[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6432 Introduced in House (IH)]

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114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6432

To require the Secretary of Labor to monitor the trade deficits between 
     the United States and other countries, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            December 2, 2016

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require the Secretary of Labor to monitor the trade deficits between 
     the United States and other 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 ``Trade Deficit Reduction Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The United States has become the world's largest net 
        debtor nation, having run up massive trade deficits since the 
        mid-1970s.
            (2) Every year since 1976, whether in expansion or 
        recession, the U.S. has run a deficit in goods and services 
        trade, which weakens and detracts from America's global 
        leadership position.
            (3) The United States trade deficit in 1993, the year 
        before the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) went 
        into force, was $70,000,000,000.
            (4) The United States ran a $500,000,000,000 deficit in the 
        balance of trade in goods and services in 2015.
            (5) In 2015, the United States had a trade deficit of $64 
        billion with countries with which it has free trade agreements.
            (6) Persistent deficits weaken America's economy, defense 
        industrial base, and innovation system and increase the 
        likelihood of ownership of large segments of the U.S. economy 
        by foreign interests.

SEC. 3. TRADE DEFICIT REDUCTION PLANS AND REPORTS.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of 
        this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Labor shall 
        identify each country for which the following apply:
                    (A) The value of goods and services imported into 
                the United States exceeded--
                            (i) the amount that is twice the value of 
                        goods and services that are exported from the 
                        United States to that country; or
                            (ii) $100,000,000,000.
                    (B) The value of goods and services imported into 
                and exported from the United States exceeded 
                $1,000,000,000.
            (2) Source of data.--For purposes of this subsection, the 
        Secretary of Labor shall use the most recently available annual 
        goods and services trade deficit data compiled by the United 
        States Census Bureau.
    (b) Trade Deficit Reduction Plans.--With respect to countries 
identified under subsection (a), the Secretary of Labor shall, within 
60 days after making the determination under subsection (a), convene 
and chair a meeting of the Trade Policy Review Group to develop plans 
of action to reduce the United States trade deficit with those 
countries, which shall include--
            (1) the factors contributing to the trade deficits between 
        the United States and such countries, including but not limited 
        to--
                    (A) instances in which the country does not comply 
                with existing trade obligations with respect to the 
                United States;
                    (B) non-tariff trade barriers;
                    (C) labor conditions;
                    (D) environmental standards;
                    (E) whether the country violates its World Trade 
                Organization obligations forbidding it from requiring 
                U.S. companies to transfer technology as a condition of 
                market access or national treatment; and\\
                    (F) whether the country intervenes in currency 
                markets to gain an unfair competitive advantage in 
                trade;
            (2) the steps that will be taken to address the factors 
        identified in subsection (b)(1), which shall not be limited to 
        trade actions but shall, as appropriate, include tax, 
        investment, technology, corporate governance, workforce 
        training, or other policy actions that may be effective in 
        reducing the trade deficit; and
            (3) as appropriate, recommendations for measures that may 
        be taken by the individual States to address the factors 
        identified in subsection (b)(1).
    (c) Reports.--With respect to countries identified under subsection 
(a), the Secretary of Labor shall--
            (1) within 90 days after making the determination under 
        subsection (a), present to Congress a report detailing the 
        trade deficit reduction plans developed under subsection (b); 
        and
            (2) within one year after making the determination under 
        subsection (a), present to Congress a report detailing the 
        implementation and results of trade deficit reduction plans 
        developed under subsection (b).
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