Forced or Indentured Child Labor

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Customs Service

19 CFR Part 12

RIN 1515-AC36

Forced or Indentured Child Labor

AGENCY: U.S. Customs Service, Department of the Treasury.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: This document proposes to amend the Customs Regulations to

provide for the seizure and forfeiture of merchandise that is found to

be a prohibited importation under applicable Customs law concerning

products of convict labor, forced labor, or indentured labor under

penal sanctions. Furthermore, this document proposes to amend the

Customs Regulations to make clear that nothing in those regulations

precludes Customs from seizing for forfeiture merchandise imported in

violation of applicable Federal criminal law dealing with prison-labor

goods. The proposed amendments are intended to stop illegal shipments

of products of forced or indentured child labor and to punish

violators.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 18, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be addressed to and inspected at the

Regulations Branch, U.S. Customs Service, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW,

3rd Floor, Washington, DC 20229.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Glen E. Vereb, Office of Regulations

and Rulings, 202-927-2320.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307), generally

prohibits the importation of goods, wares, articles, and merchandise

mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part in any foreign

country by convict labor or/and forced labor or/and indentured labor

under penal sanctions. Such prohibitions are enforced by Customs under

Secs. 12.42--12.44 of the Customs Regulations (19 CFR 12.42--12.44).

If Customs finds, on the basis of information presented and

investigated under the procedures described in Sec. 12.42(a)-(e), that

a class of merchandise is subject to the prohibition under section 307,

the Commissioner of Customs, with the approval of the Secretary of the

Treasury, will publish a finding to this effect in the weekly issue of

the Customs Bulletin and in the Federal Register, as prescribed in

Sec. 12.42(f).

Under Sec. 12.43, an importer is afforded the opportunity to

furnish proof within 3 months after importation in order to establish

the admissibility of particular imported merchandise detained by

Customs under Sec. 12.42(e) or covered by a finding under

Sec. 12.42(f), that the particular merchandise being imported is not

itself produced with the use of a type of labor specified in section

307.

Section 12.44 deals with the disposition of merchandise determined

to be inadmissible under section 307. Currently, Sec. 12.44 provides in

pertinent part that such merchandise (1) may be exported at any time

within the 3-month period after importation or (2) if not so exported

and if no proof of admissibility has been provided, the importer is

advised in writing that the merchandise is excluded from entry and, 60

days thereafter, the merchandise is deemed abandoned and will be

destroyed unless a protest is filed under 19 U.S.C. 1514.

Forced or Indentured Child Labor

A general provision in the Fiscal Year (FY) 1998 Treasury

Appropriations Act made clear what is implicit in the law: that

merchandise manufactured with the use of forced or indentured child

labor falls within the prohibition of section 1307. This Act requires

that Customs not use any of the appropriation to permit the importation

into the United States of such merchandise.

Following the enactment of the FY 1998 appropriations amendment

regarding forced or indentured child labor, both the Treasury

Department and the National Economic Council chaired in-depth

interagency discussions aimed at strengthening the capability of the

Executive Branch to enforce the prohibition on forced or indentured

child labor imports.

To this end, the Treasury Department, by a document published in

the Federal Register on June 5, 1998 (63 FR 30813), proposed the

establishment of a Treasury Advisory Committee on International Child

Labor Enforcement, whose ultimate purpose is to support a vigorous law

enforcement initiative to stop illegal shipments of products of forced

or indentured child labor and to punish violators.

Proposed Amendment

Accordingly, as part of the foregoing initiative, Customs proposes

to amend Sec. 12.44 regarding the disposition to be accorded

merchandise that is a prohibited importation under section 307.

Specifically, under the proposed amendment, in the case of

merchandise covered by a finding under Sec. 12.42(f), if the

Commissioner of Customs advises the port director that the proof

furnished under Sec. 12.43 does not establish the admissibility of a

particular importation of such merchandise, or if no proof is furnished

in this regard, the merchandise will then be seized and subject to the

commencement of forfeiture proceedings under subpart E of part 162 of

the Customs Regulations (19 CFR part 162, subpart E). Currently, such

merchandise is permitted to be exported at any time before it is deemed

to have been abandoned.

