shall not
consider requests for market economy treatment at the
individual business enterprise level in an antidumping
proceeding involving a foreign country determined to be
a nonmarket economy country.''.
SEC. 4. REVOCATION OF NONMARKET ECONOMY COUNTRY STATUS.
(a) Amendment of Definition of ``Nonmarket Economy Country''.--
Section 771(18)(C)(i) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C.
1677(18)(C)(i)) is amended to read as follows:
``(i) Any determination that a foreign
country is a nonmarket economy country shall
remain in effect until--
``(I) the administering authority
makes a final determination to revoke
the determination under subparagraph
(A); and
``(II) a joint resolution is
enacted into law pursuant to
subsections (b) through (i) of section
4 of the Nonmarket Economy Trade Remedy
Act of 2009.''.
(b) Notification by President; Joint Resolution.--Whenever the
administering authority makes a final determination under section
771(18)(C)(i)(I) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C.
1677(18)(C)(i)(I)) to revoke the determination that a foreign country
is a nonmarket economy country--
(1) the President shall notify the Committee on Finance of
the Senate and the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of
Representatives of that determination not later than 10 days
after the publication of the administering authority's final
determination in the Federal Register;
(2) the President shall transmit to the Congress a request
that a joint resolution be introduced pursuant to this section;
and
(3) a joint resolution shall be introduced in the Congress
pursuant to this section.
(c) Definition.--For purposes of this section, the term ``joint
resolution'' means only a joint resolution of the 2 Houses of the
Congress, the matter after the resolving clause of which is as follows:
``That the Congress approves the change of nonmarket economy status
with respect to the products of _____ transmitted by the President to
the Congress on _____.'', the first blank space being filled in with
the name of the country with respect to which a determination has been
made under section 771(18)(C)(i) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C.
1677(18)(C)(i)), and the second blank space being filled with the date
on which the President notified the Committee on Finance of the Senate
and the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives
under subsection (b)(1).
(d) Introduction.--A joint resolution shall be introduced (by
request) in the House of Representatives by the majority leader of the
House, for himself, or by Members of the House designated by the
majority leader of the House, and shall be introduced (by request) in
the Senate by the majority leader of the Senate, for himself, or by
Members of the Senate designated by the majority leader of the Senate.
(e) Amendments Prohibited.--No amendment to a joint resolution
shall be in order in either the House of Representatives or the Senate,
and no motion to suspend the application of this subsection shall be in
order in either House, nor shall it be in order in either House for the
presiding officer to entertain a request to suspend the application of
this subsection by unanimous consent.
(f) Period for Committee and Floor Consideration.--
(1) In general.--If the committee or committees of either
House to which a joint resolution has been referred have not
reported the joint resolution at the close of the 45th day
after its introduction, such committee or committees shall be
automatically discharged from further consideration of the
joint resolution and it shall be placed on the appropriate
calendar. A vote on final passage of the joint resolution shall
be taken in each House on or before the close of the 15th day
after the joint resolution is reported by the committee or
committees of that House to which it was referred, or after
such committee or committees have been discharged from further
consideration of the joint resolution. If, prior to the passage
by one House of a joint resolution of that House, that House
receives the same joint resolution from the other House, then--
(A) the procedure in that House shall be the same
as if no joint resolution had been received from the
other House, but
(B) the vote on final passage shall be on the joint
resolution of the other House.
(2) Computation of days.--For purposes of paragraph (1), in
computing a number of days in either House, there shall be
excluded any day on which that House is not in session.
(g) Floor Consideration in the House.--
(1) Motion privileged.--A motion in the House of
Representatives to proceed to the consideration of a joint
resolution shall be highly privileged and not debatable. An
amendment to the motion shall not be in order, nor shall it be
in order to move to reconsider the vote by which the motion is
agreed to or disagreed to.
(2) Debate limited.--Debate in the House of Representatives
on a joint resolution shall be limited to not more than 20
hours, which shall be divided equally between those favoring
and those opposing the joint resolution. A motion further to
limit debate shall not be debatable. It shall not be in order
to move to recommit a joint resolution or to move to reconsider
the vote by which a joint resolution is agreed to or disagreed
to.
(3) Motions to postpone.--Motions to postpone, made in the
House of Representatives with respect to the consideration of a
joint resolution, and motions to proceed to the consideration
of other business, shall be decided without debate.
(4) Appeals.--All appeals from the decisions of the Chair
relating to the application of the Rules of the House of
Representatives to the procedure relating to a joint resolution
shall be decided without debate.
(5) Other rules.--Except to the extent specifically
provided in the preceding provisions of this subsection,
consideration of a joint resolution shall be governed by the
Rules of the House of Representatives applicable to other bills
and resolutions in similar circumstances.
(h) Floor Consideration in the Senate.--
(1) Motion privileged.--A motion in the Senate to proceed
to the consideration of a joint resolution shall be privileged
and not debatable. An amendment to the motion shall not be in
order, nor shall it be in order to move to reconsider the vote
by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to.
(2) Debate limited.--Debate in the Senate on a joint
resolution, and all debatable motions and appeals in connection
therewith, shall be limited to not more than 20 hours. The time
shall be equally divided between, and controlled by, the
majority leader and the minority leader or their designees.
(3) Control of debate.--Debate in the Senate on any
debatable motion or appeal in connection with a joint
resolution shall be limited to not more than 1 hour, to be
equally divided between, and controlled by, the mover and the
manager of the joint resolution, except that in the event the
manager of the joint resolution is in favor of any such motion
or appeal, the time in opposition thereto shall be controlled
by the minority leader or his designee. Such leaders, or either
of them, may, from time under their control on the passage of a
joint resolution, allot additional time to any Senator during
the consideration of any debatable motion or appeal.
(4) Other motions.--A motion in the Senate to further limit
debate is not debatable. A motion to recommit a joint
resolution is not in order.
(i) Rules of House of Representatives and Senate.--Subsections (c)
through (h) are enacted by the Congress--
(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of the House of
Representatives and the Senate, respectively, and as such
subsections (c) through (h) are deemed a part of the rules of
each House, respectively, but applicable only with respect to
the procedure to be followed in that House in the case of joint
resolutions described in subsection (c), and subsections (c)
through (h) supersede other rules only to the extent that they
are inconsistent therewith; and
(2) with full recognition of the constitutional right of
either House to change the rules (so far as relating to the
procedure of that House) at any time, in the same manner and to
the same extent as in the case of any other rule of that House.
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