[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4082 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4082

To amend the Tariff Act of 1930 to increase accountability relating to 
articles receiving exemptions from duties for de minimis entries and to 
 require regulations on enhanced data collection with respect to such 
                    entries, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 9, 2024

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Tariff Act of 1930 to increase accountability relating to 
articles receiving exemptions from duties for de minimis entries and to 
 require regulations on enhanced data collection with respect to such 
                    entries, 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 ``Ensure Accountability in De Minimis 
Act of 2024''.

SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON PERSONS AUTHORIZED TO ENTER ARTICLES ELIGIBLE FOR 
              DE MINIMIS EXEMPTION FROM DUTIES.

    (a) In General.--Section 498 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
1498) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Importation Under Administrative Exemption Only by Certain 
Parties.--Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, an article 
is eligible for an administrative exemption under section 321(a)(2)(C) 
only if the article is entered--
            ``(1) as international mail; or
            ``(2) by--
                    ``(A) the consignee, the owner, or the purchaser of 
                the article; or
                    ``(B) if designated by a person specified in 
                subparagraph (A), a person holding a valid customs 
                broker's license issued under section 641(b).''.
    (b) Applicability.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to articles entered, or withdrawn from warehouse for 
consumption, on or after the date that is 60 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. MODIFICATION TO PENALTIES FOR FRAUD, GROSS NEGLIGENCE, AND 
              NEGLIGENCE.

    (a) Directing or Facilitating Violations.--Section 592 of the 
Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1592) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(1)(B)--
                    (A) by striking ``may aid or abet'' and inserting 
                the following: ``may--
                            ``(i) aid or abet'';
                    (B) by striking the period at the end and inserting 
                ``; or''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
                            ``(ii) direct or facilitate a violation of 
                        subparagraph (A).''; and
            (2) in subsection (b)(1)(A)(ii), by striking ``or the 
        aiding or procuring of the entry or introduction'' and 
        inserting ``the aiding or procuring, or the direction or 
        facilitation of the entry or introduction or attempted entry or 
        introduction''.
    (b) Recurring Negligent or Grossly Negligent Violations Relating to 
De Minimis Entries.--Section 592(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 
U.S.C. 1592(c)) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through (14) as 
        paragraphs (5) through (15), respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following:
            ``(4) Recurring negligent or grossly negligent violations 
        relating to de minimis entries.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A recurring negligent or grossly 
                negligent violation of subsection (a) that relates to 
                entering articles for which an administrative exemption 
                from duties under section 321(a)(2)(C) is sought is 
                punishable by a civil penalty in--
                            ``(i) except as provided by clause (ii), an 
                        amount not to exceed the greater of--
                                    ``(I) 10 times the aggregate amount 
                                of the lawful duties, taxes, and fees 
                                of which the United States is or may be 
                                deprived; or
                                    ``(II) $2,000; and
                            ``(ii) if the recurring violation did not 
                        affect the assessment of duties, an amount not 
                        to exceed the greater of--
                                    ``(I) 200 percent of the aggregate 
                                domestic value of the merchandise; or
                                    ``(II) $2,000.
                    ``(B) Recurring defined.--
                            ``(i) In general.--In this paragraph, the 
                        term `recurring', with respect to a violation 
                        of subsection (a) by a person that relates to 
                        entering articles described in subparagraph 
                        (A), means that--
                                    ``(I) the violation--
                                            ``(aa) is a second or 
                                        subsequent such violation by 
                                        that person; and
                                            ``(bb) takes place not 
                                        later than 3 months after the 
                                        person received a penalty claim 
                                        under subsection (b)(2) for a 
                                        prior such violation and for 
                                        which the person had the 
                                        opportunity seek remission or 
                                        mitigation; and
                                    ``(II) the person has been found to 
                                have repeatedly, over an aggregate 
                                period of 3 months or more, committed 
                                violations of subsection (a) that 
                                relate to entering articles described 
                                in subparagraph (A).
                            ``(ii) Effect of intervening compliant 
                        entries.--For purposes of clause (i), if, 
                        between negligent or grossly negligent 
                        violations of subsection (a) by a person that 
                        relate to entering articles described in 
                        subparagraph (A), that person submits entry 
                        documentation with respect to a shipment of 
                        articles described in subparagraph (A) 
                        accurately and in compliance with the law, the 
                        submission of such entry documentation shall 
                        not prevent the negligent or grossly negligent 
                        violations from being considered recurring.''.
    (c) Definitions of Negligent and Grossly Negligent.--Section 592(a) 
of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1592(a)) is amended by adding at 
the end the following:
            ``(3) Definitions.--In this section:
                    ``(A) Grossly negligent.--The term `grossly 
                negligent', with respect to a violation of paragraph 
                (1) by a person, means that the person committed the 
                violation with--
                            ``(i) actual knowledge of or wanton 
                        disregard for the relevant facts; and
                            ``(ii) indifference or disregard to whether 
                        the person was violating paragraph (1).
                    ``(B) Negligent.--The term `negligent', with 
                respect to a violation of paragraph (1) by a person, 
                means that the person failed to exercise reasonable 
                care and competence--
                            ``(i) to ensure that documents, data, and 
                        information provided by the person in 
                        connection with the entry of merchandise are 
                        complete and accurate; or
                            ``(ii) to perform any material act required 
                        by law.''.
    (d) Technical Amendment.--Section 592 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 
U.S.C. 1592), as amended by this section, is further amended by 
striking ``the Customs Service'' each place it appears and inserting 
``U.S. Customs and Border Protection''.

