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[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1248 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1248

To amend the Trade Act of 1974 to provide for the review of the extent 
   to which foreign countries are in compliance with bilateral trade 
                   agreements with the United States.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 9, 1993

  Mr. Matsui introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To amend the Trade Act of 1974 to provide for the review of the extent 
   to which foreign countries are in compliance with bilateral trade 
                   agreements with the United States.

    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 ``Trade Agreements Compliance Act of 
1993''.

SEC. 2. REQUESTS FOR REVIEW OF FOREIGN COMPLIANCE.

    Chapter 1 of title III of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2411 et 
seq.) is amended by inserting after section 306 the following new 
section:

``SEC. 306A. REQUESTS FOR REVIEW OF FOREIGN COMPLIANCE.

    ``(a) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
            ``(1) The term `interested person' means any person that 
        has a significant economic interest that is being, or has been, 
        adversely affected by the failure of a foreign country to 
        comply materially with the terms of a trade agreement.
            ``(2) The term `trade agreement' means any bilateral trade 
        agreement to which the United States is a party other than--
                    ``(A) the United States-Canada Free Trade 
                Agreement, entered into on January 2, 1988, and
                    ``(B) the Agreement on the Establishment of a Free 
                Trade Area between the Government of the United States 
                of America and the Government of Israel, entered into 
                on April 22, 1985.
    ``(b) Request for Review.--
            ``(1) An interested person may request the Trade 
        Representative to undertake a review under this section to 
        determine whether a foreign country is in material compliance 
        with the terms of a trade agreement.
            ``(2) A request for the review of a trade agreement under 
        this section may be made only during--
                    ``(A) the 30-day period beginning on each 
                anniversary of the effective date of the trade 
                agreement; and
                    ``(B) the 30-day period ending on the 90th day 
                before the termination date of the trade agreement, if 
                the first day of such 30-day period occurs not less 
                than 180 days after the last occurring 30-day period 
                referred to in subparagraph (A).
            ``(3) The Trade Representative shall commence a review 
        under this section if the request--
                    ``(A) is in writing;
                    ``(B) includes information reasonably available to 
                the petitioner regarding the failure of  the foreign 
                country to comply with the trade  agreement;
                    ``(C) identifies the economic interest of the 
                petitioner that is being adversely affected by the 
                failure referred to in subparagraph (B); and
                    ``(D) describes the extent of the adverse effect.
            ``(4) If 2 or more requests are filed during any period 
        described in paragraph (2) regarding the same trade agreement, 
        all of such requests shall be joined in a single review of the 
        trade agreement.
    ``(c) Review.--
            ``(1) If 1 or more requests regarding any trade agreement 
        are received during any period described in subsection (b)(2), 
        then within 90 days after the last day of such period the Trade 
        Representative shall determine whether the foreign country is 
        in material compliance with the terms of the trade agreement.
            ``(2) In making a determination under paragraph (1), the 
        Trade Representative shall take into account--
                    ``(A) the extent to which the foreign country has 
                adhered to the commitments it made to the United 
                States;
                    ``(B) the extent to which that degree of adherence 
                has achieved the objectives of the agreement; and
                    ``(C) any act, policy, or practice of the foreign 
                country, or other relevant factor, that may have 
                contributed directly or indirectly to material 
                noncompliance with the terms of the agreement.
        The acts, policies, or practices referred to in subparagraph 
        (C) may include structural policies, tariff or nontariff 
        barriers, or other actions which affect compliance with the 
        terms of the agreement.
            ``(3) In conducting any review under para-  graph (1), the 
        Trade Representative may, if the Trade  Representative 
        considers such action necessary or  appropriate--
                    ``(A) consult with the Secretary of Commerce and 
                the Secretary of Agriculture;
                    ``(B) seek the advice of the United States 
                International Trade Commission; and
                    ``(C) provide opportunity for the presentation of 
                views by the public.
    ``(d) Action After Affirmative Determination.--
            ``(1) If, on the basis of the review carried out under 
        subsection (c), the Trade Representative determines that a 
        foreign country is not in material compliance with the terms of 
        a trade agreement, the Trade Representative shall determine 
        what action to take under section 301(a).
            ``(2) For purposes of section 301, any determination made 
        under subsection (c) shall be treated as a determination made 
        under section 304.
            ``(3) In determining what action to take under section 
        301(a), the Trade Representative shall seek to minimize the 
        adverse impact on existing business relations or economic 
        interests of United States persons, including products for 
        which a significant volume of trade does not currently exist.
    ``(e) International Obligations.--Nothing in this section may be 
construed as requiring actions that are inconsistent with the 
international obligations of the United States, including the General 
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.''.

SEC. 3. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Congressional Notification.--Section 309(3)(A) of the Trade Act 
of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2419(3)(A)) is amended by striking out ``section 
302,'' and inserting ``sections 302 and 306A(c),''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of the Trade Act of 
1974 relating to chapter 1 of title III is amended by inserting after 
the item relating to section 306 the following:

``Sec. 306A. Requests for review of foreign compliance.''.

                                 <all>
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