6. Resolution With Respect to the World Food Situation Considered and agreed to by the House (H. Res. 1399, 93d Congress] December 9, 1974 RESOLUTION Whereas the current world food supply, including reserves, is dangerously low, with millions of people in South Asia and in the African Sahel facing famine; and Whereas higher prices for food, energy, and fertilizer, together with fertilizer shortages, are causing particular hardship to poor developing nations; and Whereas rapid population growth aggravates food shortages, and declines in population growth rates historically have been associated with economic and social progress; and Whereas the American people have a long and proud tradition of combating hunger at home and abroad; and Whereas it is in the interest of the United States and of all other nations to overcome food shortages, which cause human suffering, breed economic and political instability, and raise food prices both at home and abroad; and Whereas the world community has recognized the dimensions of the crisis by convening the World Population Conference and the World Food Conference this year; and Whereas President Ford in his address to the 1974 United Nations General Assembly recognized the urgency of the world food crisis and pledged (1) substantially increased United States assistance to agricultural production programs in other countries, (2) United States support for an international system of food reserves, and (3) increased United States spending for food shipments to needy nations: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that (1) the United States should vigorously pursue efforts to help poor countries (A) increase agriculture production, especially through labor intensive, small farm agriculture, (B) promote economic and social development programs, and (C) assist in population programs, when requested, including continued encouragement of voluntary family planning; and (2) increased food aid should be provided as needed to meet specific short-term emergencies; and (3) planning should be undertaken immediately by appropriate Government agencies to enable the United States to provide increased food aid, including plans to prevent any increased domestic inflation as a result of United States relief shipments; and (4) all nations-including industrial and food-exporting countries, oil-exporting countries, and the developing countries themselves—should join in the effort to combat food shortages; and (5) international agreement should be sought for a system of food reserves to meet food shortage emergencies and to provide insurance against unexpected shortfalls in food production, with costs to be equitably shared and farmers given firm safeguards against price disruption from such a system; and (6) the President should encourage reduction in domestic consumption of fertilizer for nonfarm purposes in order to increase fertilizer supplies for the production of food in this country and in the developing countries, and should undertake efforts to stimulate increased fertilizer production both here and abroad. 7. Collection and Publication of Foreign Commerce and Trade Statistics Sections 301-307, Title 13, U.S.C.; as added by Public Law 87-826, approved Oct. 15, 1962, 76 Stat. 951-52; and amended by Public Law 93-618 [Trade Act of 1974; H.R. 10710], 88 Stat. 1978 at 2074, approved January 3, 1975; Public Law 96-39, [Trade Agreements Act of 1979; H.R. 4537], 93 Stat. 144 at 313, approved July 26, 1979; Public Law 96-275, [H.R. 6842], 94 Stat. 539, approved June 17, 1980; and by Public Law 100-418 [Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988; H.R. 4848], 102 Stat. 1107, approved August 23, 1988 § 301. Collection and publication. (a) The Secretary is authorized to collect information from all persons exporting from, or importing into, the United States and the noncontiguous areas over which the United States exercises sovereignty, jurisdiction, or control, and from all persons engaged in trade between the United States and such noncontiguous areas and between those areas, or from the owners, or operators of carriers engaged in such foreign commerce or trade, and shall compile and publish such information pertaining to exports, imports, trade, and transportation relating thereto, as he deems necessary or appropriate to enable him to foster, promote, develop, and further the commerce, domestic and foreign, of the United States and for other lawful purposes. (b) The Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate, on quarterly and cumulative bases, statistics on United States imports for consumption and United States exports by country and by product. Statistics on United States imports shall be submitted in accordance with the Tariff Schedules of United States Annotated and general statistical headnote 1 thereof, in detail as follows: (1) net quantity; (2) United States customs value: (4) equivalent of arm's length value; (5) aggregate cost from port of exportation to United States port of entry; (6) a United States port of entry value comprised of (5) plus (4), if applicable, or, if not applicable, (5) plus (3); and (7) for transactions where (3) and (4) are equal, the total value of such transactions. The data for paragraphs (1), (2), (3), (5), and (6) shall be reported separately for nonrelated and related party transactions, and shall also be reported as a total of all transactions. 1 The subsection designation "(a)" and new subsecs. (b), (c), and (d) were added by sec. 609(a) of the Trade Act of 1974 (Public Law 93-618; 88 Stat. 2074). (c) In submitting any information under subsection (b) with respect to exports, the Secretary shall state separately from the total value of all exports (1)(A) the value of agricultural commodities exported under the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954, as amended; and (B) the total amount of all export subsidies paid to exporters by the United States under such Act for the exportation of such commodities; and (2) the value of goods exported under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961. 