I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5035 
To modify the special rules for Haiti under the Caribbean Basin Economic 
Recovery Act, to extend preferential duty treatment program for Haiti 
under that Act, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 27, 2023 
Ms. PLASKETT (for herself, Ms. SEWELL, and Mr. BLUMENAUER) introduced 
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means 
A BILL 
To modify the special rules for Haiti under the Caribbean 
Basin Economic Recovery Act, to extend preferential 
duty treatment program for Haiti under that Act, 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 ‘‘Hemispheric Oppor-
tunity through Partnership Enhancement for Haitian 
Prosperity Act of 2023’’ or the ‘‘HOPE for Haitian Pros-
perity Act of 2023’’. 
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SEC. 2. MODIFICATION OF SPECIAL RULES FOR HAITI 
UNDER THE CARIBBEAN BASIN ECONOMIC 
RECOVERY ACT. 
(a) 
ELIGIBILITY
REQUIREMENTS.—Section 
213A(d)(4) of the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery 
Act (19 U.S.C. 2703a(d)(4)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘Any interested party’’ and in-
serting the following: 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any interested party’’; 
(2) by striking ‘‘paragraph (1),’’ and inserting 
‘‘paragraph (1).’’; 
(3) by striking ‘‘and the President shall provide 
for this purpose’’ and inserting the following: 
‘‘(C) 
APPLICABLE
PROCEDURES.—The 
President shall provide for the purpose of sub-
paragraph (A) and the purpose of subpara-
graph (B)’’; and 
(4) by inserting after subparagraph (A) (as so 
designated) the following: 
‘‘(B) COMPLIANCE
WITH
CORE
LABOR 
STANDARDS AND WITH THE LABOR LAWS OF 
HAITI.—Any interested party may file a request 
to have the status of individual producers re-
viewed with respect to compliance with core 
labor standards and with the labor laws of 
Haiti that directly relate to and are consistent 
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with core labor standards and with the labor 
laws of Haiti that relate to acceptable condi-
tions of work with respect to minimum wages 
and hours of work.’’. 
(b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE IMPROVEMENT
AND 
COMPLIANCE NEEDS ASSESSMENT
AND REMEDIATION 
PROGRAM.—Section 213A(e)(4)(B) of the Caribbean 
Basin Economic Recovery Act (19 U.S.C. 2703a(e)(4)(B)) 
is amended— 
(1) in clause (i)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘a biennial basis’’ and in-
serting ‘‘an annual basis’’; and 
(B) by adding at the end before the period 
the following: ‘‘or with the labor laws of Haiti 
that relate to acceptable conditions of work with 
respect to minimum wages and hours of work’’; 
(2) in clause (ii)— 
(A) in the first sentence, by adding at the 
end before the period the following: ‘‘and with 
the labor laws of Haiti that relate to acceptable 
conditions of work with respect to minimum 
wages and hours of work’’; and 
(B) by inserting after the first sentence 
the following new sentence: ‘‘The President may 
withdraw, suspend, or limit the application of 
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preferential treatment under subsection (b) to 
articles of such producer during the period in 
which assistance described in the preceding sen-
tence is being provided to the producer.’’; and 
(3) in clause (iii), by inserting after ‘‘and are 
consistent with core labor standards’’ the following: 
‘‘and with the labor laws of Haiti that relate to ac-
ceptable conditions of work with respect to minimum 
wages and hours of work’’. 
SEC. 3. EXTENSION OF PREFERENTIAL DUTY TREATMENT 
PROGRAM FOR HAITI. 
Section 213A of the Caribbean Basin Economic Re-
covery Act (19 U.S.C. 2703a) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(3)— 
(A) in subparagraph (D), by striking 
‘‘and’’ at the end; 
(B) in subparagraph (E), by striking the 
period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(F) a safe and healthy working environ-
ment.’’; 
(2) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (1)— 
(i) in subparagraph (B)(v)(I)— 
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(I) by striking ‘‘means’’ and all 
that follows through ‘‘60 percent’’ and 
inserting ‘‘means 60 percent’’; and 
(II) by striking ‘‘7 succeeding 1- 
year periods’’ and inserting ‘‘17 suc-
ceeding 1-year periods’’; and 
(ii) in subparagraph (C)— 
(I) in the table, by striking ‘‘16 
succeeding 1-year periods’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘28 succeeding 1-year periods’’; 
and 
(II) in the matter following the 
table, by striking ‘‘2025’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘2035’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (2)— 
(i) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by strik-
ing ‘‘16 succeeding 1-year periods’’ and in-
serting ‘‘26 succeeding 1-year periods’’; 
and 
(ii) in subparagraph (B)(iii), by strik-
ing ‘‘16 succeeding 1-year periods’’ and in-
serting ‘‘26 succeeding 1-year periods’’; 
(3) in subsection (d)(1)(A)(vi), by striking ‘‘, 
hours of work, and occupational safety and health’’ 
and inserting ‘‘and hours of work’’; 
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(4) in subsection (e)(3)— 
(A) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking ‘‘, 
hours of work, and occupational safety and 
health’’ and inserting ‘‘and hours of work’’; and 
(B) in subparagraph and (E)(ii), by strik-
ing ‘‘, hours of work, and occupational safety 
and health’’ and inserting ‘‘and hours of work’’; 
and 
(5) in subsection (h), by striking ‘‘2025’’ and 
inserting ‘‘2035’’. 
