[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1717 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1717

To require that, in cases in which the annual trade deficit between the 
  United States and another country is $10,000,000,000 or more for 3 
 consecutive years, the President take the necessary steps to create a 
         more balanced trading relationship with that country.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 4, 2011

  Ms. Kaptur introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require that, in cases in which the annual trade deficit between the 
  United States and another country is $10,000,000,000 or more for 3 
 consecutive years, the President take the necessary steps to create a 
         more balanced trading relationship with that country.

    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 ``Balancing Trade Act of 2011''.

SEC. 2. ACTION BY THE PRESIDENT IN CASES OF LARGE CONSECUTIVE ANNUAL 
              TRADE DEFICITS WITH OTHER COUNTRIES.

    (a) Action by the President.--If in 3 consecutive calendar years 
the United States has a trade deficit with another country of 
$10,000,000,000 or more, the President shall take the necessary steps 
to create a trading relationship with the country that would eliminate 
or substantially reduce that trade deficit, by entering into an 
agreement with that country or otherwise.
    (b) Definition.--In this section, the term ``trade deficit'' means, 
with respect to the United States and another country, that the value 
of goods and services that are products of that country and are 
imported into the United States from that country exceeds the value of 
goods and services that are products of the United States and are 
exported from the United States to that country.
    (c) Reports.--
            (1) Initial report.--Not later than 3 months after the date 
        of the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the 
        Congress a report setting forth--
                    (A) the likely reasons for the trade deficits with 
                each country to which subsection (a) applies, as of the 
                date of the report; and
                    (B) the steps the President intends to take under 
                subsection (a) with respect to each such country.
            (2) Annual reports.--The President shall submit to the 
        Congress, not later than December 31 of each year, a report on 
        actions taken to carry out this section.
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