I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1690
To amend the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 to prohibit the Export-
Import Bank of the United States from assisting the export of any
good or service to or by any company that is challenging an intellectual
property law or government policy of a developing country, which regu-
lates and promotes access to an HIV/AIDS pharmaceutical or medical
technology.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 2, 2001
Ms. WATERS (for herself and Mr. SANDERS) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services
A BILL
To amend the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 to prohibit
the Export-Import Bank of the United States from as-
sisting the export of any good or service to or by any
company that is challenging an intellectual property law
or government policy of a developing country, which reg-
ulates and promotes access to an HIV/AIDS pharma-
ceutical or medical technology.
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 ‘‘Export-Import Bank
HIV/AIDS Medicine Access Promotion Act’’.
SEC. 2. BAN ON EXPORT-IMPORT BANK ASSISTANCE FOR
COMPANIES CHALLENGING INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY LAW OR GOVERNMENT POLICY OF
A 
DEVELOPING 
COUNTRY, 
WHICH 
REGU-
LATES AND PROMOTES ACCESS TO HIV/AIDS
PHARMACEUTICAL 
OR 
MEDICAL 
TECH-
NOLOGY.
Section 2(b) of the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945
(12 U.S.C. 635(b)) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
‘‘(13) PROHIBITION RELATING TO COMPANIES CHAL-
LENGING
INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY
LAW
OR
GOVERN-
MENT POLICY OF A DEVELOPING COUNTRY, WHICH REGU-
LATES
AND
PROMOTES
ACCESS
TO
HIV/AIDS
PHARMA-
CEUTICAL OR MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY.—
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Bank may not
guarantee, insure, or extend (or participate in
the extension of) credit in connection with the
export of any good or service by or to a restric-
tive company or the parent or a subsidiary of
such a company.
‘‘(B) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph:
‘‘(i) 
RESTRICTIVE
COMPANY.—The
term ‘restrictive company’ means a com-
pany that—
‘‘(I) is challenging the validity of
a qualified HIV/AIDS access law or
policy in a court of law;
‘‘(II) is a complaining party with
respect to such a law or policy, pursu-
ant to any provision of the Agreement
on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellec-
tual Property Rights (as described in
section 101(d)(15) of the Uruguay
Round Agreements Act (19 U.S.C.
3511(d)(15))), or any provision of any
other international agreement relating
to intellectual property rights; or
‘‘(III) has made a formal com-
plaint to the United States Trade
Representative about such a law or
policy, which complaint has not been
withdrawn.
‘‘(ii) QUALIFIED
HIV/AIDS
ACCESS
LAW
OR
POLICY.—The term ‘qualified
HIV/AIDS access law or policy’ means a
law or government policy of a developing
country, relating to intellectual property,
which—
‘‘(I) has the effect of regulating
the use of a pharmaceutical or tech-
nology that may be used in the treat-
ment of human immunodeficiency
virus or acquired immune deficiency
syndrome, or an associated opportun-
istic disease; and
‘‘(II) promotes access to the
pharmaceutical or technology by the
population of any such country.
‘‘(iii) DEVELOPING
COUNTRY.—The
term ‘developing country’ means a country
that has a per capita income which does
not exceed that of an upper middle income
country, as defined in the World Develop-
ment Report published by the Inter-
national Bank for Reconstruction and De-
velopment.’’.
Æ