Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 114 Part 1.djvu/301

This page needs to be proofread.

PUBLIC LAW 106-200—MAY 18, 2000 114 STAT. 265 (II) is making substantial progress toward implementing and following, procedures and requirements similar in all material respects to the relevant procedures and requirements under chapter 5 of the NAFTA. (ii) COUNTRY DESCRIBED.— ^A country is described in this clause if it is a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country— (I) from which the article is exported; or (II) in which materials used in the production of the article originate or in which the article or such materials, undergo production that contributes to a claim that the article is eligible for pref- erential treatment. (2) CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN. — The Certificate of Origin that otherwise would be required pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (1) shall not be required in the case of an article imported under section 112 if such Certificate of Origin would not be required under Article 503 of the NAFTA (as implemented pursuant to United States law), if the article were imported from Mexico. (3) PENALTIES FOR EXPORTERS.— I f the President determines, based on sufficient evidence, that an exporter has engaged in transshipment as defined in paragraph (4), then the President shall deny for a period of 5 years all benefits under section 112 to such exporter, any successor of such exporter, and any other entity owned or operated by the principal of the exporter. (4) TRANSSHIPMENT DESCRIBED. — Transshipment within the meaning of this subsection has occurred when preferential treatment for a textile or apparel article under this Act has been claimed on the basis of material false information concerning the country of origin, manufacture, processing, or assembly of the article or any of its components. For purposes of this paragraph, false information is material if disclosure of the true information would mean or would have meant that the article is or was ineligible for preferential treatment under section 112. (5) MONITORING AND REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—The Customs Deadline. Service shall monitor and the Commissioner of Customs shall submit to Congress, not later than March 31 of each year, a report on the effectiveness of the visa systems and the implementation of legislation and regulations described in subsection (a) and on measures taken by countries in sub-Saharan Africa which export textiles or apparel to the United States to prevent circumvention as described in Article 5 of the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing. (c) CUSTOMS SERVICE ENFORCEMENT. —The Customs Service shall— (1) make available technical assistance to the beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries— (A) in the development and implementation of visa systems, legislation, and regulations described in subsection (a)(l)(A); and (B) to train their officials in anti-transshipment enforcement;