HR 6654 IHCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

112th CONGRESSCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

2d SessionCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

H. R. 6654CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To provide for the exchange of information related to trade enforcement, and for other purposes.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVESCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

December 13, 2012CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Mr. POE of Texas (for himself, Mr. CHABOT, Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California, and Ms. LINDA T. SANCHEZ of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the JudiciaryCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

A BILLCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To provide for the exchange of information related to trade enforcement, and for other purposes.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ‘Foreign Counterfeit Merchandise Prevention Act’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 2. EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION RELATED TO TRADE ENFORCEMENT.

Section 1905 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) by striking ‘Whoever’ and inserting ‘(a) In General- Whoever’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) by adding at the end the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(b) Provision of Information Relating to Merchandise Presented to Customs- It shall not be a violation of this section for an officer or employee of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, at the time that merchandise is presented for examination and thereafter, to provide to the owner of a copyright or a registered mark, or to any person who may be injured by a violation of section 1201 of title 17--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(1) any information appearing on the merchandise, including its retail packaging,CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(2) a sample of the merchandise and its retail packaging, orCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(3) digital images of the merchandise and its retail packaging,CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





as it was presented to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, without redaction, whether imported into or exported from the United States, or attempted to be exported from the United States, for purposes of determining whether the merchandise or its retail packaging infringes the copyright, bears or consists of a counterfeit mark of the registered mark, or is in violation of section 1201 of title 17, as the case may be.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(c) Provision of Information Relating to Seized Merchandise- It shall not be a violation of this section for an officer or employee of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, after seizing merchandise pursuant to a determination that the merchandise is in violation of section 1201 of title 17, to provide, to persons injured by the violation, information with respect to the merchandise, including, but not limited to, the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(1) The date of importation.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(2) The port of entry.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(3) The description of the merchandise from the entry.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(4) The quantity involved.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(5) The country of origin of the merchandise.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(6) The name and address of the foreign manufacturer.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(7) The name and address of the exporter.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(8) The name and address of the importer.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(9) Photographic or digital images of the merchandise.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(d) Definitions- As used in this section--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(1) the term ‘registered mark’ has the meaning given that term in section 45 of the Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. 1127);CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(2) the term ‘Lanham Act’ has the meaning given that term in section 2320(e) of this title;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(3) the term ‘counterfeit mark’ has the meaning given that term in section 2320(e) of this title; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(4) the term ‘without redaction’ means, with respect to merchandise, without removing, revising, or otherwise obscuring any information, codes, marks, numbers, or any other markings that appear on the merchandise or its retail packaging.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(e) Rule of Construction- Subsections (b), (c), and (d) apply only with respect to tangible goods presented to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for importation into, or exportation from, the United States.’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 3. PREVENTION OF IMPORTATION OF MANUFACTURED GOODS BEARING INFRINGING MARKS.

(a) In General- Section 42 of the Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. 1124), is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) in the first sentence, by striking ‘Except as’ and inserting ‘(a) In General- Except as’;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) by striking ‘of the Treasury’ each place it appears and inserting ‘of Homeland Security’; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) by adding at the end the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(b) Detention of Critical Merchandise- With respect to critical merchandise that bears a registered trademark recorded under subsection (a), if U.S. Customs and Border Protection detains the merchandise because the merchandise is suspected of bearing a counterfeit mark, then, upon such detention, the Secretary--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(1) shall provide to the owner of the registered trademark any information on the critical merchandise and its packaging and labels, including, without redaction, photographs or digital images of the critical merchandise, packaging, and labels; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(2) may, at any time, subject to any applicable bonding and return requirements, provide to the owner of the registered trademark samples of the critical merchandise, without redaction.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(c) Definitions- In this section:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(1) CRITICAL MERCHANDISE-CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(A) IN GENERAL- The term ‘critical merchandise’ includes--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(i) aircraft engines, appliances, propellers, and spare parts;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(ii) children’s sleepwear;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(iii) cosmetics;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(iv) devices;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(v) drugs;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(vi) food;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(vii) motor vehicle equipment;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(viii) pesticide chemicals;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(ix) semiconductors;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(x) tobacco products;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(xi) any item on the United States Munitions List established under section 38(a) of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2778(a)); andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(xii) any other article of manufacture that the Secretary determines could, if permitted entry into the United States in violation of the laws of the United States pose a danger to the health, safety, or welfare of consumers, or to the national security of the United States.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(B) OTHER DEFINITIONS- For purposes of subparagraph (A)--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(i) the terms ‘aircraft engine’, ‘appliance’, ‘propeller’, and ‘spare part’ have the meanings given those terms in section 40102(a) of title 49, United States Code;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(ii) the term ‘children’s sleepwear’ has the meaning given that term in sections 1615.1 and 1616.2 of title 16, Code of Federal Regulations, or successor regulations;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(iii) the terms ‘cosmetic’, ‘device’, ‘drug’, ‘food’, ‘pesticide chemical’, and ‘tobacco product’ have the meanings given those terms in section 201 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 321);CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(iv) the term ‘motor vehicle equipment’ has the meaning given that term in section 30102(a) of title 49, United States Code; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(v) the term ‘semiconductor’ means ‘semiconductor chip product’ as defined in section 901 of title 17.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(2) SECRETARY- The term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary of Homeland Security.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(3) WITHOUT REDACTION- The term ‘without redaction’ means, with respect to merchandise, without removing, revising, or otherwise obscuring any information, codes, marks, numbers, or any other markings that appear on the merchandise or its retail packaging.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





‘(d) Rule of Construction- This section applies only with respect to tangible goods presented to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for importation into the United States.’.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(b) Definition- In this section, the term ‘Lanham Act’ means the Act entitled ‘An Act to provide for the registration and protection of trademarks used in commerce, to carry out the provisions of certain international conventions, and for other purposes’, approved July 5, 1946 (15 U.S.C. 1051 et seq.).CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(c) Effective Date- The amendments made by this section shall take effect upon the expiration of the 60-day period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink