Specialty CROP Act of 2023

Bill: 118-hr-6399
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Bonamici, Suzanne [D-OR-1]
Introduced: 2023-11-14
Policy area: Agriculture and Food
Latest action: action_date: 2023-11-14
text: Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.

Summaries:
action_date: 2023-11-14
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><strong>Specialty Crops Reporting on Opportunities and Promotion Act of 2023 or the Specialty CROP Act of 2023</strong></p><p>This bill expands the annual&nbsp;reporting requirements for the Technical Assistance for Specialty Crops program to require  the Department of Agriculture&nbsp;(USDA) to provide specific information on the competitiveness of U.S. exports of specialty crops.</p><p>Specifically, the bill modifies the requirements for&nbsp;a congressionally mandated&nbsp;annual report on U.S. specialty crop trade issues to require USDA to report specific information on acts, policies, and practices of foreign countries that constitute significant barriers to, or distortions of, U.S. exports of specialty crops.</p><p>Further, USDA must consult with the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on the report. Before preparing the report, USDA, in coordination with the USTR,&nbsp;must seek comments from the public and the Agricultural Technical Advisory Committee for Trade in Fruits and Vegetables.</p><p>Under the bill, USDA must submit the report to Congress in an unclassified form, but may include a classified annex. The unclassified portion of the report must be publicly available.</p>

tv_txt: I 118th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 6399 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES November 14, 2023 Ms. Bonamici (for herself, Mr. Valadao , and Ms. Slotkin ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture A BILL To require a report on the competitiveness of United States exports of specialty crops.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Specialty Crops Reporting on Opportunities and Promotion Act of 2023 or the Specialty CROP Act of 2023 . 2. Report on competitiveness of United States exports of specialty crops Section 203(e)(7) of the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 ( 7 U.S.C. 5623(e)(7) ) is amended to read as follows: (7) Annual report (A) In general Each year, the Secretary, in consultation with the United States Trade Representative, shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report detailing the competitiveness of United States exports of specialty crops. (B) Elements The report required by subparagraph (A) shall— (i) identify and analyze acts, policies, or practices of foreign countries that constitute significant barriers to, or distortions of United States exports of specialty crops, including the imposition of— (I) tariffs (including retaliatory tariffs) and quotas (including tariff-rate quotas); and (II) nontariff barriers, including technical barriers to trade, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, import licensing procedures, and subsidies; (ii) make an estimate— (I) of the impacts on the competitiveness of United States exports of specialty crops of any act, policy, or practice identified under clause (i); and (II) if feasible, of the value of additional specialty crops that would, during the year preceding submission of the report, have been exported from the United States to each foreign country an act, policy, or practice of which is identified under clause (i) if each such act, policy, or practice of that country did not exist; (iii) assess the extent to which each act, policy, or practice identified under clause (i) is subject to international agreements to which the United States is a party; (iv) include information with respect to any action taken by the executive branch during the year preceding submission of the report, or expected to be taken after submission of the report, to eliminate any act, policy, or practice identified under clause (i), including— (I) any action under section 301; (II) negotiations or consultations with foreign governments, which may include engagement through the standing committee on sanitary and phytosanitary matters established under a free trade agreement to which the United States is a party; and (III) action at the World Trade Organization, including dispute settlement actions, consultations, or negotiations; and (v) a description of— (I) any funds provided under subsection (f)(3)(A)(iv) that were not obligated in the fiscal year preceding submission of the report; and (II) the reason such funds were not obligated. (C) Comment period Before preparing the report required by subparagraph (A), the Secretary, in coordination with the United States Trade Representative, shall— (i) seek comment from the public and the Agricultural Technical Advisory Committee for Trade in Fruits and Vegetables; and (ii) take such comments into account in preparing the report. (D) Form of report (i) In general The report required by subparagraph (A) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex. (ii) Public availability The unclassified portion of the report required by subparagraph (A) shall be made available to the public in machine readable format. .