Home > 107th Congressional Bills > H.R. 725 (rh) To establish a toll free number under the Federal Trade Commission to assist consumers in determining if products are American-made. [Reported in House] ...H.R. 725 (rh) To establish a toll free number under the Federal Trade Commission to assist consumers in determining if products are American-made. [Reported in House] ...
107th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 725
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 15, 2001
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To direct the Secretary of Commerce to provide for the establishment of
a toll-free telephone number to assist consumers in determining whether
products are American-made.
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 ``Made in America Information Act''.
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF TOLL-FREE TELEPHONE NUMBER PILOT PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment.--If the Secretary of Commerce determines, on the
basis of comments submitted in the rulemaking under section 3, that--
(1) interest among manufacturers is sufficient to warrant
the establishment of a 3-year toll-free telephone number pilot
program; and
(2) manufacturers will provide fees under section 3(c) so
that the program will operate without cost to the Federal
Government,
the Secretary shall establish such program solely to help inform
consumers whether a product is ``Made in America''. The Secretary shall
publish the toll-free telephone number by notice in the Federal
Register.
(b) Contract.--The Secretary of Commerce shall enter into a
contract for--
(1) the establishment and operation of the toll-free
telephone number pilot program provided for in subsection (a);
and
(2) the registration of products pursuant to regulations
issued under section 3,
which shall be funded entirely from fees collected under section 3(c).
(c) Use.--The toll-free telephone number shall be used solely to
inform consumers as to whether products are registered under section 3
as ``Made in America''. Consumers shall also be informed that
registration of a product does not mean--
(1) that the product is endorsed or approved by the
Government;
(2) that the Secretary has conducted any investigation to
confirm that the product is a product which meets the
definition of ``Made in America'' in section 5; or
(3) that the product contains 100 percent United States
content.
SEC. 3. REGISTRATION.
(a) Proposed Regulation.--The Secretary of Commerce shall propose a
regulation--
(1) to establish a procedure under which the manufacturer
of a product may voluntarily register such product as complying
with the definition of ``Made in America'' in section 5 and
have such product included in the information available through
the toll-free telephone number established under section 2(a);
(2) to establish, assess, and collect a fee to cover all
the costs (including start-up costs) of registering products
and including registered products in information provided under
the toll-free telephone number;
(3) for the establishment under section 2(a) of the toll-
free telephone number pilot program; and
(4) to solicit views from the private sector concerning the
level of interest of manufacturers in registering products
under the terms and conditions of paragraph (1).
(b) Promulgation.--If the Secretary determines based on the
comments on the regulation proposed under subsection (a) that the toll-
free telephone number pilot program and the registration of products is
warranted, the Secretary shall promulgate such regulation.
(c) Registration Fee.--
(1) In general.--Manufacturers of products included in
information provided under section 2 shall be subject to a fee
imposed by the Secretary of Commerce to pay the cost of
registering products and including them in information provided
under subsection (a).
(2) Amount.--The amount of fees imposed under paragraph (1)
shall--
(A) in the case of a manufacturer, not be greater
than the cost of registering the manufacturer's product
and providing product information directly attributable
to such manufacturer; and
(B) in the case of the total amount of fees, not be
greater than the total amount appropriated to the
Secretary of Commerce for salaries and expenses
directly attributable to registration of manufacturers
and having products included in the information
provided under section 2(a).
(3) Crediting and availability of fees.--
(A) In general.--Fees collected for a fiscal year
pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be credited to the
appropriation account for salaries and expenses of the
Secretary of Commerce and shall be available in
accordance with appropriation Acts until expended
without fiscal year limitation.
(B) Collections and appropriation acts.--The fees
imposed under paragraph (1)--
(i) shall be collected in each fiscal year
in an amount equal to the amount specified in
appropriation Acts for such fiscal year; and
(ii) shall only be collected and available
for the costs described in paragraph (2).
SEC. 4. PENALTY.
Any manufacturer of a product who knowingly registers a product
under section 3 which is not ``Made in America''--
(1) shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more than
$7500 which the Secretary of Commerce may assess and collect;
and
(2) shall not offer such product for purchase by the
Federal Government.
SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act:
(1) Made in america.--The term ``Made in America'' has the
meaning given unqualified ``Made in U.S.A.'' or ``Made in
America'' claims for purposes of laws administered by the
Federal Trade Commission.
(2) Product.--The term ``product'' means a product with a
retail value of at least $250.
SEC. 6. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act or in any regulation promulgated under section
3 shall be construed to alter, amend, modify, or otherwise affect in
any way, the Federal Trade Commission Act or the opinions, decisions,
rules, or any guidance issued by the Federal Trade Commission regarding
the use of unqualified ``Made in U.S.A.'' or ``Made in America'' claims
in labels on products introduced, delivered for introduction, sold,
advertised, or offered for sale in commerce.
Passed the House of Representatives March 14, 2001.
Attest:
JEFF TRANDAHL,
Clerk.
Pages: 1 Other Popular 107th Congressional Bills Documents:
|
| GovRecords.org presents information on various agencies of the United States Government. Even though all information is believed to be credible and accurate, no guarantees are made on the complete accuracy of our government records archive. Care should be taken to verify the information presented by responsible parties. Please see our reference page for congressional, presidential, and judicial branch contact information. GovRecords.org values visitor privacy. Please see the privacy page for more information. |
 |