1 (d) 1 To assist the Secretary to carry out the provisions of subsections (b) and (c) (1) the Secretary of Agriculture shall furnish information to the Secretary concerning the value of agricultural commodities exported under provisions of the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954, as amended, and the total amounts of all export subsidies paid to exporters by the United States under such Act for the exportation of such commodities; and (2) the Secretary of State shall furnish information to the Secretary concerning the value of goods exported under the provisions of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended. (e) 2 There shall be reported, on monthly and cumulative bases, for each item in the Tariff Schedules of the United States Annotated, the United States port of entry value (as determined under subsection (b)(6)). There shall be reported, on monthly and cumulative bases, the balance of international trade for the United States reflecting (1) the aggregate value of all United States imports as reported in accordance with the first sentence of this subsection, and (2) the aggregate value of all United States exports. The information required to be reported under this subsection shall be reported in a form that is adjusted for economic inflation or deflation (on a constant dollar basis consistent with the reporting of the National Income and Product Accounts), and in a form that is not so adjusted.3 (f) 2 On or before January 1, 1981, and as often thereafter as may be necessary to reflect significant changes in rates, there shall be reported for each item of the Tariff Schedules of the United States Annotated, the ad valorem or ad valorem equivalent rate of duty which would have been required to be imposed on dutiable imports under that item, if the United States customs values of such imports were based on the United States port of entry value (as reported in accordance with the first sentence of subsection (e)) in order to collect the same amount of duties on imports under that item as are currently collected. 2 Subsecs. (e) and (f) were added by sec. 1108(a) of the Trade Agreements Act of 1979 (Public Law 96-39; 93 Stat. 313), effective Dec. 31, 1979. 3 This sentence was added by sec. 1932 of Public Law 100-418 (Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988; 102 Stat. 1320). The sentence previously appearing at this point was deleted by sec. 1931(a) of that Act and read "The values and balance of trade required to be reported by this subsection shall be released no later than 48 hours before the release of any other government statistics concerning values of United States imports or United States balance of trade, or statistics from which such values or balance may be derived.". 4 (g) Shippers' Export Declarations (or any successor document), wherever located, shall be exempt from public disclosure unless the Secretary determines that such exemption would be contrary to the national interest. § 302. Rules, regulations, and orders. The Secretary may make such rules, regulations, and orders as he deems necessary or appropriate to carry out the provisions of this chapter. Any rules, regulations, or orders issued pursuant to this authority may be established in such form or manner, may contain such classifications or differentiations, and may provide for such_adjustments and reasonable exceptions as in the judgment of the Secretary are necessary or proper to effectuate the purpose of this chapter, or to prevent circumvention or evasion of any rule, regulation, or order issued hereunder. The Secretary may also provide by rule or regulation, for such confidentiality, publication, or disclosure, of information collected hereunder as he may deem necessary or appropriate in the public interest. Rules, regulations, and orders, or amendments thereto shall have the concurrence of the Secretary of the Treasury prior to promulgation. § 303. Secretary of Treasury functions. To assist the Secretary to carry out the functions of this chapter, the Secretary of the Treasury shall collect information in the form and manner prescribed by the regulations issued pursuant to this chapter from persons engaged in foreign commerce or trade, other than by mail, and from the owners or operators of carriers. § 304. Filing export information, delayed filings, penalties for failure to file. (a) The information or reports in connection with the exportation or transportation of cargo required to be filed by carriers with the Secretary of the Treasury under any rule, regulation, or order issued pursuant to this chapter may be filed after the departure of such carrier from the port or place of exportation or transportation, whether such departing carrier is destined directly to a foreign port or place or to a noncontiguous area, or proceeds by way of other ports or places of the United States, provided that a bond in an approved form in the penal sum of $1,000 is filed with the Secretary of the Treasury. The Secretary of Commerce may, by a rule, regulation, or order issued in conformity herewith, prescribe a maximum period after such departure during which the required information or reports may be filed. In the event any such information or report is not filed within such prescribed period, a penalty not to exceed $100 for each day's delinquency beyond the prescribed period, but not more than $1,000 shall be exacted. Civil suit may be instituted in the name of the United States against the principal and surety for the recovery of any penalties that may accrue and be exacted in accordance with the terms of the bond. (b) The Secretary may remit or mitigate any penalty incurred for violations of this section and regulations issued pursuant thereto if, * Subsec. (g) was added by sec. 1 of Public Law 96-275 (94 Stat. 539). |