SEC. 4. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO INCREASE AND DIVER-
SIFY EXPORTS FROM HAITI TO THE UNITED 
STATES. 
Section 213A of the Caribbean Basin Economic Re-
covery Act (19 U.S.C. 2703a), as amended by this Act, 
is further amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(i) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO INCREASE AND DI-
VERSIFY
EXPORTS
FROM
HAITI
TO
THE
UNITED 
STATES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The United States Trade 
Representative shall provide technical assistance to 
the agencies, entities, and individuals specified in 
clauses (i) through (v) of paragraph (2)(B), to in-
crease and diversify exports from Haiti to the 
United States with the objectives of— 
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‘‘(A) increasing and diversifying export-ori-
ented value chains in Haiti through measures 
that enhance the competitiveness of firms in 
Haiti; 
‘‘(B) reinforcing the capacity of trade sup-
port institutions to enhance the business cli-
mate in Haiti; and 
‘‘(C) developing utilization strategies for 
Haiti to further explore export opportunities 
under United States trade preference programs. 
‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—The Trade Representa-
tive— 
‘‘(A) shall seek to coordinate with the 
International Trade Center to develop and pro-
vide technical assistance; 
‘‘(B) shall establish a participatory process 
to develop the technical assistance that in-
cludes— 
‘‘(i) appropriate agencies of the Gov-
ernment of Haiti; 
‘‘(ii) trade support institutions in 
Haiti; 
‘‘(iii) employers in Haiti; 
‘‘(iv) workers in Haiti; and 
‘‘(v) labor unions in Haiti; and 
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‘‘(C) shall consult with the Committee on 
Ways and Means of the House of Representa-
tives and the Committee on Finance of the Sen-
ate regarding the development and provision of 
technical assistance. 
‘‘(3) PRIORITY.—Technical assistance provided 
pursuant to this subsection shall focus on— 
‘‘(A) developing agricultural processing ex-
ports to the United States; 
‘‘(B) improving competitiveness and labor 
compliance in the apparel sector; 
‘‘(C) improving key services that support 
the competitiveness of sectors with export po-
tential to the United States; and 
‘‘(D) providing the institutional capacity 
for government, non-profit, and private sector 
bodies to increase and diversify exports to the 
United States. 
‘‘(4) REPORTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The President shall 
include in each report required to be submitted 
to Congress under section 163(a) of the Trade 
Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2213(a)) the following: 
‘‘(i) A description of the actions taken 
to provide technical assistance during the 
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preceding calendar year, including metrics 
related to the outcomes achieved through 
such assistance. 
‘‘(ii) A description of the actions 
taken regarding the participatory process 
under paragraph (3)(B) during the pre-
ceding calendar year, including an identi-
fication of the agencies, entities, and indi-
viduals specified in clauses (i) through (v) 
of paragraph (2)(B) that participated. 
‘‘(B) COORDINATION.—The President shall 
seek to coordinate with the International Trade 
Center in carrying out this paragraph. 
‘‘(5) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection— 
‘‘(A) the term ‘International Trade Cen-
ter’— 
‘‘(i) means the joint agency of the 
United Nations Conference on Trade and 
Development and the World Trade Organi-
zation, originally established by the Con-
tracting Parties of the General Agreement 
on Tariffs and Trade on March 19, 1964, 
and from January 1, 1968, operated joint-
ly with the United Nations Conference on 
Trade and Development; and 
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‘‘(ii) includes any subdivision, instru-
mentality, or designee thereof; and 
‘‘(B) the term ‘trade support institutions’ 
means key actors that support the export-ori-
ented business climate, such as— 
‘‘(i) the Haitian Ministry of Com-
merce and Industry; 
‘‘(ii) the Haitian Chamber of Com-
merce and Industry; and 
‘‘(iii) trade promotion organizations.’’. 
Æ 
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