Committee on Ways and Means

H.R. 5385, the "Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2002"

The bill, H.R. 5385, contains provisions involving the suspension of duties on narrowly defined products, miscellaneous trade-related items, and technical corrections to the Trade and Development Act of 2002.

Title I, Subtitle A, Chapter 1

Duty suspensions.  By far the largest portion of the bill is devoted to suspending the duty on select products that have no domestic production.  The current duties therefore act solely as a tax on the importer, taxes which are paid ultimately by consumers.  The products are usually unique (often complex chemicals) and supply a narrow, niche market in the United States. 

Title I, Subtitle B, Chapter 1

Section 1501 & 1502
Single entry reductions   The bill orders the duty free treatment in two instances:  the import of two tramway cars for Portland, Oregon, and the import of a Liberty Bell replica for Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Section 1605
Ship repair record-keeping elimination.  The bill reverses Customs regulations written in April 2001 and eliminates onerous record-keeping requirements for repairs made by regular crew on American ships while on the high seas.  As with current law, ships will be required to pay HTS duties on foreign parts upon entering the United States.

Section 1606
GSP benefits for certain hand-made rugs.  The bill extends GSP benefits for certain hand-made rugs from GSP beneficiary countries.  The primary beneficiary is Pakistan; other countries that would benefit from the bill include Turkey, Nepal, Egypt, and Morocco.  The bill would significantly increase Pakistan’s benefits under GSP and provide a much-needed benefit to an important ally in the war on terrorism.  There are no domestic producers of the hand-made rugs included in this bill.

Section 1608
Reinstatement of duty drawback on the Harbor Maintenance Tax (HMT).  This provision reverses an unexpected court interpretation that eliminated the HMT’s eligibility for duty drawback, a 200 year-old provision of U.S. trade laws that allows for a refund of duties and fees paid on imported goods when they are subsequently exported.  Duty drawback allows American companies to compete more fairly with foreign companies in international markets.

Section 2001
Normal Trade Relations (NTR) for Yugoslavia.  Yugoslavia’s NTR status was withdrawn by Congress in 1992 (PL 102-420) because Serbia and Montenegro were not complying with the provisions of the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (also known as the “Helsinki Final Act”).  The bill gives the President the authority to proclaim NTR status to Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) notwithstanding the 1992 law. 

Section 2002
Wine import standards.  The bill includes a provision to require certification from importers that the imported wine meets U.S. wine-making standards.  No certification is required if the wine comes from a country that grants recognition of U.S. wine-making standards for imports of U.S. wine into that country.

Section 2003(a)
Technical Corrections to the Trade Act of 2002. 

Section 2003(b)
Technical corrections to benefits under the Trade and Development Act.  The bill clarifies that duty-free treatment should be granted to apparel formed in sub-Saharan African countries from U.S. and regional components.  The bill also clarifies Congressional intent that apparel assembled in a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country from NAFTA short-supply fabrics that were formed in that African country are eligible for duty-free benefits.