SEC. 4. DEADLINE FOR INFORMATION SHARING AGREEMENTS WITH FEDERAL 
              AGENCIES PARTICIPATING IN INTERNATIONAL TRADE DATA 
              SYSTEM.

    Section 411(d)(4)(A)(ii) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
1411(d)(4)(A)(ii)) is amended by striking ``enters into'' inserting 
``not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of the 
Ensure Accountability in De Minimis Act of 2024, enters into''.

SEC. 5. REGULATIONS ON ENHANCED DATA COLLECTION WITH RESPECT TO DE 
              MINIMIS ENTRIES.

    (a) Requirement for Regulations.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury, in 
        consultation with the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border 
        Protection and pursuant to subsections (b) and (c), shall 
        prescribe regulations requiring enhanced data collection with 
        respect to articles for which an administrative exemption from 
        duties under section 321(a)(2)(C) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 
        U.S.C. 1321(a)(2)(C)) is sought, including obtaining 
        information with respect to the origin of materials used in the 
        production of such articles, in order to ensure that the 
        articles for which the exemption is sought are not articles 
        described in paragraph (2) or articles that are otherwise 
        prohibited from entering the United States.
            (2) Articles described.--An article is described in this 
        paragraph if the article--
                    (A) is produced with forced labor (as defined in 
                section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
                1307));
                    (B) bears a counterfeit mark (within the meaning of 
                section 45 of the Act entitled ``An Act to provide for 
                the registration and protection of trademarks used in 
                commerce, to carry out the provisions of certain 
                international conventions, and for other purposes'', 
                approved July 5, 1946 (commonly known as the 
                ``Trademark Act of 1946'' or the ``Lanham Act'') (15 
                U.S.C. 1127)); or
                    (C) is a controlled substance (as defined in 
                section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 
                802)) that is not imported in accordance with 
                applicable law.
    (b) Development of Regulations.--In developing the regulations 
required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall--
            (1) solicit comments from and consult with a broad range of 
        parties that are likely to be affected by the regulations, 
        including importers, exporters, carriers, customs brokers, and 
        freight forwarders, among other interested parties;
            (2) ensure the protection of the privacy of proprietary 
        information (within the meaning of section 777(b) of the Tariff 
        Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1677f(b))), except for information 
        shared, through the International Trade Data System established 
        pursuant to section 411(d) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
        1411(d)), with Federal agencies participating in that system;
            (3) to the extent practicable, avoid imposing requirements 
        pursuant to those regulations that are redundant with each 
        other or that are redundant with requirements under other 
        provisions of law; and
            (4) include regulations that request the Postmaster General 
        to transmit to the Secretary the information described in 
        subsection (a)(1), to the extent feasible and consistent with 
        international law, with respect to the country of origin of 
        materials used in the production of articles in international 
        mail shipments for which an administrative exemption from 
        duties under section 321(a)(2)(C) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 
        U.S.C. 1321(a)(2)(C)) is sought.
    (c) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Comment Period.--The 
Secretary, in consultation with the Commissioner, shall--
            (1) publish a notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal 
        Register; and
            (2) provide for a period of not less than 60 days for 
        public comment on the proposed rulemaking.
    (d) Civil Penalty.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall impose a civil penalty 
        on any person that violates the regulations prescribed under 
        subsection (a) of not more than--
                    (A) $2,000 for the first violation; and
                    (B) $5,000 for each subsequent violation.
            (2) Additional penalties.--A penalty imposed under this 
        subsection may be in addition to any other penalty authorized 
        by law.

SEC. 6. REPORTS.

    (a) Report on Illegally Entered Articles for Which De Minimis 
Exemptions Sought.--Not later than one year after the date on which the 
regulations required by section 5 are finalized, and annually 
thereafter, the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, in 
consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall submit to the 
appropriate congressional committees a report setting forth, for the 
year preceding submission of the report--
            (1) the total number of articles--
                    (A) with respect to which an administrative 
                exemption from duties under section 321(a)(2)(C) of the 
                Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1321(a)(2)(C)) was 
                sought; and
                    (B) that were seized by U.S. Customs and Border 
                Protection at ports of entry for entering the United 
                States illegally;
            (2) a description of such articles;
            (3) the country of origin of such articles, to the extent 
        feasible; and
            (4) the aggregate fair retail value of such articles in the 
        country of shipment.
    (b) Government Accountability Office Assessment of Shortcomings in 
Information Sharing.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than one year after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the 
        United States shall submit to Congress a report assessing--
                    (A) shortcomings in information shared through the 
                International Trade Data System established pursuant to 
                section 411(d) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
                1411(d)) among Federal agencies participating in that 
                system;
                    (B) implications of those shortcomings with respect 
                to the enforcement of regulations; and
                    (C) the establishment of memoranda of understanding 
                by the Secretary of the Treasury with Federal agencies 
                participating in the International Trade Data System 
                pursuant to section 411(d)(4)(A)(ii) of the Tariff Act 
                of 1930, as amended by section 4.
            (2) Form.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall be 
        submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified 
        annex.
    (c) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In this section, 
the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
            (1) the Committee on Finance and the Committee on Homeland 
        Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and
            (2) the Committee on Ways and Means and the Committee on 
        Homeland Security of the House of Representatives.
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