Title I: Prevention of Currency Misalignments - Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to direct the President to proclaim for the appropriate period import restrictions whenever large and serious imbalances in external accounts require special import measures to restrict imports to: (1) deal with U.S. deficits; (2) prevent depreciation of the dollar in foreign exchange markets; or (2) cooperate with other countries in correcting a persistent misalignment of exchange rates. Authorizes the President to proclaim for the appropriate period special measures to increase imports whenever large and serious imbalances in external accounts require such measures to: (1) deal with large and persistent current account surpluses; (2) prevent significant appreciation of the dollar in foreign exchange markets; or (3) cooperate with other countries in correcting a persistent misalignment of exchange rates. (Current law requires the President to proclaim such import restrictions or measures to increase imports whenever required by basic international payments problems.) Directs the President to decide when a large and serious U.S. deficit or surplus exists except that such a deficit or surplus shall be considered to exist if a sustained deficit period or sustained surplus period occurs. Defines a sustained deficit period to mean five consecutive quarters in which U.S. deficits exceeded two and one-half percent of the gross national product.
Defines a sustained surplus period to mean five consecutive quarters in which the U.S. surplus exceeded two and one-half percent of the gross national product. Authorizes the President to refrain from proclaiming any import restriction or any import-increasing measure if: (1) the deficit during the last six months is less than two and one-half percent of the gross national product or the surplus during the last six months is less than two and one-half percent of the gross national product and the International Trade Commission (ITC) makes specified findings; and (2) the President determines that the restriction is contrary to the national interest and the President informs the Congress of such determination and consults with a specified group of congressional advisers. Declares that the President should, in each year occurring after the close of a sustained deficit period or occurring after the close of a sustained surplus period, reduce large and persistent account imbalances by taking action to implement one or more of specified options.
Directs the President, at the end of four consecutive quarters in which the deficit in each quarter exceeded two and one-half percent of the gross national product or in which the surplus exceeded two-and one-half percent of the gross national product, to request the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to report on: (1) the compliance of each member of the IMF with its objection under section 1 of Article IV of the IMF Articles of Agreement; and (2) its judgment regarding the impact which the degree of compliance is having, and will have on the current account imbalances. Directs the President within 120 days of each such period of four consecutive quarters to take action to convene joint consultations with the IMF Executive Director and the appropriate members of the IMF to improve the coordination among the national macroeconomic policies and taking such other action as may be necessary to restore equilibrium among national current accounts.
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President seek changes in international agreements to allow: (1) surcharges in place of quotas as balance-of-payments adjustment measures; and (2) quotas and surcharges to deal with large and persistent current account imbalances and currency misalignments.
Title II: Relief from Unfair Trade Practices - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to establish in the ITC the Office of Unfair Trade Investigations. Sets forth the functions of such Office, including: (1) carrying out the functions assigned on October 1, 1985, to the ITC's Office of Unfair Import Investigations; and (2) monitoring the operation of U.S. and foreign trade laws, policies, and practices. Requires the Office to take certain actions if a foreign country or instrumentality is suspected of: (1) subsidizing or dumping exports to the United States; (2) engaging in unfair trading practices; or (3) violating U.S. trade rights under trade agreements. Sets forth factors to be considered by the Office. Prohibits the Office from taking action in certain cases. Requires the ITC to ensure that the Office has sufficient manpower and resources to carry out its functions.
Transfers from the President to the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) certain functions relating to enforcement of U.S. trade rights under trade agreements and response to certain foreign trade practices.
Requires the USTR, if notified that a foreign act, policy, or practice is a cause of injury or threat of injury to a domestic industry or is injurious industrial targeting, to decide within 160 days which of the following actions to take: (1) suspension, withdrawal, or prevention of application of trade benefits; (2) imposition of import duties or restrictions on the production and services of such foreign entity; (3) negotiation of orderly marketing agreements; or (4) development of actions to restore or improve the international competitiveness of the injured or threatened industry. Requires the USTR, upon receiving such notification, to begin negotiations on an agreement to eliminate the injurious act, practice, or policy.
Authorizes the USTR, subject to Presidential disapproval, to: (1) restrict the terms and conditions of certain service sector access authorizations; or (2) deny the issuance of such authorizations.
Defines injurious industrial targeting to mean any combination of coordinated government actions that are bestowed on a specific enterprise the effect of which is to: (1) injure a U.S. industry or to retard the growth or establishment of a U.S. industry; and (2) help make it more competitive in the export of any class or kind of merchandise.
Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to include in the definition of "subsidy" (for antidumping and countervailing duty purposes) any resource input subsidy. States that a "resource input subsidy" is found to exist if: (1) (a) a product is provided or sold by a government-regulated or controlled entity within a country for input use within such country at a domestic price that is lower than the fair market value of the input product and is not freely available to U.S. producers; and (b) a product would, if sold at the fair market value, constitute a significant portion of the total cost of the manufacture or production of the merchandise in or for which the input product is used; or (2) under specified circumstances, the right to remove or extract such product is provided or sold by a government or a government-regulated or controlled entity within a country. Sets forth the method of calculation for the amount of a resource input subsidy.
Defines "fair market value" and "input use".
Requires injury determinations by the ITC to be made in all countervailing duty investigations relating to the existence of resource input subsidies.
Makes it unlawful for any person to: (1) alter a country of origin; or (2) sell or transport any article that does not have its country of origin marking or that has had its country of origin marking altered. Sets forth penalties.
Makes it unlawful to sell or distribute counterfeit goods in countries outside the United States. Authorizes the ITC to prohibit imports by any person with respect to whom there is reason to believe that such person is violating the prohibition against selling or distributing counterfeit goods in foreign countries. Requires such counterfeit goods to be seized and forfeited if they are imported into the United States. Makes it unlawful to sell or transport such goods in the United States. Sets forth penalties.
Title III: Relief from Injury Caused by Import Competition - Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to transfer from the President to the USTR certain duties relating to import relief. Requires an import relief petition to include a proposal for restructuring the industry to ensure that the industry will be able to operate viably when import relief is terminated.
Requires the ITC to determine in an import relief investigation whether, in addition to the matters it is currently required to determine, it is likely that adjustment assistance and other Federal assistance will, in conjunction with other import relief, effectively remedy the labor and community dislocation caused by the import injury.
Provides that a decline in demand because of general recessionary conditions in the U.S. economy may not be considered a cause of injury more important than imports.
Directs the ITC to complete its investigation on an import relief petition and report its findings to the USTR within six months of the filing of the petition.
Directs the ITC, if it determines that serious injury or the threat of serious injury exists and that it is likely that adjustment assistance or other Federal aid will remedy the dislocation associated with that injury or threat, to: (1) find the amount of increase in, or imposition of, duty or import restriction necessary to prevent or remedy such injury or threat; (2) specify such Federal aid (other than adjustment assistance) necessary to remedy the dislocation; and (3) specify those elements of the industry restructuring proposal that is necessary to enable the industry to adjust to import competition.
Directs the USTR, after receiving such a report from the ITC, to: (1) provide import relief for the industry unless the USTR determines that such relief is not in the national economic interest; (2) require expeditious consideration of petitions adjustment assistance for affected workers and firms; (3) request expeditious consideration for petitions for other Federal aid; and (4) specify which of the elements of the restructuring proposal that the industry must implement to operate viably when import relief is ended. Requires the USTR within 60 days of receiving such report to determine whether import relief will be provided and what method and amount of relief will be provided.
Directs the ITC, if it determines that serious injury or the threat of serious injury exists and that it is unlikely that adjustment assistance or other Federal aid will remedy the dislocation associated with that injury or threat, to convene a Multipartite Adjustment Council to determine import relief for the industry and adjustment programs for the labor and community dislocation. Prohibits certain types of import relief (tariff increases, quotas, orderly marketing agreements) for the industry in such circumstances.
Requires the ITC to report to the USTR if the ITC decides that the industry is not substantially implementing the elements of its industry restructuring plan. Authorizes the USTR to suspend, reduce, or terminate the import relief to the industry under such circumstances.
Sets forth administrative provisions relating to the Multipartite Adjustment Council. Requires the Council to develop and submit to the USTR an import protection and domestic recovery plan for the industry. Sets forth information to be included in such plan. Requires the USTR to take specified actions upon approving such plan.
Establishes in the Treasury an Industry Assistance and Restructuring Fund.
Title IV: Adjustment Assistance for Workers and Firms - Expresses the sense of the Congress that whenever there occurs a net increase in value of imports in a year in relation to the previous year there should occur a proportionate increase in the rate at which trade adjustment assistance petitions for businesses and for workers are approved.
Subtitle A: Worker Adjustment Assistance - Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to require certifying workers as eligible for trade adjustment assistance if increases in imports like or directly competitive with articles to which a worker's firm or subdivision provides essential parts or services contributed importantly to: (1) the total or partial separation of such worker or threat of such total or partial separation and to a decline in sales and production of the firm or subdivision; or (2) such separation or threat of such separation because of the relocation of the production functions of that firm or subdivision to a foreign country or instrumentality.
Treats as a qualifying week for adjustment assistance purposes any week a worker receives back pay because of being laid off. Limits to seven the number of weeks that may be treated as qualifying weeks of employment in cases in which an employee is on employer authorized leave or is serving as a labor organization representative.
Extends the duration of trade adjustment allowances from 52 to 104 weeks.
Requires additional payments to be made as trade readjustment allowances to help an adversely affected worker to undertake training if the worker submits, before the worker exhausts all rights to that part of unemployment insurance that is regular compensation, either: (1) a bona fide application for an approved training program; or (2) an application for a training voucher. Authorizes making additional payments: (1) for up to 26 additional weeks if the training program or voucher is approved before the close of the last week for which the worker is eligible for a trade readjustment allowance; or (2) for up to 52 additional weeks if the training program or voucher is approved after the close of the last week for which the worker is eligible for a trade readjustment allowance.
Requires (current law authorizes) the Secretary of Labor to approve job training if the worker meets specified requirements. Requires the costs of the training to be paid from the next appropriation of funds if the funds have not been appropriated at the time the training is entered into. Defines "reasonable expectation of employment" for purposes of determining if training should be approved. Sets forth the method of determining the amount that employers should be reimbursed for providing training.
Authorizes workers eligible for training to elect to obtain training through the use of training vouchers. Directs the Secretary of Labor to issue a voucher if the Secretary: (1) approves the training course for which the worker applies; and (2) finds that suitable employment for the worker is not available, the worker is not already qualified for the job for which training is sought, and there is a reasonable expectation of employment after completion of the training. Sets forth specified conditions which the provider of the training must meet in order to redeem the voucher.
Requires each State agency that is providing adversely affected workers with testing, counseling, training, and placement services to: (1) advise each adversely affected worker to apply for training under the trade adjustment assistance program or to begin a search for appropriate training under the voucher system at the time the worker applies for trade readjustment allowances; and (2) interview the adversely affected worker within 60 days on suitable training opportunities available under the trade adjustment assistance program.
Subtitle B: Firm Adjustment Assistance - Requires certifying a firm as eligible for trade adjustment assistance if: (1) certain conditions are met and if sales or production, or both, of an article that accounted for at least 25 percent of the firm's total production or sales during the 12-month period preceding the most recent 12-month period for which data are available have decreased absolutely; or (2) increases in imports of articles like or directly competitive with a critical product line of the firm resulting from targeting by one or more foreign countries, the firm is threatened with the idling of its facilities, with unprofitability, and with underemployment or unemployment of a significant number or proportion of its workers, and increases in imports contributed importantly to those threats. Defines "targeting" to mean the policy of a country that selectively supports the development of an industry to enhance its competitiveness in domestic or export markets.
Deletes the requirement that in order to qualify for adjustment assistance a firm not have access to financing through the private capital market. Deletes the provision authorizing assistance to firms in preparing the firms' adjustment proposals.
Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce (the Secretary) to make grants: (1) to certain industry organizations to assist them in designing and managing trade adjustment strategies; and (2) to private individuals, firms, or institutions to assist firms that have been certified as eligible for adjustment assistance. Limits the amount that may be allotted for such grants.
Prohibits providing a loan in excess of $500,000 to a firm under the adjustment assistance provisions if the firm can obtain loan funds from private sources using the adjustment assistance guarantee loan assistance loan authority.
Deletes the provision that prohibited financial assistance to a firm through the adjustment assistance authority unless the funds are not available from the firm's own resources.
Sets forth a method of determining the interest rate on each loan made through the adjustment assistance provisions.
Prohibits the Secretary from guaranteeing any loan if the interest rate is determined to be excessive (currently, if it is determined to be excessive when compared with other loans bearing Federal guarantees). Prohibits the Secretary from making a loan or guaranteeing a loan having a maturity in excess of 25 years or the weighted average useful life of its collateral, except that the Secretary may make or guarantee a loan having a maturity of up to five years.
Requires the Secretary, in making guarantees or loans in excess of $150,000, to give priority to firms that are small within the meaning of the Small Business Act. Prohibits any adjustment assistance loan guarantee from being made for an amount that exceeds 90 percent of the outstanding balance on the portion. Declares that the validity of the guarantee shall be incontestable except for fraud or misrepresentation of any party who purchases, as an authorized secondary market investor, all or part of the guaranteed portion of such loan. Increases the total maximum amount of adjustment assistance loan guarantees that may be outstanding at any time. Deletes the provision that prohibits granting financial assistance to a firm unless the owners, partners, or officers of the firm bind themselves to avoid certain conflicts-of-interest.
Requires all repayments of loans, interest payments, and other receipts from financial aid to firms to be paid into a separate account administered by the International Trade Administration.
Subtitle C: Uniform Additional Duty - Directs the President to undertake negotiations to change the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) to allow any country to impose a small uniform duty on all imports to fund adjustment assistance programs for workers and firms of that country.
Imposes on all imports into the United States a duty at a uniform rate determined by the President: (1) to be in accordance with the GATT; and (2) to be sufficient to fund adjustment assistance programs.
Subtitle D: Effective Dates - Sets forth the effective dates for the changes made by this title.
Title V: CIF Basis of Appraisement - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to require that in addition to the bases currently required by law imports shall be appraised on the basis of the CIF costs (the costs and charges incurred by the buyer for the transportation, insurance, loading, and handling incident to shipment of the merchandise from the exporting country to the place of importation in the United States). Provides for adjusting the transaction value of merchandise based on significant differences between the CIF costs for the imported goods and for the identical or similar goods in question. Includes the CIF costs in determining the value of imports.
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the revenues that accrue from the amendments made by this title be applied to ensure that the annual staffing levels of the Customs Service are not less than a specified level for FY 1986.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to House Committee on Ways and Means.
Referred to Subcommittee on Trade.
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