[House Report 104-467]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                                       
104th Congress                                            Rept. 104-467
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 2d Session                                                      Part 1
_______________________________________________________________________


 
                 FEDERAL TEA TASTERS REPEAL ACT OF 1996
                                _______


               February 29, 1996.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______


    Mr. Archer, from the Committee on Ways and Means, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 2969]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Ways and Means, to whom was referred the 
bill (H.R. 2969) to eliminate the Board of Tea Experts by 
repealing the Tea Importation Act of 1897, having considered 
the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and 
recommend that the bill do pass.

         H.R. 2969, ``FEDERAL TEA TASTERS REPEAL ACT OF 1996''

                            I. INTRODUCTION

                         A. Purpose and Summary

    The ``Federal Tea Tasters Act of 1996'' would repeal the 
Tea Importation Act of 1897 (21 U.S.C. 41 et seq.). The bill 
would eliminate the Board of Tea Experts and related programs 
which prohibit the importation of tea that is inferior in 
purity, quality, and fitness for consumption to standards set 
by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, as well as the 
inspectional fee assessed on tea imports.

                 B. Background and Need for Legislation

    The Tea Importation Act of 1897 (21 U.S.C. 41 et seq.) 
requires each lot of imported tea to be sampled at the port of 
entry to ensure that it meets standards recommended to the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services by the Board of Tea 
Experts. In fiscal year 1994, 209 million pounds of tea valued 
at approximately $136 million were imported into the United 
States.
    Tea is the only food or beverage for which the Food and 
Drug Administration (FDA) samples every lot upon entry for 
comparison to a standard recommended by a federal board. The 
Committee believes that there is no justification for tea being 
held to a higher federal standard on behalf of the tea 
industry, which should assume responsibility for the 
competitive quality of its products.

              C. Legislative History and Committee Action

    On February 23, 1996, H.R. 2969, the ``Federal Tea Repeal 
Act of 1996,'' was introduced by Mr. Klug and Mr. Kennedy. On 
February 28, 1996, the Committee on Ways and Means ordered the 
bill favorably reported, by voice vote, to the House, without 
amendment.

                      II. EXPLANATION OF THE BILL

Present Law

    The Tea Importation Act of 1897 prohibits the importation 
of tea which is inferior in quality, purity, and fitness for 
consumption to standards recommended by the Board of Tea 
Experts. The Board of Tea Experts, required by the Act and 
chartered under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), is a 
permanent FDA advisory committee composed of seven members who 
serve terms of one year buy may be reappointed for each of 
three succeeding years, not to exceed a total of four years. 
The Board meets once a year for two days, during which it 
recommends standards, set by the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services, for different teas. Board members' expenses to 
participate in the annual standard-setting meeting are paid by 
the tea industry. During the year following the meeting, FDA 
chemists examine, taste, and smell imported teas and reject 
teas which do not meet the annual standards recommended by the 
Board. Importers of rejected tea may appeal decisions to the 
Board of Tea Appeals, composed of three members appointed only 
when appeals are pending. The Tea Importation Act requires each 
importer of tea to pay a user fee collected by the Customs 
Service to cover the costs of tasting, inspection, and grading, 
in an amount which was increased under the Consolidated Omnibus 
Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 from 3.5 cents to 10 cents 
per hundredweight. The full amount, however, was never 
collected by the Customs Service.

Explanation of Provision

    H.R. 2969 would repeal the Tea Importation Act of 1897 (21 
U.S.C. 41 et seq.) and eliminate the Board of Tea Experts and 
related programs which prohibit the importation of tea which is 
inferior in purity, quality, and fitness for consumption to 
standards set by the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 
The FDA would still retain the authority under the Federal 
Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1938 to examine and sample 
imported tea for compliance with health and safety standards, 
but it will not be compared with a quality standard set each 
year.

Reason for Change

    Tea is the only food or beverage for which the Food and 
Drug Administration (FDA) samples every lot upon entry for 
comparison to a standard recommended by a federal board. There 
is no justification for tea being held to a higher federal 
standard on behalf of the tea industry, which should assume 
responsibility for the competitive quality of its products. The 
Committee believes that the Board of Tea Experts is outdated 
and the taxpayer's money could be more efficiently used 
elsewhere.

