Title: Competitive Need Limitations Modernization Act of 2017
Policy area: Foreign Trade and International Finance

Summary:
Competitive Need Limitations Modernization Act of 2017
This bill amends the Trade Act of 1974 to revise the competitive need limitation review process by: (1) modifying the deadline for the review process, and (2) establishing the relevant domestic production time frame for such review as within the preceding three years (currently on January 1, 1995). (The competitive need limitation terminates duty-free treatment with respect to articles from a beneficiary developing country if certain import limits are exceeded.)

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2036 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2036

To make necessary changes to the competitive need limitations provision 
   of the Generalized System of Preferences, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            October 31, 2017

Mr. Donnelly (for himself, Mrs. Ernst, and Mr. Portman) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                                Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To make necessary changes to the competitive need limitations provision 
   of the Generalized System of Preferences, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Competitive Need Limitations 
Modernization Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Generalized System of Preferences, established 
        under title V of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2461 et 
        seq.), was created to promote economic development by expanding 
        trade opportunities.
            (2) Congress imposed limits on the amount of trade that 
        could qualify for duty-free treatment under the Generalized 
        System of Preferences, referred to as the ``competitive need 
        limitation''. This limitation may be waived in the national 
        economic interest.
            (3) The competitive need limitation and waiver processes 
        must be carried out in a manner that accurately accounts for 
        current domestic production and must be based on evidence from 
        trade data.
            (4) The present competitive need limitation review process 
        is flawed because the timing of the reviews prevent the use of 
        full-year trade data, which can be solved by shifting the 
        deadline of the review process.
            (5) The exclusion of products from the competitive need 
        limitation is determined based on the levels of domestic 
        production that existed in 1995. This does not reflect the 
        realities of the current economy and should be updated.

SEC. 3. MODIFICATION TO PROCEDURES FOR COMPETITIVE NEED LIMITATION AND 
              WAIVERS.

    Section 503 of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2463) is amended as 
follows:
            (1) Modifications to competitive need limitation 
        consideration.--In subsection (c)(2)--
                    (A) in the matter following subparagraph 
                (A)(i)(II), by striking ``July 1'' and inserting 
                ``October 15''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (E), by striking ``on January 
                1, 1995'' and inserting ``in any of the preceding three 
                calendar years''.
            (2) Modifications to waiver consideration.--In subsection 
        (d), by striking ``July 1'' in each place it appears and 
        inserting ``October 15''.
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