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106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1551

To prohibit the importation of goods produced abroad with child labor, and

for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

AUGUST 5, 1999

Mr. HARKIN (for himself, Mr. HOLLINGS, Mr. DORGAN, Mr. LEVIN, Ms. MIKULSKI, and Mr. KENNEDY) introduced the following bill; which was read

twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

A BILL

To prohibit the importation of goods produced abroad with

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 Deter5 rence Act of 1999’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE; POLICY.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find8 ings:

9 (1) Principle 9 of the Declaration of the Rights

10 of the Child proclaimed by the General Assembly of
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1 the United Nations on November 20, 1959, states

2 that ‘‘. . . the child shall not be admitted to employ3 ment before an appropriate minimum age; he shall

4 in no case be caused or permitted to engage in any

5 occupation or employment which would prejudice his

6 health or education, or interfere with his physical,

7 mental, or moral development . . .’’.

8 (2) Article 2 of the International Labor Con9 vention No. 138 Concerning Minimum Age For Ad10 mission to Employment states that ‘‘The minimum

11 age specified in pursuance of paragraph 1 of this ar12 ticle shall not be less than the age of compulsory

13 schooling and, in any case, shall not be less than 15

14 years.’’.

15 (3) The new International Labor Convention

16 addressing the worst forms of child labor calls on

17 member States to take immediate and effective ac18 tion to prohibit and eliminate such labor. According

19 to the convention, the worst forms of child labor

20 are—

21 (A) slavery;

22 (B) debt bondage;

23 (C) forced or compulsory labor;
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1 (D) the sale or trafficking of children, in2 cluding the forced or compulsory recruitment of

3 children for use in armed conflict;

4 (E) child prostitution;

5 (F) the use of children in the production

6 and trafficking of narcotics; and

7 (G) any other work that, by its nature or

8 due to the circumstances in which it is carried

9 out, is likely to harm the health, safety, or mor10 als of children.

11 (4) According to the International Labor Orga12 nization, an estimated 250,000,000 children under

13 the age of 15 worldwide are working, many of them

14 in dangerous industries like mining and fireworks.

15 (5) Children under the age of 15 constitute ap16 proximately 22 percent of the workforce in some

17 Asian countries, 41 percent of the workforce in parts

18 of Africa, and 17 percent of the workforce in many

19 countries in Latin America.

20 (6) The number of children under the age of 15

21 who are working, and the scale of their suffering, in22 crease every year, despite the existence of more than

23 20 International Labor Organization conventions on

24 child labor and national laws in many countries
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1 which purportedly prohibit the employment of under

2 age children.

3 (7) In many countries, children under the age

4 of 15 lack either the legal standing or means to pro5 tect themselves from exploitation in the workplace.

6 (8) The prevalence of child labor in many devel7 oping countries is rooted in widespread poverty that

8 is attributable to unemployment and underemploy9 ment, precarious incomes, low living standards, and

10 insufficient education and training opportunities

11 among adult workers.

12 (9) The employment of children under the age

13 of 15 commonly deprives the children of the oppor14 tunity for basic education and also denies gainful

15 employment to millions of adults.

16 (10) The employment of children under the age

17 of 15, often at pitifully low wages, undermines the

18 stability of families and ignores the importance of

19 increasing jobs, aggregated demand, and purchasing

20 power among adults as a catalyst to the development

21 of internal markets and the achievement of

22 broadbased, self-reliant economic development in

23 many developing countries.

24 (11) United Nations Children’s Fund (com25 monly known as UNICEF) estimates that by the
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1 year 2000, over 1,000,000 adults will be unable to

2 read or write at a basic level because such adults

3 were forced to work as children and were thus un4 able to devote the time to secure a basic education.

5 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to curtail

6 the employment of children under the age of 15 in the

7 production of goods for export by—

8 (1) eliminating the role of the United States in

9 providing a market for foreign products made by

10 such children;

11 (2) supporting activities and programs to ex12 tend primary education, rehabilitation, and alter13 native skills training to child workers, to improve

14 birth registration, and to improve the scope and

15 quality of statistical information and research on the

16 commercial exploitation of such children in the work17 place; and

18 (3) encouraging other nations to join in a ban

19 on trade in products described in paragraph (1) and

20 to support those activities and programs described in

21 paragraph (2).

22 (c) POLICY.—It is the policy of the United States—

23 (1) to actively discourage the employment of

24 children under the age of 15 in the production of

25 goods for export or domestic consumption;
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1 (2) to strengthen and supplement international

2 trading rules with a view to renouncing the use of

3 under age children in the production of goods for

4 export as a means of competing in international

5 trade;

6 (3) to amend Federal law to prohibit the entry

7 into commerce of products resulting from the labor

8 of under age children; and

9 (4) to offer assistance to foreign countries to

10 improve the enforcement of national laws prohibiting

11 the employment of children under the age of 15 and

12 to increase assistance to alleviate the underlying

13 poverty that is often the cause of the commercial ex14 ploitation of such children.

15 SEC. 3. UNITED STATES INITIATIVE TO CURTAIL INTER16 NATIONAL TRADE IN PRODUCTS OF CHILD

17 LABOR.

18 In pursuit of the policy set forth in this Act, the

19 President is urged to seek an agreement with the govern20 ment of each country that conducts trade with the United

21 States for the purpose of securing an international ban

22 on trade in products of child labor.

23 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

24 In this Act:

25 (1) CHILD.—The term ‘‘child’’ means—
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1 (A) an individual who has not attained the

2 age of 15, as measured by the Julian calendar;

3 or

4 (B) an individual who has not attained the

5 age of 14, as measured by the Julian calendar,

6 in the case of a country identified under section

7 5 whose national laws define a child as such an

8 individual.

9 (2) EFFECTIVE IDENTIFICATION PERIOD.—The

10 term ‘‘effective identification period’’ means, with re11 spect to a foreign industry or host country, the pe12 riod that—

13 (A) begins on the date of that issue of the

14 Federal Register in which the identification of

15 the foreign industry or host country is pub16 lished under section 5(e)(1)(A); and

17 (B) terminates on the date of that issue of

18 the Federal Register in which the revocation of

19 the identification referred to in subparagraph

20 (A) is published under section 5(e)(1)(B).

21 (3) ENTERED.—The term ‘‘entered’’ means en22 tered, or withdrawn from a warehouse for consump23 tion, in the customs territory of the United States.
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1 (4) EXTRACTION.—The term ‘‘extraction’’ in2 cludes mining, quarrying, pumping, and other means

3 of extraction.

4 (5) FOREIGN INDUSTRY.—The term ‘‘foreign

5 industry’’ includes any entity that produces, manu6 factures, assembles, processes, or extracts an article

7 in a host country.

8 (6) HOST COUNTRY.—The term ‘‘host country’’

9 means any foreign country, and any possession or

10 territory of a foreign country that is administered

11 separately for customs purposes (including any des12 ignated zone within such country, possession, or ter13 ritory) in which a foreign industry is located.

14 (7) MANUFACTURED ARTICLE.—The term

15 ‘‘manufactured article’’ means any good that is fab16 ricated, assembled, or processed. The term also in17 cludes any mineral resource (including any mineral

18 fuel) that is entered in a crude state. Any mineral

19 resource that at entry has been subjected to only

20 washing, crushing, grinding, powdering, levigation,

21 sifting, screening, or concentration by flotation,

22 magnetic separation, or other mechanical or physical

23 processes shall be treated as having been processed

24 for the purposes of this Act.
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1 (8) PRODUCTS OF CHILD LABOR.—An article

2 shall be treated as being a product of child labor—

3 (A) if, with respect to the article, a child

4 was engaged in the manufacture, fabrication,

5 assembly, processing, or extraction, in whole or

6 in part; and

7 (B) if the labor was performed—

8 (i) in exchange for remuneration (re9 gardless to whom paid), subsistence, goods,

10 or services, or any combination of the fore11 going;

12 (ii) under circumstances tantamount

13 to involuntary servitude; or

14 (iii) under exposure to toxic sub15 stances or working conditions otherwise

16 posing serious health hazards.

17 (9) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’, except

18 for purposes of section 5, means the Secretary of the

19 Treasury.

20 SEC. 5. IDENTIFICATION OF FOREIGN INDUSTRIES AND

21 THEIR RESPECTIVE HOST COUNTRIES THAT

22 UTILIZE CHILD LABOR IN EXPORT OF GOODS.

23 (a) IDENTIFICATION OF INDUSTRIES AND HOST

24 COUNTRIES..—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Labor (in

2 this section referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall un3 dertake periodic reviews using all available informa4 tion, including information made available by the

5 International Labor Organization and human rights

6 organizations (the first such review to be undertaken

7 not later than 180 days after the date of enactment

8 of this Act), to identify any foreign industry that—

9 (A) does not comply with applicable na10 tional laws prohibiting child labor in the work11 place;

12 (B) utilizes child labor in connection with

13 products that are exported; and

14 (C) has on a continuing basis exported

15 products of child labor to the United States.

16 (2) TREATMENT OF IDENTIFICATION.—For

17 purposes of this Act, the identification of a foreign

18 industry shall be treated as also being an identifica19 tion of the host country.

20 (b) PETITIONS REQUESTING IDENTIFICATION.—

21 (1) FILING.—Any person may file a petition

22 with the Secretary requesting that a particular for23 eign industry and its host country be identified

24 under subsection (a). The petition must set forth the

25 allegations in support of the request.
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1 (2) ACTION ON RECEIPT OF PETITION.—Not

2 later than 90 days after receiving a petition under

3 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—

4 (A) decide whether or not the allegations

5 in the petition warrant further action by the

6 Secretary in regard to the foreign industry and

7 its host country under subsection (a); and

8 (B) notify the petitioner of the decision

9 under subparagraph (A) and the facts and rea10 sons supporting the decision.

11 (c) CONSULTATION AND COMMENT.—Before identi12 fying a foreign industry and its host country under sub13 section (a), the Secretary shall—

14 (1) consult with the United States Trade Rep15 resentative, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of

16 Commerce, and the Secretary of the Treasury re17 garding such action;

18 (2) hold at least 1 public hearing within a rea19 sonable time for the receipt of oral comment from

20 the public regarding such a proposed identification;

21 (3) publish notice in the Federal Register—

22 (A) that such an identification is being

23 considered;

24 (B) of the time and place of the hearing

25 scheduled under paragraph (2); and
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1 (C) inviting the submission within a rea2 sonable time of written comment from the pub3 lic; and

4 (4) take into account the information obtained

5 under paragraphs (1), (2), and (3).

6 (d) REVOCATION OF IDENTIFICATION.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2),

8 the Secretary may revoke the identification of any

9 foreign industry and its host country under sub10 section (a) if information available to the Secretary

11 indicates that such action is appropriate.

12 (2) REPORT OF SECRETARY.—No revocation

13 under paragraph (1) may take effect earlier than the

14 60th day after the date on which the Secretary sub15 mits to the Congress a written report—

16 (A) stating that in the opinion of the Sec17 retary the foreign industry and host country

18 concerned do not utilize child labor in connec19 tion with products that are exported; and

20 (B) stating the facts on which such opinion

21 is based and any other reason why the Sec22 retary considers the revocation appropriate.

23 (3) PROCEDURE.—No revocation under para24 graph (1) may take effect unless the Secretary—
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1 (A) publishes notice in the Federal Reg2 ister that such a revocation is under consider3 ation and invites the submission within a rea4 sonable time of oral and written comment from

5 the public on the revocation; and

6 (B) takes into account the information re7 ceived under subparagraph (A) before preparing

8 the report required under paragraph (2).

9 (e) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary shall—

10 (1) promptly publish in the Federal Register—

11 (A) the name of each foreign industry and

12 its host country identified under subsection (a);

13 (B) the text of the decision made under

14 subsection (b)(2)(A) and a statement of the

15 facts and reasons supporting the decision; and

16 (C) the name of each foreign industry and

17 its host country with respect to which an identi18 fication has been revoked under subsection (d);

19 and

20 (2) maintain and publish in the Federal Reg21 ister a current list of all foreign industries and their

22 respective host countries identified under subsection

23 (a).

24 SEC. 6. PROHIBITION ON ENTRY.

25 (a) PROHIBITION.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para2 graph (2), during the effective identification period

3 for a foreign industry and its host country no article

4 that is a product of that foreign industry may be en5 tered into the customs territory of the United

6 States.

7 (2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not

8 apply to the entry of an article—

9 (A) for which a certification that meets the

10 requirements of subsection (b) is provided and

11 the article, or the packaging in which it is of12 fered for sale, contains, in accordance with reg13 ulations prescribed by the Secretary, a label

14 stating that the article is not a product of child

15 labor;

16 (B) that is entered under any subheading

17 in subchapter IV or VI of chapter 98 of the

18 Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United

19 States (relating to personal exemptions); or

20 (C) that was exported from the foreign in21 dustry and its host country and was en route

22 to the United States before the first day of the

23 effective identification period for such industry

24 and its host country.
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1 (b) CERTIFICATION THAT ARTICLE IS NOT A PROD2 UCT OF CHILD LABOR.—

3 (1) FORM AND CONTENT.—The Secretary shall

4 prescribe the form and content of documentation, for

5 submission in connection with the entry of an arti6 cle, that satisfies the Secretary that the exporter of

7 the article in the host country, and the importer of

8 the article into the customs territory of the United

9 States, have undertaken reasonable steps to ensure,

10 to the extent practicable, that the article is not a

11 product of child labor.

12 (2) REASONABLE STEPS.—For purposes of

13 paragraph (1), ‘‘reasonable steps’’ include—

14 (A) in the case of the exporter of an article

15 in the host country—

16 (i) having entered into a contract,

17 with an organization described in para18 graph (4) in that country, providing for

19 the inspection of the foreign industry’s fa20 cilities for the purpose of certifying that

21 the article is not a product of child labor,

22 and affixing a label, protected under the

23 copyright or trademark laws of the host

24 country, that contains such certification;

25 and
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1 (ii) having affixed to the article a

2 label described in clause (i); and

3 (B) in the case of the importer of an arti4 cle into the customs territory of the United

5 States, having required the certification and

6 label described in subparagraph (A) and setting

7 forth the terms and conditions of the acquisi8 tion or provision of the imported article.

9 (3) WRITTEN EVIDENCE.—The documentation

10 required by the Secretary under paragraph (1) shall

11 include written evidence that the reasonable steps

12 set forth in paragraph (2) have been taken.

13 (4) CERTIFYING ORGANIZATIONS.—

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall

15 compile and maintain a list of independent,

16 internationally credible organizations, in each

17 host country identified under section 5, that

18 have been established for the purpose of—

19 (i) conducting inspections of foreign

20 industries,

21 (ii) certifying that articles to be ex22 ported from that country are not products

23 of child labor, and

24 (iii) labeling the articles in accordance

25 with paragraph (2)(A).
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1 (B) ORGANIZATION.—Each certifying or2 ganization shall consist of representatives of

3 nongovernmental child welfare organizations,

4 manufacturers, exporters, and neutral inter5 national organizations.

6 SEC. 7. PENALTIES.

7 (a) UNLAWFUL ACTS.—It shall be unlawful, during

8 the effective identification period applicable to a foreign

9 industry and its host country—

10 (1) to attempt to enter any article that is a

11 product of that industry if the entry is prohibited

12 under section 6(a)(1); or

13 (2) to violate any regulation prescribed under

14 section 8.

15 (b) CIVIL PENALTY.—Any person who commits an

16 unlawful act set forth in subsection (a) shall be liable for

17 a civil penalty not to exceed $25,000.

18 (c) CRIMINAL PENALTY.—In addition to being liable

19 for a civil penalty under subsection (b), any person who

20 intentionally commits an unlawful act set forth in sub21 section (a) shall be, upon conviction, liable for a fine of

22 not less than $10,000 and not more than $35,000, or im23 prisonment for 1 year, or both.

24 (d) CONSTRUCTION.—The unlawful acts set forth in

25 subsection (a) shall be treated as violations of the customs
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1 laws for purposes of applying the enforcement provisions

2 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1202 et seq.),

3 including—

4 (1) the search, seizure, and forfeiture provi5 sions;

6 (2) section 592 (relating to penalties for entry

7 by fraud, gross negligence, or negligence); and

8 (3) section 619 (relating to compensation to in9 formers).

10 SEC. 8. REGULATIONS.

11 The Secretary shall prescribe regulations to carry out

12 the provisions of this Act.

13 SEC. 9. UNITED STATES SUPPORT FOR DEVELOPMENTAL

14 ALTERNATIVES FOR UNDER AGE CHILD

15 WORKERS.

16 In order to carry out section 2(c)(4), there is author17 ized to be appropriated to the President the sum of—

18 (1) $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2000

19 through 2004 for the United States contribution to

20 the International Labor Organization for the activi21 ties of the International Program on the Elimination

22 of Child Labor; and

23 (2) $100,000 for fiscal year 2000 for the

24 United States contribution to the United Nations

25 Commission on Human Rights for those activities
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1 relating to bonded child labor that are carried out by

2 the Subcommittee and Working Group on Contem3 porary Forms of Slavery.

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