Effective Date

    The bill is effective upon enactment.

                      III. VOTES OF THE COMMITTEE

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(2)(B) of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, the following statements 
are made concerning the votes of the Committee in its 
consideration of H.R. 2969:
          * * * * * * *

                       Motion To Report H.R. 2969

    H.R. 2969 was ordered favorably reported, without 
amendment, by voice vote on February 28, 1996, with a quorum 
present.

                     IV. BUDGET EFFECTS OF THE BILL

               A Committee Estimate of Budgetary Effects

    In compliance with clause 7(a) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, the following statement is made:
    The estimate prepared by the Congressional Budget Office 
(CBO) is included below.
    CBO estimates that the bill results in decreased revenues 
of $200,000 per year based on a Customs inspection fee of 10 
cents per hundredweight of tea. It should be noted that the 
Customs Service continues to collect 3.5 cents per 
hundredweight. The actual decrease in revenues is therefore 
$70,000 per year. However, discretionary savings should be 
realized by reducing or reallocating FTE's to other functions, 
resulting in overall savings to the federal government and 
improved government operations.

    B. Statement Regarding New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(3)(B) of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee states 
that H.R. 2969 results in no new budget authority and a 
decrease of $200,000 each year in revenues.

      C. Cost Estimate Prepared by the Congressional Budget Office

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(3)(C) if rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives requiring a cost estimate 
prepared by the Congressional Budget Office, the following 
report prepared by CBO is provided.

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                 Washington, DC, February 29, 1996.
Hon. Bill Archer,
Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means, House of Representatives, 
        Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
reviewed H.R. 2969, the Federal Tea Tasters Repeal Act of 1996, 
as ordered reported by the Ways and Means Committee on February 
28, 1996. CBO estimates that the bill would reduce governmental 
receipts by less than $500,000 in each of the fiscal years 1996 
through 2000. Because enacting H.R. 2969 would affect receipts, 
pay-as-you-go procedures would apply to the bill. H.R. 2969 
contains no intergovernmental or private sector mandates as 
defined in Public Law 104-4 and would impose no direct costs on 
state, local, or tribal governments.
    The Tea Importation Act of 1897 requires tea to be examined 
upon import of the United States, and establishes an 
examination fee to be paid by the importer. H.R. 2969 repeals 
the Tea Importation Act of 1897, eliminating the examination 
requirement and the corresponding fee. Under Public Law 103-66, 
signed August 10, 1993, the amount of the fee for the 
examination of tea imports was raised from 3.5 cents per 
hundred weight to 10 cents per hundred weight of tea imported. 
However, due to an oversight in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, 
U.S. Customs has continued to charge a rate of 3.5 cents per 
hundred weight of the tea, collecting about $70,000 in each of 
the fiscal years 1994 and 1995. Based on information from 
Customs, CBO assumes that this discrepancy will be corrected 
and that Customs will begin collecting the fee at the statutory 
rate of 10 cents per hundred weight. CBO estimates that 
collections of the fee at the 10 cent rate would be 
approximately $200,000 annually. Enacting H.R. 2969 would 
therefore result in a negligible loss of revenue from fee 
collections.
    If you wish further details, please feel free to contact me 
or your staff may wish to contact Stephanie Weiner.
            Sincerely,
                                         June E. O'Neill, Director.

 V. OTHER MATTERS REQUIRED TO BE DISCUSSED UNDER THE RULES OF THE HOUSE

          A. Committee Oversight Findings and Recommendations

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(3)(A) of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee reports 
that due to the non-controversial nature of the legislation, as 
well as the bipartisan support, the Committee favorably 
reported the bill without oversight hearings on this topic.

B. Summary of Findings and Recommendations of the Government Reform and 
                          Oversight Committee

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(3)(D) of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee states 
that no oversight findings or recommendations have been 
submitted by the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight 
regarding H.R. 2969.

                    C. Inflationary Impact Statement

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(4) of rule XI of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee states that the 
provisions of the bill are not expected to have an overall 
inflationary impact on the economy.

