II

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2094

To inform and empower consumers in the United States through a voluntary

labeling system for wearing apparel and sporting goods made without

abusive and exploitative child labor, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

SEPTEMBER 19, 1996

Mr. HARKIN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred

to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

A BILL

To inform and empower consumers in the United States

through a voluntary labeling system for wearing apparel

and sporting goods made without abusive and exploitative

child labor, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Child Labor Free

5 Consumer Information Act of 1996’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress finds that—
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1 (1) the Secretary of Labor has conducted 2 de2 tailed studies that document the fact that abusive

3 and exploitative child labor exists worldwide;

4 (2) the Secretary of Labor has also determined,

5 through the studies referred to in paragraph (1),

6 that child laborers are often forced to work beyond

7 their physical capacities and under conditions that

8 threaten their health, safety, and development, and

9 are denied basic educational opportunities;

10 (3) in most instances, countries that have abu11 sive and exploitative child labor also experience a

12 high adult unemployment rate;

13 (4) the International Labor Organization (com14 monly known as the ‘‘ILO’’) estimates that hun15 dreds of millions of children are full-time workers,

16 and many of those children manufacture wearing ap17 parel and sporting goods that are offered for sale in

18 the United States;

19 (5) consumers in the United States spend bil20 lions of dollars each year on wearing apparel and

21 sporting goods made by abusive and exploitative

22 child labor;

23 (6) consumers in the United States have the

24 right to information on whether the items of wearing
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1 apparel and sporting goods that they purchase are

2 made without abusive and exploitative child labor;

3 (7) the labeling of wearing apparel and sporting

4 goods would provide the information referred to in

5 paragraph (5) to consumers; and

6 (8) it is important to recognize United States

7 businesses that have effective programs to ensure

8 that products sold in the United States are not

9 made with abusive and exploitative child labor.

10 TITLE I—CHILD LABOR FREE

11 LABELING STANDARDS

12 SEC. 101. LABELING STANDARDS.

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF LABELING STANDARDS.—

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days

15 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec16 retary of Labor, in consultation with the Child

17 Labor Free Commission established under section

18 201 shall issue regulations to ensure that a label

19 using the terms ‘‘Not Made With Child Labor’’,

20 ‘‘Child Labor Free’’, or any other term or symbol re21 ferring to child labor does not make a false state22 ment or suggestion that the article or section of

23 wearing apparel or sporting good was not made with

24 child labor. The regulations developed under this

25 section shall encourage the use of an easily identifi-
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1 able symbol or term indicating that the article or

2 section of wearing apparel or sporting good was not

3 made with child labor.

4 (2) NOTIFICATION ON USE.—A producer, im5 porter, exporter, distributor, or other person intend6 ing to use any label referred to in paragraph (4)

7 shall notify the Commission not later than 60 days

8 after the product bearing that label becomes avail9 able to the public for purchase. Upon receipt of the

10 notification, the Commission shall review the notifi11 cation. A response from the Commission shall not be

12 required for use of the label.

13 (3) FEE.—The Secretary is authorized to

14 charge a fee to cover the expenses of the Commis15 sion in reviewing a notification under paragraph (2).

16 The level of fees charged under this subparagraph

17 shall not exceed the administrative costs incurred in

18 reviewing a notification. Fees collected under this

19 paragraph shall be available to the Secretary of

20 Labor for expenses incurred in the review and re21 sponse of the Commission under this subsection.

22 (4) APPLICABILITY.—The regulations issued

23 under paragraph (1) shall apply to any label con24 tained in—
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1 (A) an article or section of wearing apparel

2 or sporting good that is exported from or of3 fered for sale in the United States; or

4 (B) any packaging thereof.

5 (b) VIOLATION OF SECTION 5 OF THE FEDERAL

6 TRADE COMMISSION ACT.—It is a violation of section 5

7 of the Federal Trade Commission Act for any producer,

8 importer, exporter, distributor, or seller of any article of

9 wearing apparel (or section of an article of wearing ap10 parel) or sporting good that is exported from or offered

11 for sale in the United States—

12 (1) to falsely indicate on the label of that article

13 (or section) or sporting good or the packaging of the

14 article (or section) or sporting good that the article

15 (or section) or sporting good was not made with

16 child labor; or

17 (2) to otherwise falsely claim or suggest that

18 the article (or section) or sporting good was not

19 made with child labor.