Also, Customs further proposes to amend Sec. 12.44 to state

expressly that nothing in the Customs Regulations (19 CFR Chapter I)

precludes Customs from seizing for forfeiture merchandise imported in

violation of applicable Federal criminal law (18 U.S.C. 1761--1762)

dealing with prison-labor goods.

Comments

Before adopting this proposal as a final rule, consideration will

be given to any written comments that are timely submitted to Customs.

Comments submitted will be available for public inspection in

accordance with the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552),

Sec. 1.4, Treasury Department Regulations (31 CFR 1.4), and

Sec. 103.11(b), Customs Regulations (19 CFR 103.11(b)), on regular

business days between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. at the

Regulations Branch, U.S. Customs Service, 1300 Pennsylvania

[[Page 62619]]

Avenue, NW, 3rd Floor, Washington, DC.

Regulatory Flexibility Act and Executive Order 12866

Because the importation of goods, wares, articles, and merchandise

mined, produced or manufactured wholly or in part in any foreign

country by forced labor is prohibited, Customs anticipates that there

will not be a substantial number of small entities that would become

involved in a prohibited importation. The rule applies to products

subject to a ``finding'' that the class of merchandise was produced

with forced or indentured child labor, a more formal Customs action

with a higher burden of proof than simple Customs detention of

merchandise based on reasonable suspicion. Also the range of countries

and products which are likely to be implicated in forced or indentured

child labor findings is likely to be fairly narrow. Accordingly, it is

certified, in accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C.

601 et seq.) that, if adopted, the proposed rule will not have a

significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.

Nor does the document meet the criteria for a ``significant regulatory

action'' as specified in E.O. 12866.

List of Subjects in 19 CFR Part 12

Customs duties and inspection, Entry of merchandise, Imports,

Prohibited merchandise, Restricted merchandise, Seizure and forfeiture.

Proposed Amendments to the Regulations

It is proposed to amend part 12, Customs Regulations (19 CFR part

12), as set forth below.

PART 12--SPECIAL CLASSES OF MERCHANDISE

1. The general authority citation for part 12 would continue to

read as follows, and the relevant specific sectional authority would be

revised to read as follows:

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 19 U.S.C. 66, 1202 (General Note 20,

Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS)), 1624;

* * * * *

Sections 12.42 through 12.44 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1307 and

Pub. L. 105-61 (111 Stat. 1272);

* * * * *

2. It is proposed to amend Sec. 12.42 by revising the first

sentence of paragraph (a) to read as follows:

Sec. 12.42 Findings of Commissioner of Customs.

(a) If any port director or other principal Customs officer has

reason to believe that any class of merchandise which is being, or is

likely to be, imported into the United States is being produced,

whether by mining, manufacture, or other means, in any foreign locality

with the use of convict labor, forced labor, or indentured labor under

penal sanctions, including forced or indentured child labor, so as to

come within the purview of section 307, Tariff Act of 1930, he shall

communicate his belief to the Commissioner of Customs. * * *

* * * * *

3. It is proposed to revise Sec. 12.44 to read as follows:

Sec. 12.44 Disposition.

(a) Seizure and summary forfeiture. In the case of merchandise

covered by a finding under Sec. 12.42(f), if the Commissioner of

Customs advises the port director that the proof furnished under

Sec. 12.43 does not establish the admissibility of the merchandise, or

if no proof has been furnished, the port director shall seize the

merchandise for violation of 19 U.S.C. 1307 and commence forfeiture

proceedings pursuant to part 162, subpart E, of this chapter.

(b) Prison-labor goods. Nothing in this chapter precludes Customs

from seizing for forfeiture merchandise imported in violation of 18

U.S.C. 1761 and 1762 concerning prison-labor goods.

Approved: August 12, 1999.

Raymond W. Kelly,

Commissioner of Customs.

John P. Simpson,

Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury.

[FR Doc. 99-29928 Filed 11-16-99; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4820-02-P