House Bill Would End Duties on Recreational Performance Outerwear
On June 1, 2011, Representative Reichert (R) and two co-sponsors1 introduced H.R. 2071, the U.S. OUTDOOR Act, which would eliminate duties on qualifying recreational performance apparel. A similar bill was introduced in the Senate in March.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Timely, relevant coverage of court proceedings and agency rulings involving tariffs, classification, valuation, origin and antidumping and countervailing duties. Each day, Trade Law Daily subscribers receive a daily headline email, in-depth PDF edition and access to all relevant documents via our trade law source document library and website.
Would Create New Duty-Free HTS Provisions
The Outdoor Industry Association, which supports H.R. 2071, the U.S. Optimal Use of Trade to Develop Outerwear and Outdoor Recreation (U.S. OUTDOOR) Act, states that the bill would create new Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) classifications specific to recreational performance outerwear -- apparel used for hiking, fishing, hunting and other outdoor activities where protection from the elements is essential. The bill would make imports under those classifications duty-free.
(Representative Reichert’s press release notes that in recent years, both the International Trade Commission (ITC) and the Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA) have concluded that imports of recreational performance outerwear do not disrupt domestic markets or adversely affect domestic producers.)
Similar OUTDOOR Act Introduced in Senate
On March 31, 2011, the Senate’s version of the U.S. OUTDOOR Act was introduced. See ITT’s Online Archives or 04/06/11 news, 11040623, for BP summary of S. 704. After introduction, S. 704 was referred to the Senate Finance Committee, but has had no further action. According to Congressional sources, H.R. 2071 and S. 704 are similar, but not identical.
1Representatives Blumenauer (D) and Walden (R).
Representative Reichert’s press release available here
Outdoor Industry Association press release available here