20 (c) AMENDMENT TO THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMIS21 SION ACT.—Section 5(m)(1) of the Federal Trade Com22 mission Act (15 U.S.C. 45(m)(1)) is amended—

23 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘The

24 Commission’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in

25 subparagraph (D), the Commission’’;
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1 (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘If the

2 Commission’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in

3 subparagraph (D), if the Commission’’; and

4 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub5 paragraph:

6 ‘‘(D)(i) In lieu of the applicable civil penalty under

7 subparagraph (A) or (B), in any case in which the Com8 mission commences a civil action for a violation of section

9 101 of the Child Labor Free Consumer Information Act

10 of 1996 under subparagraph (A) or under subparagraph

11 (B) for an unfair or deceptive practice that is considered

12 to be a violation of this section by reason of section 101(b)

13 of such Act, if that violation is a knowing or willful viola14 tion, the amount of a civil penalty for the violation shall

15 be determined under clause (ii).

16 ‘‘(ii) The amount of a civil penalty for a violation

17 under clause (i) that is committed shall be—

18 ‘‘(I) for an initial violation, an amount equal to

19 the greater of—

20 ‘‘(aa) 2 times the retail value of the arti21 cles of wearing apparel or sporting goods mis22 labeled; or

23 ‘‘(bb) $200,000; and

24 ‘‘(II) for any subsequent violation, an amount

25 equal to the greater of—
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1 ‘‘(aa) 4 times the retail value of the arti2 cles of wearing apparel or sporting goods mis3 labeled; or

4 ‘‘(bb) $400,000.’’.

5 (d) SPECIAL FUND TO ASSIST CHILDREN.—

6 (1) CREATION OF FUND.—There is established

7 in the United States Treasury a special fund to be

8 known as the Free the Children Fund.

9 (2) DEPOSITS INTO FUND.—An amount equal

10 to the amount of penalties collected under this sec11 tion shall be deposited into the special fund. The

12 Secretary of the Treasury shall, upon request of the

13 Secretary of the Labor, make the amounts deposited

14 into the special fund available to the Secretary of

15 Labor for use by the Secretary of Labor for edu16 cational and other programs described in paragraph

17 (3).

18 (3) AUTHORIZATION.—Amounts deposited into

19 the special fund are authorized to be appropriated

20 annually for educational and other programs with

21 the goal of eliminating child labor.

22 SEC. 102. REVIEW OF PETITIONS BY THE CHILD LABOR

23 FREE COMMISSION.

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the procedures es25 tablished under section 5 of the Federal Trade Commis-
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1 sion Act, the Child Labor Free Commission established

2 under section 201 shall assist the Federal Trade Commis3 sion by reviewing petitions under this section.

4 (b) CONTENTS OF PETITIONS.—A petition under this

5 section shall—

6 (1) be submitted in such form, and in such

7 manner as the Federal Trade Commission, in con8 sultation with the Child Labor Free Commission,

9 shall prescribe;

10 (2) contain the name of the—

11 (A) petitioner; and

12 (B) person or entity involved in the alleged

13 violation of the labeling standards under section

14 101; and

15 (3) provide a detailed explanation of the alleged

16 violation, including all available evidence.

17 (c) REVIEW BY COMMISSION.—The Commission

18 shall—

19 (1) to the maximum extent practicable, not

20 later than 90 days after receiving a petition, review

21 the petition to determine whether there appears to

22 have been a violation of the labeling standards; and

23 (2) upon completion of that review, forward

24 that petition to the Federal Trade Commission, to25 gether with a report by the Child Labor Free Com-
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1 mission containing a determination by the Child

2 Labor Free Commission whether—

3 (A) it is appropriate for the Federal Trade

4 Commission, in consultation with the Secretary

5 of Labor, to take such action as may be nec6 essary under the Federal Trade Commission

7 Act to cause the person or entity in violation of

8 the labeling standards under section 101 to

9 cease and desist from violating those standards;

10 and

11 (B) there appears to have been a willful or

12 repeated violation of the labeling standards.

13 SEC. 103. COOPERATION BY THE SECRETARY OF COM14 MERCE.

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—If, in the course of an investiga16 tion conducted by the Secretary of Commerce, the Sec17 retary of Commerce discovers a violation of the require18 ments of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall report

19 that violation to the Secretary of Labor.

20 (b) ACTION BY THE SECRETARY OF LABOR.—The

21 Secretary of Labor shall review each report made by the

22 Secretary of Commerce under subsection (a), and, as ap23 propriate, refer the violation to the Federal Trade Com24 mission for enforcement under the Federal Trade Com25 mission Act.
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1 TITLE II—CHILD LABOR FREE

2 COMMISSION

3 SEC. 201. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION.

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a com5 mission to be known as the Child Labor Free Commission.

6 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—

7 (1) COMPOSITION.—The Commission shall be

8 composed of 17 members, of whom—

9 (A) 1 shall be the Secretary of Commerce

10 or a designee of the Secretary of Commerce;

11 (B) 1 shall be the Secretary of the Treas12 ury or a designee of the Secretary of the Treas13 ury;

14 (C) 1 shall be the United States Trade

15 Representative or a designee of the United

16 States Trade Representative;

17 (D) 1 shall be the Secretary of Labor or

18 a designee of the Secretary of Labor, who shall

19 serve as the Chairperson of the Commission;

20 (E) 3 shall be representatives of non21 governmental organizations that work toward

22 the eradication of abusive and exploitative child

23 labor and in the promotion of human rights,

24 appointed by the Secretary of Labor;
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1 (F) 3 shall be representatives of labor or2 ganizations, appointed by the Secretary of

3 Labor;

4 (G) 3 shall be representatives of the wear5 ing apparel industry, appointed by the Sec6 retary of Labor;

7 (H) 3 shall be representatives of the sport8 ing goods industry; and

9 (I) 1 shall be an additional member, ap10 pointed by the Secretary of Labor.

11 (2) DATE.—The appointments of the members

12 of the Commission shall be made not later than 60

13 days after the date of enactment of this Act.

14 (c) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.—

15 (1) FEDERAL EMPLOYEES.—Each member of

16 the Commission who is an officer or employee of the

17 United States shall be appointed for the life of the

18 Commission. Any vacancy in the Commission shall

19 not affect its powers, but shall be filled in the same

20 manner as the original appointment.

21 (2) NON-FEDERAL MEMBERS.—Each member

22 of the Commission who is not an officer or employee

23 of the Federal Government shall serve for a term of

24 4 years, except that in appointing the initial mem-
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1 bers of the Commission, the Secretary of Labor shall

2 stagger the terms of the non-Federal members.

3 (d) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 30 days after

4 the date on which all members of the Commission have

5 been appointed, the Commission shall hold its first meet6 ing.

7 (e) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet at the

8 call of the Chairperson or at the request of a majority

9 of the members.

10 (f) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of the

11 Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser num12 ber of members may hold hearings or other meetings.

13 SEC. 202. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.

14 The Commission shall—

15 (1) assist the Secretary of Labor in developing

16 labeling standards under section 101; and

17 (2) assist the Secretary of Labor in developing

18 and implementing a system to ensure compliance

19 with the labeling standards established under section

20 101, including—

21 (A) receiving, reviewing, and making rec22 ommendations for the resolution of petitions re23 ceived under section 102 that allege noncompli24 ance with the labeling standards under section

25 101;
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1 (B) making recommendations to the Sec2 retary of Labor for the removal of labels subject

3 to the standards under section 101 that are

4 found to be in violation of those standards;

5 (C) assisting the Secretary of Labor in de6 veloping and implementing a system to promote

7 the increased use of the labeling standards

8 under section 101;

9 (D) publishing, not less frequently than bi10 annually, a list of persons and entities that

11 have notified the Commission of their intent to

12 use a label under section 101(a)(2); and

13 (E) publishing, not less frequently than bi14 annually, a list of persons and entities found to

15 be in violation of any provision of this Act; and

16 (3) not later than 1 year after the date of the

17 establishment of the Commission, commence devel18 oping an easily identifiable labeling standard that

19 the Secretary of Labor shall issue to encourage the

20 use of voluntary labels ensuring consumers that an

21 article of wearing apparel or sporting good was

22 made without the use of sweatshop or exploited

23 adult labor.
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1 SEC. 203. POWERS OF THE COMMISSION.

2 (a) HEARINGS.—The Commission may hold such

3 hearings, sit and act at such times and places, take such

4 testimony, and receive such evidence as the Commission

5 considers advisable to carry out the duties of the Commis6 sion under this title.

7 (b) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.—The

8 Commission may secure directly from any Federal depart9 ment or agency such information as the Commission con10 siders necessary to carry out the duties of the Commission

11 under this title. Upon request of the Chairperson of the

12 Commission, the head of such department or agency shall

13 furnish such information to the Commission.

14 (c) POSTAL SERVICES.—The Commission may use

15 the United States mails in the same manner and under

16 the same conditions as other departments and agencies of

17 the Federal Government.

18 (d) GIFTS.—The Commission may accept, use, and

19 dispose of gifts or donations of services or property.

20 SEC. 204. COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS.

21 (a) NON-FEDERAL MEMBERS.—Each member of the

22 Commission who is not an officer or employee of the Fed23 eral Government shall serve without compensation.

24 (b) FEDERAL MEMBERS.—Each member of the Com25 mission who is an officer or employee of the United States

26 shall serve without compensation in addition to that re-
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1 ceived for that member’s services as an officer or employee

2 of the United States.

3 SEC. 205. ADMINISTRATIVE AND SUPPORT SERVICES.

4 The Secretary of Labor shall, to the extent permitted

5 by law, provide the Commission with such administrative

6 services, funds, facilities, staff, and other support services

7 as may be necessary for the performance of its functions.

8 TITLE III—RECOGNITION OF EX9 EMPLARY CORPORATE EF10 FORTS

11 SEC. 301. ANNUAL REPORT.

12 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment

13 of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of

14 Labor shall issue a report concerning companies that are

15 making exemplary progress in ensuring that products

16 made, sold, or distributed by those companies are not

17 made with abusive and exploitative child labor.

18 SEC. 302. ADDITIONAL METHODS.

19 In addition to the reports made under section 301,

20 the Secretary of Labor in consultation with the Commis21 sion shall develop and implement other methods of provid22 ing recognition for exemplary programs carried out by

23 companies to ensure that products made, sold, or distrib24 uted by those companies are not made with abusive and

25 exploitative child labor.
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1 TITLE IV—DEFINITIONS

2 SEC. 401. DEFINITIONS.

3 For purposes of this Act, the following definitions

4 shall apply:

5 (1) CHILD.—The term ‘‘child’’ means—

6 (A) an individual who has not attained the

7 age of 15 years, as measured by the Julian cal8 endar; or

9 (B) an individual who has not attained the

10 age of 14 years, as measured by the Julian cal11 endar, in the case of an individual who resides

12 in a country that, by law, defines a child as

13 such an individual.

14 (2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’

15 means the Child Labor Free Commission established

16 under section 201.

17 (3) LABEL.—The term ‘‘label’’ means a display

18 of written, printed, or graphic matter on or affixed

19 to an article of wearing apparel or a sporting good

20 or on the packaging of the article or a sporting good

21 that meets the standards described in section

22 101(a).

23 (4) MADE WITH CHILD LABOR.—

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—A manufactured article

25 or section of wearing apparel or a sporting good
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1 shall be considered to have been made with

2 child labor if the article or section—

3 (i) was fabricated, assembled, or proc4 essed in whole or in part; or

5 (ii) contains any part that was fab6 ricated assembled, or processed in whole or

7 in part,

8 by any child described in subparagraph (B).

9 (B) COVERED CHILDREN.—A child is de10 scribed in this subparagraph if that child en11 gaged in the fabrication, assembly, or process12 ing of the article or section—

13 (i) in exchange for remuneration

14 (without regard to whom the remuneration

15 is paid), subsistence, goods or services, or

16 any combination thereof;

17 (ii) under circumstances tantamount

18 to involuntary servitude; or

19 (iii) under exposure to toxic sub20 stances or working conditions that other21 wise pose serious health hazards.

22 (5) SPORTING GOOD.—The term ‘‘sporting

23 good’’ shall have the meaning provided that term by

24 the Secretary of Labor.
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1 (6) WEARING APPAREL.—The term ‘‘wearing

2 apparel’’ shall have the meaning provided that term

3 by the Secretary of Labor.

Æ