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106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2913

To amend the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 to require the Secretary

of Agriculture to use the export enhancement program to encourage

the commercial sale of United States wheat in world markets at competitive prices whenever the importation of Canadian wheat into the United

States reaches certain triggers.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JULY 25, 2000

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

to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

A BILL

To amend the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 to require

the Secretary of Agriculture to use the export enhancement program to encourage the commercial sale of

United States wheat in world markets at competitive

prices whenever the importation of Canadian wheat into

the United States reaches certain triggers.

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 ‘‘Export Enhancement

5 Program Trigger Act of 2000’’.
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1 SEC. 2. USE OF EXPORT ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM IN RE2 SPONSE TO IMPORTATION OF CANADIAN

3 WHEAT.

4 Section 301 of the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978

5 (7 U.S.C. 5651) is amended by adding at the end the fol6 lowing:

7 ‘‘(i) USE OF PROGRAM IN RESPONSE TO IMPORTA8 TION OF CANADIAN WHEAT.—

9 ‘‘(1) QUARTERLY ESTIMATES.—The Secretary

10 shall make quarterly estimates of the annual quan11 tity of durum and nondurum Canadian wheat that

12 will be imported into the United States.

13 ‘‘(2) TRIGGERS.—Consistent with the obliga14 tions undertaken by the United States that are set

15 forth in the Uruguay Round Agreements, the Sec16 retary shall use the program established under this

17 section to encourage the commercial sale of United

18 States wheat in world markets at competitive prices

19 if the Secretary estimates that—

20 ‘‘(A) the annual quantity of Canadian

21 durum wheat that will be imported into the

22 United States will exceed 300,000 metric tons;

23 or

24 ‘‘(B) the annual quantity of all Canadian

25 wheat that will be imported into the United

26 States will exceed 1,500,000 metric tons.
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1 ‘‘(3) AMOUNT.—If the Secretary determines

2 that the annual quantity of Canadian wheat that will

3 be imported into the United States exceeds a level

4 established under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall

5 use the program established under this section to en6 courage the commercial sale of United States wheat

7 in world markets at competitive prices in a quantity

8 that is equal to at least twice the estimated level of

9 imports of Canadian wheat or durum wheat into the

10 United States.’’.

11 SEC. 3. RESPONSE TO UNFAIR EXPORT COMPETITION BY

12 STATE TRADING ENTERPRISES.

13 Section 302 of the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978

14 (7 U.S.C. 5652) is amended—

15 (1) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub16 section (c); and

17 (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol18 lowing:

19 ‘‘(b) RESPONSE TO UNFAIR EXPORT COMPETITION

20 BY STATE TRADING ENTERPRISES.—

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Consistent with the obliga22 tions undertaken by the United States that are set

23 forth in the Uruguay Round Agreements, if the Sec24 retary determines, on the basis of information pro25 vided by an affected United States person or other
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1 information, that an act, policy, or practice of a

2 state trading enterprise of a foreign country (as

3 those terms are defined in section 1107(a) of the

4 Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988

5 (19 U.S.C. 2906)) burdens or restricts the export of

6 1 or more United States agricultural commodities to

7 1 or more foreign countries by reducing the export

8 of the United States agricultural commodity to the

9 foreign countries or diverting foreign agricultural

10 commodities from the foreign countries into the

11 United States, the Secretary shall use the program

12 established under section 301.

13 ‘‘(2) AMOUNT.—In carrying out paragraph (1),

14 the Secretary shall use an amount that is sufficient

15 to ensure that prices received by producers of United

16 States agricultural commodities are not reduced as

17 a result of the act, policy, or practice of the state

18 trading enterprise.

19 ‘‘(3) PRICING PRACTICES.—The Secretary shall

20 make the determination described in paragraph (1)

21 if the Secretary determines, on the basis of informa22 tion provided by an affected United States person or

23 other information, that the state trading enterprise

24 is engaged in, with respect to an agricultural

25 commodity—
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1 ‘‘(A) predatory pricing;

2 ‘‘(B) discriminatory pricing;

3 ‘‘(C) pricing below the cost of production;

4 or

5 ‘‘(D) other pricing practices that are not

6 consistent with sound commercial practices con7 ducted in the ordinary course of trade.’’.

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