Foreign Manufacturers Legal Accountability Act of 2010
Latest action. Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 413.
Foreign Manufacturers Legal Accountability Act of 2010 - (Sec. 3) Directs the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (with respect to drugs, devices, cosmetics, and biological products), the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) (with respect to consumer products), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (with respect to chemical substances, new chemical substances, and pesticides), and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) (with respect to a motor vehicle or motor vehicle products) to require foreign manufacturers and producers of such products (or components used to manufacture them), in excess of a minimum value, quantity, and frequency of importation, to register an agent in the United States who is authorized to accept service of process on their behalf for the purpose of any state or federal regulatory proceeding or civil action in state or federal court.
Exempts from this Act's requirements a foreign manufacturer or producer that distributes a covered product through its U.S. parent company or U.S. subsidiary, provided certain conditions are met.
Requires the registered agent to be: (1) located in a state with a substantial connection to the importation, distribution, or sale of the products; as well as (2) an individual, domestic firm, or domestic corporation that is a U.S. permanent resident.
Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish, maintain, and make available to the public and to the Commissioner for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP): (1) a registry of such agents; and (2) information on U.S. manufacturers or producers that have submitted certifications of responsibility and liability for their foreign manufacturers or producers or who have had their certifications removed for cause.
Deems a foreign manufacturer or producer of products covered under this Act that registers an agent to consent to the personal jurisdiction of the state or federal courts of the state in which the agent is located for the purpose of any judicial proceeding.
(Sec. 4) Prohibits importation into the United States of a covered product (or component part that will be used in the United States to manufacture a covered product) if the product (or component part) or any part of the product (or component part) was manufactured or produced outside the United States by a manufacturer or producer who does not have a registered agent whose authority is in effect on the date of the importation.
The summary continues for 4 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Reported to House amended, Part I" stage on December 16, 2010. 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 December 22, 2010: Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 413.
- 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 111th Congress (2009-10), 383 of the 10,778 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.6 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?
Betty Sutton (D-OH) introduced it on February 24, 2010, and 64 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 57 Democrats, 7 Republicans.
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 24, 2010, 6042 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 5741 days ago, on December 22, 2010.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 111th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2011 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