Title: To prohibit the importation into the United States of paper products that are not manufactured in accordance with requirements that are at least as stringent as the requirements under the Clean Air Act and the Federal Water Pollution Control Act.
Policy area: Environmental Protection

Summary:
This bill requires imported paper products to be manufactured in accordance with requirements that meet or exceed requirements under the Clean Air Act and the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act).

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5611 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5611

 To prohibit the importation into the United States of paper products 
 that are not manufactured in accordance with requirements that are at 
least as stringent as the requirements under the Clean Air Act and the 
                  Federal Water Pollution Control Act.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 25, 2018

 Mr. DeFazio introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To prohibit the importation into the United States of paper products 
 that are not manufactured in accordance with requirements that are at 
least as stringent as the requirements under the Clean Air Act and the 
                  Federal Water Pollution Control Act.

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

SECTION 1. PROHIBITION ON IMPORTATION OF PAPER PRODUCTS NOT 
              MANUFACTURED IN ACCORDANCE WITH REQUIREMENTS AT LEAST AS 
              STRINGENT AS REQUIREMENTS UNDER THE CLEAN AIR ACT AND 
              FEDERAL WATER POLLUTION CONTROL ACT.

    (a) Prohibition.--It is unlawful for any person to import or 
deliver for importation into the United States any paper product if--
            (1) the paper product's labeling does not include an 
        official certification from each manufacturer of the paper 
        product certifying that said paper product was manufactured in 
        accordance with--
                    (A) requirements relating to air pollution that are 
                at least as stringent as the requirements under the 
                Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.); and
                    (B) requirements relating to water pollution that 
                are at least as stringent as the requirements under the 
                Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et 
                seq.); or
            (2) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
        Agency finds that the paper product was not manufactured in 
        accordance with requirements at least as stringent as the 
        requirements described in subparagraph (A) and (B) of paragraph 
        (1).
    (b) Penalties and Enforcement.--Any person who violates any 
provision of this section or any regulation issued under this section 
may, in addition to any other civil or criminal penalty that may be 
imposed under title 18, United States Code, or any other provision of 
law, be assessed a civil penalty of not more than $10,000,000 per 
transgression. The Secretary of Homeland Security and the Administrator 
of the Environmental Protection Agency shall enforce the provisions of 
this section.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section--
            (1) the term ``paper product'' means an article classified 
        under any heading or subheading of chapter 47 or 48 of the 
        Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States; and
            (2) the term ``United States'' means the customs territory 
        of the United States, as defined in general note 2 of the 
        Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States.
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