       VI. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

  In compliance with clause 3 of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the 
bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law proposed 
to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, existing law in 
which no change is proposed is shown in roman):

                          TEA IMPORTATION ACT

  [Sec. 1. It shall be unlawful for any person or persons or 
corporation to import or bring into the United States any 
merchandise as tea which is inferior in purity, quality, and 
fitness for consumption to the standards provided in section 43 
of this title, and the importation of all such merchandise is 
prohibited, except as provided in the Harmonized Tariff 
Schedule of the United States.
  [Sec. 2. On or before February 15 of each year, the Secretary 
of Health, Education, and Welfare shall appoint a board, to 
consist of seven members, each of whom shall be an expert in 
teas, and who shall prepare and submit to him standard samples 
of tea. The persons so appointed shall be at all times subject 
to removal by the said Secretary and shall serve for the term 
of one year. Vacancies in the said board occurring by removal, 
death, resignation, or any other cause shall be forthwith 
filled by the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare by 
appointment, such appointee to hold for the unexpired term. 
Said board shall appoint a presiding officer, who shall be the 
medium of all communications to or from such board. Each member 
of said board shall receive as compensation the sum of $50 per 
annum, which, together with all necessary expenses while 
engaged upon the duty herein provided, shall be paid by the 
Secretary.
    [Sec. 3. The Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, 
upon the recommendation of the board of experts provided in 
section 42 of this title, shall fix and establish uniform 
standards of purity, quality, and fitness for consumption of 
all kinds of teas imported into the United States, and shall 
procure and deposit in the customhouses of the ports of New 
York, Chicago, San Francisco, and such other ports as he may 
determine, duplicate samples of such standards. Said 
Administrator shall procure a sufficient number of other 
duplicate samples of such standards to supply the importers and 
dealers in tea at all ports desiring the same at cost. All 
teas, or merchandise described as tea, of inferior purity, 
quality, and fitness for consumption to such standards shall be 
deemed within the prohibition of section 41 of this title.
    [Sec. 4. On making entry at the customhouse of all teas, or 
merchandise described as tea, imported into the United States, 
the importer or consignee shall give a bond to the collector of 
the port that such merchandise shall not be removed from the 
warehouse until released by the collector, after it shall have 
been duly examined with reference to its purity, quality, and 
fitness for consumption. For the purpose of such examination 
samples of each line in every invoice of tea shall be submitted 
by the importer or consignee to the examiner, together with the 
sworn statement of such importer or consignee that such samples 
represent the true quality of each and every part of the 
invoice and accord with the specifications therein contained; 
or in the discretion of the Secretary of Health, Education, and 
Welfare, such samples shall be obtained by the examiner and 
compared by him with the standards established by sections 41-
46 and 47-50 of this title. In cases where said tea, or 
merchandise described as tea, is entered at ports where there 
is no qualified examiner as provided in section 46 of this 
title, the consignee or importer shall in the manner aforesaid 
furnish under oath a sample of each line of tea to the 
collector or other revenue officer to whom is committed the 
collection of duties, and said officer shall also draw or cause 
to be drawn samples of each line in every invoice and shall 
forward the same to a duly qualified examiner as provided in 
said section. The bond required by this section shall also be 
conditioned for the payment of all customhouse charges which 
may attach to such merchandise prior to its being released or 
destroyed (as the case may be) under the provisions of sections 
41-46 and 47-50 of this title.
    [Sec. 5. If, after an examination as provided in section 44 
of this title, the tea is found by the examiner to be equal in 
purity, quality, and fitness for consumption to the standards 
provided in sections 41-44 of this title, and no reexamination 
shall be demanded by the collector as provided in section 47 of 
this title, a permit shall at once be granted to importer or 
consignee declaring the tea free from the control of the 
customs authorities; but if on examination such tea, or 
merchandise described as tea, is found, in the opinion of the 
examiner, to be inferior in purity, quality, and fitness for 
consumption to the said standards the importer or consignee 
shall be immediately notified, and the tea, or merchandise 
described as tea, shall not be released by the customhouse, 
unless on a reexamination called for by the importer or 
consignee the finding of the examiner shall be found to be 
erroneous. Should a portion of the invoice be passed by the 
