[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 50 (Thursday, March 22, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3628-S3629]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Ms. COLLINS (for herself, Mr. Bayh, Mr. Levin, Mr. Graham, Mr. 
        Cochran, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Harkin, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Durbin, and 
        Mr. Schumer):
  S. 974. 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; to the Committee 
on Finance.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                 S. 974

       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 ``Stopping Overseas Subsidies 
     Act''.

     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) 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, without regard to 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. If the administering authority 
     determines that China is a nonmarket economy country under 
     paragraph (18) of this section, the administering authority 
     shall presume, absent a demonstration of compelling evidence 
     to the contrary, 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.''.
       (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsections (a) 
     and (b) apply to petitions filed under section 702 of the 
     Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1671a) on or after October 1, 
     2006.
       (d) Antidumping Provisions Not Affected.--The amendments 
     made by subsections (a) and (b) 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.).
       (e) Rule of Construction.--The amendments made by 
     subsections (a) and (b) 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.

     SEC. 3. 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 
     section 3 of the Stopping Overseas Subsidies Act.''.

       (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

[[Page S3629]]

     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.

     SEC. 4. STUDY AND REPORT ON SUBSIDIES BY PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF 
                   CHINA.

       (a) Study.--The United States International Trade 
     Commission shall conduct a study, under section 332 of the 
     Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1332), regarding how the 
     People's Republic of China uses government intervention to 
     promote investment, employment, and exports. The study shall 
     comprehensively catalog, and when possible quantify, the 
     practices and policies that central, provincial, and local 
     government bodies in the People's Republic of China use to 
     support and to attempt to influence decisionmaking in China's 
     manufacturing enterprises and industries. Chapters of this 
     study shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
       (1) Privatization and private ownership.
       (2) Nonperforming loans.
       (3) Price coordination.
       (4) Selection of industries for targeted assistance.
       (5) Banking and finance.
       (6) Utility rates.
       (7) Infrastructure development.
       (8) Taxation.
       (9) Restraints on imports and exports.
       (10) Research and development.
       (11) Worker training and retraining.
       (12) Rationalization and closure of uneconomic enterprises.
       (b) Report.--The Congress requests that--
       (1) not later than 9 months after the date of the enactment 
     of this Act, the International Trade Commission complete its 
     study under subsection (a), submit a report on the study to 
     the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate, 
     and make the report available to the public; and
       (2) not later than 1 year after the report under paragraph 
     (1) is submitted, and annually thereafter through 2017, the 
     International Trade Commission prepare and submit to the 
     committees referred to in paragraph (1) an update of the 
     report and make the update of the report available to the 
     public.

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