International Sugar Stabilization Act of 1979
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Ways and Means.
International Sugar Stabilization Act of 1979 - Title I: International Sugar Agreement - Authorizes the President to implement the International Sugar Agreement by (1) regulating the entry of sugar from any country not a member of the International Sugar Organization and (2) requiring records and reports concerning the entry of sugar. Establishes criminal penalties for violating such regulations. Requires the President to submit to Congress an annual report on the Agreement beginning in 1980. Title II: Domestic Sugar Program Provisions - Establishes 17 cents per pound, raw value, as the price objective for domestic sugar during the 1978 sugar supply year. Sets forth the formula for determining the price objective for succeeding years. Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to monitor the average daily price of sugar imports. Directs the Secretary to recommend that the President impose special import duties and quotas on sugar and sugar-containing products to assure that the average daily price of sugar imports will meet the proclaimed price objective for sugar. Requires the Secretary to review the imposed duties and quotas and recommend any adjustments to the President. Authorizes the President to impose special import duties of quotas after receiving any recommendation of the Secretary within certain time limitations. Prohibits the importation of direct-consumption sugar unless a national emergency is proclaimed because of an imminent shortage of such sugar due to lack of refining capacity. Prohibits the importation of more than 100 pounds of sugar annually into the Virgin Islands. Prohibits the exportation of certain sugar. Establishes penalties for violations of such regulations. Exempts certain sugar or sugar-containing products from this title. Specifies that certain sugar entered for subsequent export shall not be charged against any proclaimed quota. Authorizes the President to suspend the operation of this title in a national emergency. Amends the Tariff Schedules of the United States to permit the President to proclaim special import duties and quotas on sugars, syrups, and molasses in order to carry out this Act. Title III: Miscellaneous Provisions - Vests jurisdiction for enforcing this Act in U.S. district courts. Requires all persons engaged in manufacturing, marketing, transporting, or industrial use of sugar and other sweeteners to furnish the Secretary with necessary information. Prohibits officials engaged in the administration of this Act from investing or speculating in sugar. Establishes penalties for violating these regulations. Authorizes the Secretary to conduct surveys and investigations to carry out this Act. Directs the Secretary to conduct studies on the costs of producing various sugar and sweetener products. Extends the current price support programs for sugar beets and sugarcane through the 1981 crops. Authorizes the Secretary to waive part of the interest and/or principal to encourage repayment of Commodity Credit Corporation loans with respect to the 1977 and 1978 crops of sugar beets and sugarcane. Terminates this Act, except for Title I and the provisions authorizing the President to impose duties and quotas, on September 30, 1982.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on February 22, 1979. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on February 22, 1979: Referred to House Committee on Ways and Means.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 96th Congress (1979-80), 613 of the 12,581 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
MARK ANDREWS (R-ND) introduced it on February 22, 1979. No cosponsors are recorded.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on February 22, 1979, 17367 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 17367 days ago, on February 22, 1979.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 96th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1981 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers