[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4555 Introduced in House (IH)]
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114th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 4555
To clarify the application of section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930 as
it relates to articles from areas of the West Bank and Gaza that are
not administered by Israel.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 12, 2016
Mr. Lamborn (for himself, Ms. McSally, Mr. DeSantis, Mr. Franks of
Arizona, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Mr. Rouzer, Mr. Costello of Pennsylvania, Mr.
Zeldin, Mrs. Black, Mr. Ross, Mr. Walker, and Mr. Cook) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To clarify the application of section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930 as
it relates to articles from areas of the West Bank and Gaza that are
not administered by Israel.
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 ``Non-Discrimination of Israel in
Labeling Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Prior to the issuance of Trade Directive (T.D.) 95-25
and T.D. 97-16, the Customs Service had taken the position
that, in order for the country of origin marking of a good
which was produced in the West Bank or Gaza Strip to be
considered acceptable, the word ``Israel'' must appear in the
marking designation.
(2) The Department of State advised the Department of
Treasury that, in view of certain developments, principally the
Israeli-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-
Government Arrangements (signed on September 13, 1993), also
known as the Oslo Accords, the primary purpose of section 304
of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1304) would be best served
if goods produced in the West Bank and Gaza Strip under the
Palestinian interim self-government were permitted to be marked
``West Bank'' or ``Gaza Strip''.
(3) The Oslo Accords created a new self-rule entity, an
interim self-governing Palestinian council, granting it the
authority to independently conduct its affairs, including
financial matters such as import and export.
(4) On March 17, 1995, President Clinton signed
Presidential Proclamation 6788 designating the West Bank and
Gaza Strip as a beneficiary of the generalized system of
preferences program.
(5) The United States Customs Border Protection Cargo
Systems Messaging Service guidance dated March 28, 1995,
stated: ``The extension of the generalized system of
preferences program to the West Bank and Gaza Strip pursuant to
this Presidential Proclamation applies only to goods produced
in the areas for which arrangements are being established for
Palestinian interim self-government, as set forth in Articles
I, III, and IV of the Declaration of Principles on Interim
Self-Government arrangements.''.
(6) The March 28, 1995, guidance further articulated
Articles IV and V of the Declaration of Principles on Interim
Self-Government arrangements, stating: ``It is understood that:
Jurisdiction of the Council will cover West Bank and Gaza Strip
territory, except for issues that will be negotiated in the
permanent status negotiations: Jerusalem, settlements, military
location, and Israelis.''.
(7) It is the longstanding policy of the United States to
oppose any effort to delegitimize Israel.
(8) The first free trade agreement by the United States was
between the United States and Israel, effective September 1,
1985.
(9) The United States-Israel Strategic Partnership is a
vital asset to United States national, economic, and security
interests and any boycott, or sanctions effort, or policy that
serves to delegitimize or discriminate against Israel will
ultimately harm United States economic interests.
SEC. 3. ADDITIONAL MARKINGS OF IMPORTED ARTICLES AND CONTAINERS FROM
THE WEST BANK AND GAZA STRIP.
(a) Articles of West Bank.--For purposes of section 304 of the
Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1304), every article of origin of the
geographical area known as the West Bank (or the container of any such
article) imported into the United States shall be marked in accordance
with the requirements of such section, which--
(1) in the case of an article of an area not administered
by Israel in the West Bank, shall include the words ``West
Bank''; and
(2) in the case of an article of an area administered by
Israel in the West Bank, shall include the words ``Israel'',
``Made in Israel'', or ``Product of Israel''.
(b) Articles of Gaza Strip.--For purposes of section 304 of the
Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1304), every article of origin of the
geographical area known as the Gaza Strip (or the container of any such
article) imported into the United States shall be marked in accordance
with the requirements of such section, and shall include the words
``Gaza'' or ``Gaza Strip''.
(c) Additional Requirement.--The Secretary of the Treasury or any
other competent Federal official (or the official's designee) may not
prohibit the use of any of the markings specified in subsections (a)
and (b) for purposes of satisfying the applicable requirements under
section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930 with respect to articles of the
West Bank or the Gaza Strip.
(d) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date of
the enactment of this Act and shall apply with respect to articles
imported into the United States on or after such date of enactment.
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