TRADE BILL TO CHANGE AGRICULTURE TRADE LAWS

  The House Ways and Means Committee
  is moving toward passage of a trade bill that sponsors said was
  intended to help open foreign markets to U.S. agricultural
  goods and to modify some U.S. agricultural trade laws.
      The trade subcommittee voted to require President Reagan to
  take into account the potential harm to U.S. agricultural
  exports of any trade retaliation he might impose for foreign
  unfair trade practices against other domestic industries.
      The bill would allow U.S. agricultural producers to seek
  government monitoring of imports if there is a reasonable
  chance the industry would be harmed by an import surge.
      The full Ways and Means Committee is to consider the bill
  next week and congressional sources said they expect it will be
  approved.
       In investigations involving a processed agricultural
  product, trade associations of processors or producers would
  have to petition for relief from foreign dumping or unfair
  duties.
       The bill sets out U.S. trade negotiating objectives for
  the Uruguay round of talks under the General Agreement on
  Tariffs and Trade. It would seek fair trade in agriculture,
  seek to discipline restrictive or trade distorting import and
  export practices, to eliminate tariffs, subsidies, quotas and
  non-tariff barriers.
       President Reagan's authority to negotiate a new GATT
  agreement would be extended through January 1993 and authority
  to negotiate a free trade zone with Canada would be extended
  through January 3, 1991.
      The bill extends Reagan's authority to negotiate an
  international coffee agreement through October 31, 1989.
      It allows a refund of import duties paid on raw sugar
  imported from November 1, 1977 to March 31, 1985 for production
  of sugar or products containing sugar and destined for
  re-export. The export of the sugar or products must occur
  before Octoer 1, 1991.
      Presently, to qualify for the refund the sugar must be
  processed within three years after import and exported within
  five years.
      Agriculture would also benefit from more rapid decisions in
  complaints of unfair foreign trade practices or injury from
  imports.
  

