[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 76 (Monday, May 18, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3000-S3001]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 1353. Mr. PETERS submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to
amendment SA 1221 proposed by Mr. Hatch to the bill H.R. 1314, to amend
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide for a right to an
administrative appeal relating to adverse determinations of tax-exempt
status of certain organizations; which was ordered to lie on the table;
as follows:
At the end of section 105(f), add the following:
(4) Report on fair trade index.--
(A) In general.--Not later than one year after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the United States Trade
Representative shall submit to Congress a report on each
foreign country with which the United States has conducted
negotiations under this title that--
(i) analyzes the acts, policies, and practices of such
foreign country that negatively impact the trade relationship
of the United States with such foreign country;
(ii) analyzes the adherence of such foreign country to
international trade norms;
(iii) assesses the compliance of such foreign country with
fair trade factors (including the factors specified in
subparagraph (B)); and
(iv) ranks each such foreign country in order from most to
least egregious violator of those fair trade factors.
(B) Fair trade factors.--The fair trade factors for each
foreign country included in the report under subparagraph (A)
shall include the following:
(i) An assessment of the extent to which that country
manipulates the exchange rate for its currency, including an
assessment of the following:
(I) Whether that country had a current account surplus
during the 180-day period preceding the submission of the
report.
(II) Whether that country increased its foreign exchange
reserves during that period.
(III) Whether the amount of foreign exchange reserves of
that country is more than the total value of exports from
that country during a 3-month period.
[[Page S3001]]
(IV) Such other factors as the United States Trade
Representative considers appropriate.
(ii) An assessment of the localization barriers to trade
with that country, including an assessment of the following:
(I) Whether that country has formal legal and regulatory
measures designed to protect, favor, or stimulate industries,
service providers, or intellectual property from that country
at the expense of goods, services, or intellectual property
from other countries, including local content requirements,
subsidies, or other preferences available only if producers
use local goods, locally-owned service providers, or locally-
owned or developed intellectual property.
(II) Any requirements in that country to provide services
using local facilities or infrastructure.
(III) Any measures taken by that country to promote the
transfer of technology or intellectual property from foreign
entities to domestic entities.
(IV) Any requirements in that country to comply with
standards specific to that country or region that create
unnecessary obstacles to trade.
(V) Any requirements in that country to conduct duplicative
conformity assessment procedures that the United States Trade
Representative considers unjustified.
(VI) Such other factors as the United States Trade
Representative considers appropriate.
(iii) An assessment of any other barriers to trade with
that country, including considering the ranking of that
country in the National Trade Estimate submitted to Congress
under section 181(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C.
2241(b)).
(iv) An assessment of the extent to which that country
protects intellectual property rights, including considering
whether that country is identified by the United States Trade
Representative under section 182 of the Trade Act of 1974 (19
U.S.C. 2242) as a country that denies adequate and effective
protection of intellectual property rights or denies fair and
equitable market access to United States persons that rely
upon intellectual property rights protection.
(v) An assessment of the extent to which that country
exhibits discriminatory preferences for domestic production,
including considering any findings of the Trade Policy Review
Body of the World Trade Organization with respect to that
country.
(vi) An assessment of the labor rights and labor practices
in that country, including the findings with respect to that
country included in the report on labor rights required by
subsection (d)(3).
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