Haitian apparel would enjoy duty-free access to the U.S. market until 2020 under a bipartisan bill introduced last week.  The Haiti Economic Lift Program (HELP) Act greatly expands duty-free access to the U.S. market for Haitian textile and apparel exports and extends existing trade preference programs for Haiti through 2020.

 

The Haiti Economic Lift Program (HELP) Act is co-sponsored by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Sander Levin (D-Mich.), along with Finance Ranking Member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Ways and Means Ranking Member Dave Camp (R-Mich.) and Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D-N.Y.).

 

Building on the existing Haitian Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement (HOPE) program, The HELP Act will help create sustainable, good-paying jobs in Haitis apparel industry by expanding tariff benefits for certain Haitian textile and apparel exports to the United States, co-sponsors said.

 

Senate Finance and House Ways and Means leaders worked closely with the U.S. retail and textile industries to craft the HELP Act and both industries have expressed their support for the bill.

 

In February, U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk announced the Plus One for Haiti program, which calls on the U.S. apparel industry to source one percent of its apparel imports from Haiti. The HELP Act supports that goal by making it more cost effective for U.S. companies to import Haitian textiles and apparel.

 

A summary of the HELP Act follows below.

 


  • Extends CBTPA and HOPE – The bill extends the Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA) and the Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement Act (HOPE) through September 30, 2020.
  • Expands the Wholly Assembled List – The bill provides duty-free treatment for additional textile and apparel products that are wholly assembled or knit-to-shape in Haiti regardless of the origin of the inputs.
  • Increases the Tariff Preference Levels – The bill increases from 70 million square meter equivalents (SMEs) to 200 million SMEs the respective tariff preference levels (TPLs) under which certain Haitian knit and woven apparel products may receive duty-free treatment regardless of the origin of the inputs. The increase will be triggered in any given year if 52 million SMEs of Haitian apparel enter the United States under the existing knit or woven TPL. Once the increase is triggered, certain knit apparel products entering duty-free under the knit TPL will be subject to an 85 million SME sublimit, and certain woven apparel products entering duty-free under the woven TPL will be subject to a 70 million SME sublimit.
  • Safeguards against Transshipment – The bill requires U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to verify that apparel articles imported under the TPLs are not being unlawfully transshipped into the United States. The bill also authorizes the President to reduce the TPLs to account for unlawful apparel transshipment.
  • Liberalizes the Earned Import Allowance Rule – The bill permits the duty-free importation into the United States of one SME of apparel wholly assembled or knit-to-shape in Haiti regardless of the origin of the inputs for every two SMEs of qualifying fabric purchased from the United States.
  • Extends the Value-Added Rule – The bill extends until December 20, 2015, the rule that provides duty-free treatment for apparel wholly assembled or knit-to-shape in Haiti with at least 50 percent value from Haiti, the United States, a U.S. free trade agreement partner or preference program beneficiary, or a combination thereof. The bill similarly extends until December 20, 2017, duty-free treatment for Haitian apparel with at least 55 percent of value from qualifying countries, and until December 20, 2018, duty-free treatment for Haitian apparel with at least 60 percent of value from qualifying countries.
  • Customs Support Services – The bill requires CBP to assess Haitis customs-related needs and provide assistance to reestablish Haitis port operations. The bill also requires CBP to provide to the Congress a report that describes Haitis customs infrastructure needs, sets forth a plan for providing technical assistance, and describes any funds expended to assist Haiti in rebuilding its customs infrastructure. And the bill authorizes funds to help Haiti meet its immediate customs infrastructure needs, and to maintain a U.S. customs team in Haiti.
  • Sense of Congress – The bill expresses the sense of Congress that the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative should consult with U.S. trading partners to encourage the establishment of unilateral preference programs with Haiti, and that CBP should consult with U.S. trading partners to prevent unlawful transshipment of textile and apparel products through Haiti into the United States.