Trade Coordination Act of 1979
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Government Operations.
Trade Coordination Act of 1979 - Title I: Amendments to Various Trade Acts - Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to transfer authority for negotiation and implementation of commercial and foreign trade agreements from the Department of State to the Special Representative for Trade Negotiations. Makes the Secretary of Commerce responsible regarding relief from unfair trade practices (presently the Special Representative's responsibility). Makes the Secretary of Commerce responsible for receiving workers' petitions for trade adjustment assistance (presently the Secretary of Labor's responsibility). Gives the Secretary of Commerce sole responsibility (presently shared with the U.S. International Trade Commission) for studies of: (1) existing commodity classification systems; (2) the formulation of an international commodity code; and (3) participation on the Harmonized Systems Committee. Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to transfer the International Trade Commission to the Department of Commerce as an independent entity. Makes the Secretary of Commerce solely responsible for establishing a statistical enumeration of imported articles (presently shared with the Secretary of Treasury and the Commission). Transfers to the Secretary, from the Commission, responsibility for: (1) tariff schedules and summaries; and (2) unfair trade practices investigations. Transfers to the Secretary from the Secretary of the Treasury responsibility for countervailing duty investigations. Amends the Antidumping Act, 1921, to make the Secretary responsible for dumping investigations (presently the Secretary of the Treasury's responsibility). Amends the Tariff Classification Act of 1962 to authorize the Secretary to issue up-to-date tariff schedules (presently the Commission's responsibility). Title II: Further Coordination of Trade Functions - Transfers to the Secretary of Commerce: (1) the State Department's commercial affairs and international investment functions; (2) the Treasury Department's international affairs and foreign assets control functions; (3) the Trade Commission's Office of Industries; and (4) the Interior Department's inter-industry and economic analysis functions. Transfers the Export-Import Bank and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation to the Department of Commerce. Establishes in the Department of Commerce Under Secretaries for Domestic Commerce and International Trade. Sets forth the duties of the Secretary with regard to international trade. Title III: Miscellaneous Provisions - Sets forth the administrative authority of the Secretary necessary under this Act. Provides for the transfer of personnel and the terminations of agencies. Requires the Secretary to report annually to Congress concerning the Department's activities.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on June 29, 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 June 29, 1979: Referred to House Committee on Government Operations.
- 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?
JAMES JONES (D-OK) introduced it on June 29, 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 June 29, 1979, 17240 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 17240 days ago, on June 29, 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