Title: American Business Tariff Relief Act of 2019
Policy area: Foreign Trade and International Finance

Summary:
American Business Tariff Relief Act of 2019
This bill requires the U.S. Trade Representative to establish a process whereby U.S. businesses may request that articles newly subject to raised import duties be excluded from such duties. For an exclusion to be granted, the business seeking the exclusion must demonstrate the article's unavailability from any other source or that the duty would cause economic harm to a U.S. interest.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2362 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2362

     To establish a process for United States businesses to obtain 
 exclusions from certain duties imposed under section 301 of the Trade 
Act of 1974 and section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 31, 2019

Mr. Whitehouse introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
                  referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To establish a process for United States businesses to obtain 
 exclusions from certain duties imposed under section 301 of the Trade 
Act of 1974 and section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, 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 ``American Business Tariff Relief Act 
of 2019''.

SEC. 2. EXCLUSION PROCESS FOR CERTAIN DUTIES IMPOSED UNDER SECTION 301 
              OF THE TRADE ACT OF 1974.

    (a) In General.--Title III of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2411 
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 311. EXCLUSION PROCESS.

    ``(a) In General.--Not later than the first date after the date of 
the enactment of this section on which the United States Trade 
Representative announces the imposition of additional duties under 
section 301, the Trade Representative shall establish a process under 
which United States businesses may request the exclusion of articles 
from duties imposed under that section.
    ``(b) Requirements.--A United States business that seeks the 
exclusion of an article from duties imposed under section 301 shall 
submit to the Trade Representative information demonstrating that--
            ``(1) the article is not available from any source other 
        than a source that is subject to the duties; or
            ``(2) the imposition of such duties on the article would 
        cause economic harm to a United States interest.
    ``(c) Determinations.--Not later than 30 days after receiving a 
request submitted under subsection (b) for the exclusion of an article 
from duties imposed under section 301, the Trade Representative shall--
            ``(1) make a determination with respect to whether or not 
        to grant the exclusion; and
            ``(2) if the Trade Representative determines not to grant 
        the exclusion, provide to the United States business that 
        requested the exclusion a rationale for denying the exclusion.
    ``(d) Administration of Requests.--The Trade Representative shall--
            ``(1) establish a component within the Office of the United 
        States Trade Representative to be responsible for reviewing 
        requests for the exclusion of articles from duties imposed 
        under section 301; and
            ``(2) ensure the continued operation of that component 
        until all duties imposed under that section terminate.
    ``(e) Reports Required.--Not later than 90 days after establishing 
the process required by subsection (a), and every 90 days thereafter, 
the Trade Representative shall submit to the Committee on Finance of 
the Senate and the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 
Representatives a report that includes detailed information about 
requests made pursuant to the process during the preceding 90-day 
period and determinations made under subsection (c) with respect to 
those requests.
    ``(f) United States Business Defined.--In this section, the term 
`United States business' means an entity--
            ``(1) organized under the laws of the United States or any 
        jurisdiction within the United States; and
            ``(2) that employs workers in the United States.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for the Trade Act of 
1974 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 310 the 
following:

``Sec. 311. Exclusion process.''.

SEC. 3. EXCLUSION PROCESS FOR CERTAIN DUTIES IMPOSED UNDER SECTION 232 
              OF THE TRADE EXPANSION ACT OF 1962.

    Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (19 U.S.C. 1862) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(g) Exclusion Process.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than the first date after the 
        date of the enactment of this subsection on which the President 
        announces the imposition of additional duties under subsection 
        (c), the Secretary shall establish a process under which United 
        States businesses may request the exclusion of articles from 
        duties imposed under that section.
            ``(2) Requirements.--A United States business that seeks 
        the exclusion of an article from duties imposed under 
        subsection (c) shall submit to the Secretary information 
        demonstrating that--
                    ``(A) the article is not available from any source 
                other than a source that is subject to the duties; or
                    ``(B) the imposition of such duties on the article 
                would cause economic harm to a United States interest.
            ``(3) Determinations.--Not later than 30 days after 
        receiving a request submitted under paragraph (2) for the 
        exclusion of an article from duties imposed under subsection 
        (c), the Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) make a determination with respect to whether 
                or not to grant the exclusion; and
                    ``(B) if the Secretary determines not to grant the 
                exclusion, provide to the United States business that 
                requested the exclusion a rationale for denying the 
                exclusion.
            ``(4) Administration of requests.--The Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) establish a component within the Department 
                of Commerce to be responsible for reviewing requests 
                for the exclusion of articles from duties imposed under 
                subsection (c); and
                    ``(B) ensure the continued operation of that 
                component until all duties imposed under that 
                subsection terminate.
            ``(5) Reports required.--Not later than 90 days after 
        establishing the process required by paragraph (1), and every 
        90 days thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee 
        on Finance of the Senate and the Committee on Ways and Means of 
        the House of Representatives a report that includes detailed 
        information about requests made pursuant to that process during 
        the preceding 90-day period and determinations made under 
        paragraph (3) with respect to those requests.
            ``(6) United states business defined.--In this subsection, 
        the term `United States business' means an entity--
                    ``(A) organized under the laws of the United States 
                or any jurisdiction within the United States; and
                    ``(B) that employs workers in the United States.''.
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