Decent Working Conditions and Fair Competition Act
Latest action · Oct 25, 2007 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Interstate Commerce, Trade, and Tourism. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 110-1127.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJan 23, 2007
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Decent Working Conditions and Fair Competition Act - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to revise the prohibition on importing convict-made goods into the United States to make it unlawful to: (1) import into, or export from, the United States any sweatshop good; or (2) introduce into commerce, sell, trade, or advertise in commerce, offer to sell, or transport or distribute in U.S. commerce, any sweatshop good.
Grants the President, for reasons of national interest, authority to recommend waiver of the applications set forth in this Act in connection with the goods of any country with respect to one or more of the principles and rights defined in this Act as a core labor standard.
Sets forth procedures for consideration of such a waiver.
Makes it unlawful for persons to introduce into commerce, sell, trade, or advertise in commerce, offer to sell or transport or distribute in commerce any sweatshop good.
Requires the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to enforce this prohibition as if it were an unfair or deceptive act or practice proscribed under the Federal Trade Commission Act.
Allows specified persons with standing to bring a civil action in U.S. district courts against sellers of goods, wares, articles, or merchandise on grounds of a violation of such prohibition.
Prohibits executive agencies and the Armed Forces from entering into procurement contracts for sweatshop goods.
Prohibits anything in this Act from being construed to preempt a state from regulating labor standards required in the mining, production, or manufacture of merchandise purchased by the state.
Cosponsors 25
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jan 23, 2007 to Apr 14, 2008; 5 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| I-VT | Bernard Sanders | Original | Jan 23, 2007 |
| R-SC | Lindsey Graham | Original | Jan 23, 2007 |
| D-WV | Robert C. Byrd | Original | Jan 23, 2007 |
| D-WI | Russell D. Feingold | Original | Jan 23, 2007 |
| D-OH | Sherrod Brown | Original | Jan 23, 2007 |
| D-WV | John D. Rockefeller IV | Feb 6, 2007 | |
| D-VA | Jim Webb | Feb 15, 2007 | |
| D-NJ | Robert Menendez | Mar 1, 2007 | |
| D-MI | Debbie Stabenow | May 2, 2007 | |
| D-IL | Richard J. Durbin | Jun 5, 2007 | |
| D-IN | Evan Bayh | Jun 28, 2007 | |
| D-PA | Robert P. Casey Jr. | Jul 26, 2007 | |
| D-NY | Hillary Rodham Clinton | Sep 5, 2007 | |
| D-MD | Benjamin L. Cardin | Oct 25, 2007 | |
| D-IA | Tom Harkin | Oct 31, 2007 |
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Finance Committee | Referred Jan 23, 2007 |
| Senate | Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee | |
| Interstate Commerce, Trade, and Tourism Subcommittee | Hearings Oct 25, 2007 |
Actions 7
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Oct 25, 2007Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Interstate Commerce, Trade, and Tourism. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 110-1127.
- Sep 5, 2007Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S11089)
- Feb 14, 2007Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Interstate Commerce, Trade, and Tourism. Hearings held.
- Jan 29, 2007Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S1265)
- Jan 26, 2007Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S1235-1236)
In the Congressional Record 4
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | Debate and remarks S11089 | Byron L. Dorgan D-ND | Sep 5, 2007 |
| Senate | Debate and remarks S4137 | Sherrod Brown D-OH | Mar 29, 2007 |
| Senate | Debate and remarks S3060 | Sherrod Brown D-OH | Mar 13, 2007 |
| Senate | Debate and remarks S1265 | Byron L. Dorgan D-ND | Jan 29, 2007 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Printed hearings 3
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| S. Hrg. 110-1127 | SWEATSHOP CONDITIONS IN THE CHINESE TOY INDUSTRY44 pages | Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee | Oct 25, 2007 |
| S. Hrg. 110-1166 | U.S. TRADE RELATIONS WITH CHINA77 pages | Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee | Jul 25, 2007 |
| S. Hrg. 110-1062 | OVERSEAS SWEATSHOP ABUSES, THEIR IMPACT ON U.S. WORKERS, AND THE NEED FOR ANTI-SWEATSHOP LEGISLATION65 pages | Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee | Feb 14, 2007 |
Related bills 2
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 1910 | Decent Working Conditions and Fair Competition Act | Related bill | Apr 25, 2007 |
| HR 1992 | Decent Working Conditions and Fair Competition Act | Related bill | May 2, 2007 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to amend the Tariff Act of 1930 to prohibit the import, export, and sale of goods made with sweatshop labor, and for other purposes.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Decent Working Conditions and Fair Competition Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Foreign Trade and International Finance.
- Administrative procedure
- Child labor
- Civil actions and liability
- Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
- Collective bargaining
- Commerce
- Congress
- Congress and foreign policy
- Congressional oversight
- Congressional reporting requirements
- Crime and Law Enforcement
- Damages
- Directories
- Employee rights
- Expedited congressional procedure
- Export controls
- Families
- Federal Trade Commission
- Forced labor
- Foreign Trade and International Finance
- Freedom of association
- Government contractors
- Government Operations and Politics
- Government paperwork
- Government procurement
- Government publicity
- Governmental investigations
- Health
- Hours of labor
- House rules and procedure
- Human rights
- Import restrictions
- Independent regulatory commissions
- Injunctions
- International Affairs
- Investors
- Labor and Employment
- Labor unions
- Law
- Legal fees
- Legislative resolutions
- Minimum wages
- Occupational health and safety
- Parties to actions
- President and foreign policy
- Prison labor
- Restrictive trade practices
- Retail trade
- Senate rules and procedure
- Slavery
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Jan 23, 2007Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
