Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Giving Agriculture Relief from Loopholes in International Commerce Act” or the “GARLIC Act”.
Giving Agriculture Relief from Loopholes in International Commerce Act
A BILL
To address loopholes in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States that allow companies to avoid the duty rate applicable to dehydrated garlic.
Sec. 2 Findings
Congress finds the following:
The United States domestic dried garlic industry currently provides approximately 50,000,000 pounds of dried garlic for the United States market and has the capacity to increase production.
Dried garlic imported from China accounts for approximately 140,000,000 pounds of the total amount sold in the United States market.
Dried garlic is classifiable under subheading 0712.90.40 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, with a duty rate of 29.8 percent.
Chinese companies have found apparent loopholes in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule and are importing dehydrated garlic at much lower tariff rates, causing direct harm to the United States domestic industry.
Imports of Chinese dehydrated garlic under the subheading for dried garlic, 0712.90.40, have decreased approximately 70 percent over the past few years, but there has not been a corresponding change in United States consumption or imports from other locations.
Importers of Chinese dried garlic are now engaging in limited further processing of the product and importing it as a “further processed vegetable” classifiable under subheading 2005.99.97, at a duty rate of 11.2 percent.
Importers of Chinese dried garlic are also adding minimal amounts of other dehydrated vegetables, such as onion, to the dehydrated garlic and importing it as “other mixed vegetables” classifiable under subheading 0712.90.85, at a duty rate of 8.3 percent.
The dried garlic products imported from China under subheadings 2005.99.97 and 0712.90.85 are still marketed and sold in the United States as dried garlic and directly compete against United States-produced dried garlic.
Sec. 3 Sense of Congress
It is the sense of Congress that—
the duty rate on dried garlic was set at 29.8 percent to support United States domestic producers of dried garlic and create a more level playing field when competing against low-cost dried garlic imported from China;
the use of these loopholes in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States is directly harming United States domestic dried garlic producers, their employees, and the farmers that grow garlic in support of this domestic industry; and
the use of these loopholes in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States has resulted in a loss of approximately $40,000,000 in revenue to the United States over the past 2 years alone.
Sec. 4 Addition of U.S. Notes and new subheadings related to dehydrated garlic
Addition of U.S. note— The Additional U.S. Notes to chapter 7 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States are amended by inserting in numerical sequence the following: