Title: U.S. OUTDOOR Act
Policy area: Foreign Trade and International Finance

Summary:
United States Optimal Use of Trade to Develop Outerwear and Outdoor Recreation Act or the U.S. OUTDOOR Act
This bill amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to provide for the duty-free treatment of certain recreational performance outerwear.
The bill establishes the Sustainable Textile and Apparel Research Fund (STAR Fund). The Department of the Treasury must impose and collect, with specified exceptions, a fee of 1.5% of the appraised value of imported recreational performance outerwear and to deposit amounts collected into the STAR Fund.
The Department of Commerce must make quarterly distributions from the STAR Fund to one or more appropriate organizations to conduct applied research, development, and education activities to enhance the competitiveness of U.S. businesses in clean, eco-friendly apparel, other textile and apparel products, and sewn-product design and manufacturing.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1719 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1719

 To eliminate duties on imports of recreational performance outerwear, 
to establish the Sustainable Textile and Apparel Research Fund, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             August 2, 2017

Mr. Blunt (for himself and Ms. Cantwell) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To eliminate duties on imports of recreational performance outerwear, 
to establish the Sustainable Textile and Apparel Research Fund, 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 ``United States Optimal Use of Trade 
to Develop Outerwear and Outdoor Recreation Act'' or the ``U.S. OUTDOOR 
Act''.

SEC. 2. ELIMINATION OF DUTIES ON RECREATIONAL PERFORMANCE OUTERWEAR.

    (a) In General.--Each subheading of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule 
of the United States specified in subsection (b) is amended--
            (1) by striking the matter in the column one general rate 
        of duty column and inserting ``Free''; and
            (2) by striking the matter in the column one special rate 
        of duty column.
    (b) Subheadings Specified.--The subheadings of the Harmonized 
Tariff Schedule of the United States specified in this subsection are 
the following:


6201.91.03............................  6203.41.03...................  6204.69.02
6201.91.05............................  6203.41.06...................  6204.69.03
6201.92.05............................  6203.41.08...................  6204.69.04
6201.92.17............................  6203.42.05...................  6204.69.05
6201.92.19............................  6203.42.07...................  6204.69.06
6201.93.15............................  6203.43.03...................  6210.40.15
6201.93.18............................  6203.43.05...................  6210.40.25
6201.93.45............................  6203.43.09...................  6210.40.28
6201.93.47............................  6203.43.11...................  6210.40.29
6201.93.49............................  6203.43.13...................  6210.50.03
6201.99.15............................  6203.49.01...................  6210.50.05
6202.91.03............................  6203.49.05...................  6210.50.12
6202.91.15............................  6203.49.09...................  6210.50.22
6202.92.03............................  6204.61.05...................  6211.32.50
6202.92.05............................  6204.61.15...................  6211.33.50
6202.92.12............................  6204.62.05...................  6211.39.03
6202.93.01............................  6204.62.15...................  6211.39.07
6202.93.03............................  6204.63.02...................  6211.39.15
6202.93.05............................  6204.63.03...................  6211.42.05
6202.93.07............................  6204.63.08...................  6211.43.05
6202.93.09............................  6204.63.09...................  6211.49.03
6202.99.15............................  6204.63.11...................  6211.49.15
6203.41.01............................  6204.69.01...................  6211.49.25.
 

    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on the date that is 15 days after the date of the enactment of 
this Act.

SEC. 3. SUSTAINABLE TEXTILE AND APPAREL RESEARCH FUND.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established in the Treasury of the 
United States the Sustainable Textile and Apparel Research Fund (in 
this section referred to as the ``STAR Fund'').
    (b) Deposits.--There shall be deposited into the STAR Fund amounts 
equal to the fees collected on recreational performance outerwear under 
subsection (d).
    (c) Board of Directors.--
            (1) In general.--The STAR Fund shall be administered by a 
        board of directors (in this section referred to as the 
        ``Board'') composed of 5 individuals familiar with the 
        recreational performance outerwear textile and apparel 
        industry, including the production of raw materials and the 
        finished products thereof, who shall be appointed by the 
        President.
            (2) Members.--
                    (A) Fabric or raw material production 
                representatives.--Not fewer than 2 of the individuals 
                appointed to the Board under paragraph (1) shall be 
                representatives of entities involved in the production 
                of fabrics or raw materials for use in recreational 
                performance outerwear in the United States.
                    (B) Recreational performance outerwear production 
                representatives.--Not fewer than 2 of the individuals 
                appointed to the Board under paragraph (1) shall be 
                representatives of entities involved in the production 
                of recreational performance outerwear that pay the fees 
                imposed on the importation of such outerwear under 
                subsection (d).
            (3) Ineligible individuals.--The President may not appoint 
        individuals to the Board under paragraph (1) who are 
        representatives of entities not involved in the production of 
        recreational performance outerwear, such as customs brokers, 
        converters, forwarders, or shippers.
    (d) Funding.--
            (1) Fee.--In addition to any other fee authorized by law, 
        the Secretary of the Treasury shall charge and collect upon 
        entry, or withdrawal from warehouse for consumption, a fee of 
        1.5 percent of the appraised value of imported garments (as 
        determined under section 402 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 
        U.S.C. 1401a)) that are classifiable under the Harmonized 
        Tariff Schedule of the United States as recreational 
        performance outerwear (as defined in Additional U.S. Note 3 to 
        chapter 62 of such Schedule).
            (2) Exclusions.--The assessment of fees under paragraph (1) 
        shall not apply to imports of recreational performance 
        outerwear from the following:
                    (A) Any country that is party to a free trade 
                agreement with the United States that--
                            (i) is in effect on the day before the date 
                        of the enactment of this Act; or
                            (ii) enters into force under the Bipartisan 
                        Congressional Trade Priorities and 
                        Accountability Act of 2015 (19 U.S.C. 4201 et 
                        seq.), or similar subsequent authority.
                    (B) Any country designated as a CBTPA beneficiary 
                country under section 213(b)(5)(B) of the Caribbean 
                Basin Economic Recovery Act (19 U.S.C. 2703(b)(5)(B)).
                    (C) Any country designated as a beneficiary sub-
                Saharan African country under section 506A(a)(1) of the 
                Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2466a(a)(1)), if the 
                President has determined that the country has satisfied 
                the requirements of section 113(a) of the African 
                Growth and Opportunity Act (19 U.S.C. 3722(a)), and has 
                published that determination in the Federal Register.
            (3) Termination.--The fee under paragraph (1) shall apply 
        only to entries, or withdrawals from warehouse for consumption, 
        that are made during the 10-year period beginning on the date 
        of the enactment of this Act.
    (e) Distribution.--
            (1) Quarterly distributions.--The Secretary of Commerce, 
        upon a majority vote of the Board, taken annually, shall, not 
        later than 60 days after the end of each calendar quarter, 
        distribute amounts in the STAR Fund to one or more entities 
        that the Board considers appropriate to use the funds in 
        accordance with subsection (f).
            (2) Eligibility requirements.--An entity may receive funds 
        under paragraph (1) only if the entity--
                    (A) is an organization described in section 
                501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is 
                exempt from tax under section 501(a) of such Code;
                    (B) is an organization having at least 10 years of 
                experience providing applied research, technology 
                development, and education to all parts of the textile 
                and apparel supply chain, with a research capability 
                demonstrated through past research programs involving 
                supply chain management, product development, fit 
                specifications, operations management, lean 
                manufacturing, or digital supply chain technologies on 
                behalf of the textile and sewn products industries in 
                the United States; and
                    (C) is comprised of members representing the 
                following segments of the supply chain:
                            (i) One or more of the following types of 
                        producers: fiber, yarn, or fabric producers in 
                        the United States.
                            (ii) Apparel producers in the United 
                        States.
                            (iii) Retail companies in the United 
                        States.
    (f) Use of Funds.--Funds distributed under subsection (e) may be 
used only to conduct applied research, development, and education 
activities to enhance the competitiveness of businesses in the United 
States in clean, eco-friendly apparel, other textile and apparel 
articles, and sewn-product design and manufacturing.
    (g) Requirements.--The Secretary of Commerce may impose such 
requirements on the use of funds distributed under subsection (e) as 
the Secretary considers necessary to ensure compliance with subsection 
(f), including requiring reporting and assurances by the entities using 
the funds.
    (h) Reports to Congress.--The Secretary of Commerce shall submit to 
Congress a report, not later than April 1 of each year, explaining in 
detail how amounts in the STAR Fund were distributed under subsection 
(e) and used under subsection (f) during the preceding calendar year.
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