I
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 723
To require the United States Trade Representative to determine whether
the European Union has failed to implement satisfactorily its obligations
under certain trade agreements relating to United States meat and
pork exporting facilities, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 12, 1997
Mr. HOSTETTLER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Ways and Means
A BILL
To require the United States Trade Representative to deter-
mine whether the European Union has failed to imple-
ment satisfactorily its obligations under certain trade
agreements relating to United States meat and pork
exporting facilities, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Fair Trade in Meat
and Pork Products Act of 1997’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
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(1) The European Union’s Third Country Meat
Directive has been used to decertify more than 400
United States facilities exporting beef and pork
products to the European Union even though United
States health inspection procedures are equivalent to
those provided for in the Third Country Meat Direc-
tive.
(2) An effect of the decertifications is to pro-
hibit the importation of United States beef and pork
products into the European Union.
(3) As a result of the decertifications, the high-
ly competitive United States pork industry loses as
much as $60,000,000 each year from trade with Eu-
ropean Union countries.
(4) In July 1987 and November 1990, at the
request of affected United States industries, the
United States initiated investigations under section
301 of the Trade Act of 1974 into the European
Union’s administration of the Third Country Meat
Directive and sought resolution of the meat and
pork trade problems through the dispute settlement
process established under the General Agreement on
Tariffs and Trade.
(5) The United States Trade Representative
preliminarily concluded on October 10, 1992, that
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the European Union’s administration of the Third
Country Meat Directive created a burden on and re-
stricted United States commerce.
(6) Bilateral talks, initiated as a result of that
finding, resulted in an Exchange of Letters in which
the United States and the European Union con-
cluded that the meat inspection systems of the
United States and the European Union provided
‘‘equivalent safeguards against public health risks’’
and agreed to take steps to resolve remaining dif-
ferences regarding meat inspection.
(7) Even though the United States terminated
the section 301 investigation as a result of the Ex-
change of Letters, the United States determined
that the practices under investigation would have
been actionable if an acceptable agreement had not
been reached.
(8) United States meat and pork producers
have displayed consistent interest in exporting prod-
ucts to the European Union and have undertaken
substantial investment to take the steps specified by
the Exchange of Letters.
(9) The European Union has failed to acknowl-
edge changes in plant safety and inspection proce-
dures undertaken in the United States specifically at
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the European Union’s request and has not fulfilled
its obligation to inspect and relist United States pro-
ducers who have taken the steps specified by the Ex-
change of Letters.
(10) The actions of the European Union in con-
ducting United States plant inspections places the
European Union in violation of commitments made
in the Exchange of Letters.
(11) The European Union, in addition to being
a party to the Exchange of Letters, is a signatory
to GATT 1994 and to the Agreement on the Appli-
cation of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures,
which requires that meat and pork inspection proce-
dures under Department of Agriculture regulations
be treated as equivalent to inspection procedures re-
quired by the European Union under the Third
Country Meat Directive if the regulations achieve
the European level of sanitary protection.
(12) Whenever a foreign country is not satisfac-
torily implementing an international trade measure
or agreement, the United States Trade Representa-
tive is required under section 306(b)(1) of the Trade
Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2416(b)(1)) to determine
the actions to be taken under section 301(a) of such
Act.
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SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act:
(1) EXCHANGE OF LETTERS.—The term ‘‘Ex-
change of Letters’’ means the exchange of letters
concerning the application of the Community Third
Country Directive, signed in May 1991 and Novem-
ber 1992, which constitute the agreement between
the United States and the European Economic Com-
munity regarding the Third Country Meat Directive.
(2) GATT 1994.—The term ‘‘GATT 1994’’
means the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
annexed to the World Trade Organization Agree-
ment, entered into on April 15, 1994.
(3) THIRD COUNTRY MEAT DIRECTIVE; COMMU-
NITY
THIRD
COUNTRY
DIRECTIVE.—The terms
‘‘Third Country Meat Directive’’ and ‘‘Community
Third Country Directive’’ mean the European
Union’s Council Directive 72/462/EEC relating to
inspection and certification of slaughter and process-
ing plants that export meat and pork products to
the European Union.
SEC. 4. REQUIREMENT FOR DETERMINATION BY UNITED
STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE.
Not later than thirty days after the date of enactment
of this Act, the United States Trade Representative shall
determine, for purposes of section 306(b)(1) of the Trade
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Act of 1974, whether the European Union has failed to
implement satisfactorily its obligations under the Ex-
change of Letters, the Agreement on the Application of
Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, or any other Agree-
ment.
SEC. 5. REQUEST FOR DISPUTE SETTLEMENT.
If the United States Trade Representative determines
under section 4 that the European Union has failed to
implement satisfactorily its obligations under the Ex-
change of Letters, the Agreement on the Application of
Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, or any other agree-
ment, the United States Trade Representative shall
promptly request proceedings on the matter under the for-
mal dispute settlement procedures as set forth in section
301 of the United States Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C.
2411).
SEC. 6. REVIEW OF CERTAIN MEAT FACILITIES.
(a) REVIEW
BY FOOD SAFETY
AND INSPECTION
SERVICE.—If the United States Trade Representative de-
termines pursuant to section 4 that the European Union
has failed to implement satisfactorily its obligations under
the Exchange of Letters, the Agreement on the Applica-
tion of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, or any other
Agreement, the United States Trade Representative shall
request the Secretary of Agriculture (who, upon receipt
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of the request, shall) direct the Food Safety and Inspec-
tion Service of the Department of Agriculture to review
certifications for European Union facilities that import
meat and other agricultural products into the United
States.
(b) RELATIONSHIP TO USTR AUTHORITY.—The re-
view authorized under subsection (a) is in addition to the
authority of the United States Trade Representative to
take actions described in section 301(c)(1) of the Trade
Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2411(c)(1)).
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