[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Page 16730]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



  PARITY AMONG THE PARTIES TO THE NORTH AMERICAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT

  Mr. SMITH of Oregon. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the 
Finance Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 
333, and the Senate then proceed to its immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 333) expressing the sense of the 
     Senate that there should be parity among the countries that 
     are parties to the North American Free Trade Agreement with 
     respect to the personal exemption allowance for merchandise 
     purchased abroad by returning residents, and for other 
     purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. SMITH of Oregon. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the 
resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motion to 
reconsider be laid upon the table, and finally, any statements be 
printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 333) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 333

       Whereas the personal exemption allowance is a vital 
     component of trade and tourism;
       Whereas many border communities and retailers depend on 
     customers from both sides of the border;
       Whereas a United States citizen traveling to Canada or 
     Mexico for less than 24 hours is exempt from paying duties on 
     the equivalent of $200 worth of merchandise on return to the 
     United States, and for trips over 48 hours United States 
     citizens have an exemption of up to $400 worth of 
     merchandise;
       Whereas a Canadian traveling in the United States is 
     allowed a duty-free personal exemption allowance of only $50 
     worth of merchandise for a 24-hour visit, the equivalent of 
     $200 worth of merchandise for a 48-hour visit, and the 
     equivalent of $750 worth of merchandise for a visit of over 7 
     days;
       Whereas Mexico has a 2-tiered personal exemption allowance 
     for its returning residents, set at the equivalent of $50 
     worth of merchandise for residents returning by car and the 
     equivalent of $300 worth of merchandise for residents 
     returning by plane;
       Whereas Canadian and Mexican retail businesses have an 
     unfair competitive advantage over many American businesses 
     because of the disparity between the personal exemption 
     allowances among the 3 countries;
       Whereas the State of Maine legislature passed a resolution 
     urging action on this matter;
       Whereas the disparity in personal exemption allowances 
     creates a trade barrier by making it difficult for Canadians 
     and Mexicans to shop in American-owned stores without facing 
     high additional costs;
       Whereas the United States entered into the North American 
     Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico with the intent 
     of phasing out tariff barriers among the 3 countries; and
       Whereas it violates the spirit of the North American Free 
     Trade Agreement for Canada and Mexico to maintain restrictive 
     personal exemption allowance policies that are not 
     reciprocal: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
       (1) the United States Trade Representative and the 
     Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary 
     of Commerce, should initiate discussions with officials of 
     the Governments of Canada and Mexico to achieve parity by 
     harmonizing the personal exemption allowance structure of the 
     3 NAFTA countries at or above United States exemption levels; 
     and
       (2) in the event that parity with respect to the personal 
     exemption allowance of the 3 countries is not reached within 
     1 year after the date of the adoption of this resolution, the 
     United States Trade Representative and the Secretary of the 
     Treasury should submit recommendations to Congress on whether 
     legislative changes are necessary to lower the United States 
     personal exemption allowance to conform to the allowance 
     levels established in the other countries that are parties to 
     the North American Free Trade Agreement.

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