examiner, a permit shall be granted for that portion and the 
remainder held for further examination, as provided in said 
section 47.
    [Sec. 6. In case the collector, importer, or consignee 
shall protest against the finding of the examiner, the matter 
in dispute shall be referred for decision to the United States 
Board of Tea Appeals, to consist of three employees of the 
Department of Health, Education, and Welfare to be designated 
by the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. If such 
board shall, after due examination, find the tea in question to 
be equal in purity, quality, and fitness for consumption to the 
proper standards, a permit shall be issued by the collector for 
its release and delivery to the importer; but if upon such 
final reexamination by such board the tea shall be found to be 
inferior in purity, quality, and fitness for consumption to the 
said standards, the importer or consignee shall give a bond, 
with security satisfactory to the collector, to export said 
tea, or merchandise described as tea, out of the limits of the 
United States within a period of six months after such final 
reexamination; and if the same shall not have been exported 
within the time specified, the collector, at the expiration of 
that time, shall cause the same to be destroyed.
  [Sec. 7. The examination provided for by sections 41-46 and 
47-50 of this title shall be made by a duly qualified examiner 
at a port where standard samples are established, and where the 
merchandise is entered at ports where there is no qualified 
examiner, the examination shall be made at that one of said 
ports which is nearest the port of entry, and that for this 
purpose samples of the merchandise, obtained in the manner 
prescribed by section 44 of this title, shall be forwarded to 
the proper port by the collector or chief officer at the port 
of entry. In all cases of examination or reexamination of teas, 
or merchandise described as tea, by examiners or the United 
States Board of Tea Appeals under the provisions of this 
chapter, the purity, quality, and fitness for consumption of 
the same shall be tested according to the usage and customs of 
the tea trade, including the testing of an infusion of the same 
in boiling water, and, if necessary, chemical analysis.
  [Sec. 8. In cases of reexamination of teas, or merchandise 
described as teas, by the United States Board of Tea Appeals in 
pursuance of the provisions of sections 41-46 and 47-50 of this 
title, samples of the tea, or merchandise described as tea, in 
dispute, for transmission to such board for its decision, shall 
be put up and sealed by the examiner in the presence of the 
importer or consignee if he so desires, and transmitted to such 
board, together with a copy of the finding of the examiner, 
setting forth the cause of condemnation and the claim or ground 
of the protest of the importer relating to the same, such 
samples, and the papers therewith, to be distinguished by such 
mark that the same may be identified. The decision of such 
board shall be in writing, signed by them, and transmitted, 
together with the record and samples, within three days after 
the rendition thereof, to the collector, who shall forthwith 
furnish the examiner and the importer or consignee with a copy 
of said decision or finding. The United States Board of Tea 
Appeals shall be authorized to obtain the advice, when 
necessary, of persons skilled in the examination of teas, who 
shall each receive for his services in any particular case a 
compensation not exceeding $5.
  [Sec. 9. No imported teas which have been rejected by a 
customs examiner or by the United States Board of Tea Appeals, 
and exported under the provisions of sections 41-46 and 47-50 
of this title, shall be reimported into the United States under 
the penalty of forfeiture for a violation of this prohibition.
  [Sec. 10. The Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare 
shall have the power to enforce the provisions of sections 41-
46 and 47-50 of this title by appropriate regulations.
  [Sec. 11. That teas actually on shipboard for shipment to the 
United States at the time of the passage of this Act shall not 
be subject to the prohibition hereof, but the provisions of the 
Act entitled ``An Act to prevent the importation of adulterated 
and spurious teas,'' approved March second, eighteen hundred 
and eighty-three, shall be applicable thereto.
  [Sec. 12. That the Act entitled ``An Act to prevent the 
importation of adulterated and spurious teas,'' approved March 
second, eighteen hundred and eighty-three, is hereby repealed, 
such repeal to take effect on the date on which this Act goes 
into effect.
  [Sec. 13. No tea or merchandise described as tea shall be 
examined for importation into the United States, or released by 
the Customs Service, under the Tea Importation Act unless the 
importer or consignee of such tea or merchandise has paid, 
before the examination, a fee in an amount equal to--
          [(1) 10 cents for each hundred weight or fraction 
        thereof of the tea or merchandise; or
          [(2) the approximate cost of the examinations;
whichever amount is less. Such fee shall be deposited into the 
Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous receipts.]