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[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3294 Introduced in House (IH)]

  2d Session
                                H. R. 3294

 To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to withhold United States 
 assistance from countries determined to be violating the human rights 
              of working children, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 23, 1996

 Mr. Moran (for himself, Mr. Kennedy of Massachusetts, Mr. Frazer, Mr. 
 Gene Green of Texas, Ms. Norton, Mr. Stupak, Mr. Bryant of Texas, Mr. 
  Wilson, Mr. Lipinski, Mr. Rangel, Ms. Kaptur, Mr. Sanders, and Ms. 
  McKinney ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                  Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
 To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to withhold United States 
 assistance from countries determined to be violating the human rights 
              of working children, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Working Children's Human Rights 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) Principle 9 of the Declaration of the Rights of the 
        Child proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly on 
        November 20, 1959, states that ``. . .the child shall not be 
        admitted to employment before an appropriate minimum age; he 
        shall in no case be caused or permitted to engage in any 
        occupation or employment which would prejudice his health or 
        education, or interfere with his physical, mental, or moral 
        development. . .''.
            (2) Article 2 of the International Labor Convention No. 138 
        Concerning Minimum Age For Admission to Employment states that 
        ``The minimum age specified in pursuance of paragraph 1 of this 
        article shall not be less than the age of compulsory schooling 
        and, in any case, shall not be less than 15 years.''.
            (3) According to the International Labor Organization, an 
        estimated 200,000,000 children under the age of 15 are working 
        in the world, many in dangerous industries like mining and 
        fireworks.
            (4) Children under the age of 15 constitute approximately 
        11 percent of the workforce in some Asian countries, 17 percent 
        of the workforce in parts of Africa, and a reported 12 to 26 
        percent of the workforce in many countries in Latin America.
            (5) The number of children under the age of 15 who are 
        working, and the scale of their suffering, increases every 
        year, despite the existence of more than 20 international labor 
        organization conventions on child labor and laws in many 
        countries which purportedly prohibit the employment of underage 
        children.
            (6) In many countries, children under the age of 15 lack 
        either the legal standing or means to protect themselves from 
        exploitation in the workplace.
            (7) The prevalence of child labor in many developing 
        countries is rooted in widespread poverty that is attributable 
        to unemployment and underemployment, precarious incomes, low 
        living standards, and insufficient education and training 
        opportunities among adult workers.
            (8) The employment of children under the age of 15 commonly 
        deprives such children of the opportunity for basic education 
        and also denies gainful employment to millions of adults.
            (9) The employment of children under the age of 15, often 
        at drastically low wages, undermines the stability of families 
        and ignores the importance of increasing jobs, aggregated 
        demand, and purchasing power among adults as a catalyst to the 
        development of internal markets and the achievement of broad-
based, self-reliant economic development in many developing countries.

SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS TO FOREIGN ASSISTANCE ACT OF 1961.

    (a) Reporting Requirement.--Section 116(d) of the Foreign 
Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151n(d)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(4) the United States policy to establish and encourage 
        an international strategy to reduce violations of the human 
        rights of working children, including--
                    ``(A) a description of the policies adopted, 
                agreements concluded, and programs implemented by the 
                Department of State and Department of Labor in pursuit 
                of their delegated responsibilities for reducing 
                worldwide violations of the human rights of working 
                children, for the fiscal year just ended, for the 
                current fiscal year, and for the next fiscal year, 
                including policy development, bilateral and 
                multilateral funding, and other support for projects 
                designed to reduce violations of the human rights of 
                working children; and
                    ``(B) for each country that receives assistance 
                under this part, the report shall include--
                            ``(i) a detailed status report on the use 
                        of child labor within such country, noting 
                        significant changes in conditions, such as 
                        increases or decreases in the use of child 
                        labor, and changes in the policy of such 
                        country toward the use of child labor;
                            ``(ii) a description of United States 
                        assistance provided or proposed to be provided 
                        to such country for the preceding fiscal year, 
                        the current fiscal year, and for the next 
                        fiscal year, with an analysis of the impact 
                        that the furnishing of each kind of assistance 
                        has had or is expected to have on the use of 
                        child labor in the country;
                            ``(iii) a description of the plans, 
                        programs, and timetables adopted by such 
                        country for the progressive elimination of the 
                        use of child labor and a discussion of the 
                        legal and law enforcement measures taken and 
                        the accomplishments achieved in accord with 
                        these plans; and
                            ``(iv) a description of bribery of public 
                        officials and other forms of public corruption 
                        that facilitate violations of the human rights 
                        of working children.''.
    (b) Additional Requirements.--Such Act is further amended by adding 
at the end of part I the following:

      ``Chapter 12--International Human Rights of Working Children

``SEC. 499. CONSULTATION REQUIREMENT.

    ``(a) In General.--As soon as possible after the transmittal of the 
report required by section 116(d), the Secretary of State, in 
conjunction with the Secretary of Labor, shall initiate appropriate 
consultations with the appropriate congressional committees.
    ``(b) Additional Requirements.--Such consultations shall include 
the following:
            ``(1) In-person discussions by designated representatives 
        of the President (including appropriate representatives from 
        the Department of Labor and Department of State) to review the 
        status worldwide of violations of the human rights of working 
        children and the role that United States assistance to those 
        countries violating the human rights of working children have 
        in combating the exploitation of children.
            ``(2) With respect to each country the President is 
        proposing to provide United States assistance for the next 
        year, the furnishing of--
                    ``(A) a description of the nature of the violations 
                of the human rights of working children; and
                    ``(B) an analysis of political, economic, and 
                social factors that affect violations of the human 
                rights of working children.

``SEC. 499A. CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS.

    ``(a) In General.--After consultations have been initiated pursuant 
to section 499, it is the sense of the Congress that the appropriate 
congressional committees should hold hearings to review the human 
rights of working children provisions of the report transmitted 
pursuant to section 116(d).
    ``(b) Type of Hearings.--It is the further sense of the Congress 
that the hearings described in subsection (a) should be open to the 
public unless the appropriate congressional committees determine, in 
accordance with the rules of the House of Representatives or the rules 
of the Senate, as the case may be, that the hearings should be closed 
to the public.

``SEC. 499B. ANNUAL CERTIFICATION PROCEDURES.

    ``(a) Determining Countries Violating the Human Rights of Working 
Children.--
            ``(1) Certification.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), for 
                each fiscal year, any country that desires to receive 
                United States assistance shall certify to the Secretary 
                of State that such country--
                            ``(i) has adopted and is enforcing laws 
                        that guarantee--
                                    ``(I) a prohibition on the use of 
                                any form of forced or compulsory child 
                                labor;
                                    ``(II) a reasonable minimum age for 
                                the employment of children; and
                                    ``(III) acceptable conditions of 
                                work with respect to minimum wages, 
                                hours of work, and occupational health 
                                and safety relating to child labor; and
                            ``(ii) has taken steps to prevent and 
                        punish bribery of public officials and other 
                        forms of public corruption which facilitate the 
                        abuse of child labor laws.
                    ``(B) Exception.--A country that does not meet the 
                requirements of subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year may 
                receive United States assistance for such fiscal year 
                if the President determines and certifies to the 
                Congress that it is in the vital national interest of 
                the United States to provide such assistance to such 
                country. The President shall include in any such 
                certification--
                            ``(i) a full and complete description of 
                        the vital national interest of the United 
                        States that is placed at risk if such 
                        assistance is not provided to such country; and
                            ``(ii) a statement weighing the risk 
                        described in clause (i) against the risk posed 
                        to the vital national interest of the United 
                        States by the failure of such country to adopt 
                        laws respecting the human rights of working 
                        children.
            ``(2) Review of certification.--
                    ``(A) Discretionary review.--The Secretary of State 
                may review the certification of any country submitted 
                under paragraph (1)(A).
                    ``(B) Review by petition.--
                            ``(i) In general.--An individual may submit 
                        to the Secretary a petition to review the 
                        certification of any country submitted under 
                        paragraph (1)(A).
                            ``(ii) Acceptance of review.--If the 
                        Secretary determines that a petition submitted 
                        under clause (i) contains credible evidence 
                        that a country submitted a certification under 
                        paragraph (1)(A) in a fraudulent manner, or 
                        that the country is not in compliance with any 
                        of the requirements contained in such 
                        paragraph, then the Secretary shall, not later 
                        than 180 days after the receipt of such 
                        petition, conduct a review of such 
                        certification.
                            ``(iii) Denial of review.--If the Secretary 
                        determines that a petition submitted under 
                        clause (i) does not contain credible evidence 
                        that a country submitted a certification under 
                        paragraph (1)(A) in a fraudulent manner, or 
                        that the country is not in compliance with any 
                        of the requirements contained in such 
                        paragraph, then the Secretary shall, not later 
                        than 180 days after the receipt of such 
                        petition, provide the individual who submitted 
                        the petition for review with the reasoning of 
                        the decision to deny review of such 
                        certification.
            ``(3) Revocation of certification.--
                    ``(A) Revocation by secretary.--If the Secretary 
                determines, based upon a review conducted under 
                paragraph (2), that the country is not in compliance 
                with any of the requirements contained in paragraph 
                (1), then the Secretary shall revoke the certification 
                of such country.
                    ``(B) Revocation by congress.--The Congress may 
                enact a joint resolution disapproving the certification 
                for a country submitted under subparagraph (A) or (B) 
                of paragraph (1).
    ``(b) Withholding of Assistance.--
            ``(1) Bilateral assistance.--50 percent of the United 
        States assistance allocated each fiscal year for each country 
        that has not been certified under subsection (a)(1), and for 
        each country for which a certification has been revoked under 
        subsection (a)(3), shall be withheld from obligation and 
        expenditure.
            ``(2) Multilateral assistance.--The Secretary of the 
        Treasury shall instruct the United States Executive Director of 
        each international financial institution to use the voice and 
        vote of the United States to oppose any loan or other 
        utilization of the funds of their respective institution to or 
        for any country that has not been certified under subsection 
        (a)(1) and for each country for which a certification has been 
        revoked under subsection (a)(3).

``SEC. 499C. DEFINITIONS.

    ``For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:
            ``(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        `appropriate congressional committees' means--
                    ``(A) the Committee on International Relations of 
                the House of Representatives; and
                    ``(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
                Senate.
            ``(2) International financial institution.--The term 
        `international financial institution' means the International 
        Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Inter-American 
        Development Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the African 
        Development Bank, the African Development Fund, the 
        International Monetary Fund, the European Bank for 
        Reconstruction and Development, and the International Finance 
        Corporation.
            ``(3) United states assistance.--The term `United States 
        assistance' means
                    ``(A) any assistance under this Act (including 
                programs under title IV of chapter 2 of this part, 
                relating to the Overseas Private Investment 
                Corporation), other than--
                            ``(i) disaster relief assistance, including 
                        any assistance under chapter 9 of this part;
                            ``(ii) assistance which involves the 
                        provision of food (including monetization of 
                        food) or medicine; and
                            ``(iii) assistance for refugees;
                    ``(B) sales, or financing on any terms, under the 
                Arms Export Control Act;
                    ``(C) the provision of agricultural commodities, 
                other than food, under the Agricultural Trade 
                Development and Assistance Act of 1954; and
                    ``(D) financing under the Export-Import Bank Act of 
                1945.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsections (a) and (b) 
shall take effect beginning on the first day of the first fiscal year 
beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.
                                 <all>
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