Agricultural Free and Fair Trade Act of 1983
Latest action. Committee on Agriculture. Ordered reported an original bill (S.822) in lieu of this measure.
Agricultural Free and Fair Trade Act of 1983 - Title I: - Demand Maintenance - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to determine the existence of an excess carryover condition for any commodity. Defines an excess carryover condition as existing when the estimated total supply of a commodity exceeds by a specified percentage the amount of such commodity which will be utilized domestically and for export within a marketing year. Provides that an excess carryover condition exists only where the Secretary has determined that all or part of such condition has resulted from actions of a foreign country. Directs the Secretary to implement a program to offset the effect of actions taken by foreign countries which adversely affect domestic agricultural exports or which cause or make worse an excess carryover condition. Directs the Secretary to take precautions to safeguard usual U.S. marketings and to avoid displacing cash sales of U.S. agricultural commodities. Requires the Commodity Credit Corporation to make Corporation stocks available to domestic exporters, domestic processors or foreign importers where an excess carryover condition is found to exist. Provides that such stocks be made available in sufficient quantities to eliminate such condition. Authorizes the availability of such stocks for: (1) export sale for dollars; (2) export sale for foreign currency; and (3) donation for humanitarian purposes. Requires the Secretary, under certain circumstances, to make purchases of excess commodities available to producers in sufficient quantity in order to enable the Corporation to make such commodities available for export so as to eliminate a carryover condition. Directs the Corporation to reduce interest rates on export credits where an excess carryover condition is found to exist or the Secretary determines such interest rates are excessive and detrimental. Directs the Secretary to offset any excess carryover condition caused or made worse by the appreciation of the U.S. dollar against foreign currencies. Requires the Secretary to implement a program to offset the effect of a foreign country's export subsidies which causes or makes worse an excess carryover condition or which adversely affects the U.S. farm sector. Provides for a six month delay in implementing such program. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: - Demand Enhancement - Amends the Agriculture and Food Act of 1981 to request the Secretary, when an excess carryover condition exists, to emphasize greater funding levels for both: (1) the market development and cooperator programs; and (2) the export market development program for value added farm products and processed foods. Requires the Secretary to increase the number of U.S. Agricultural Trade Offices to the level necessary to accommodate the increased market development efforts described in this Act. Makes October 1, 1983, the effective date of this title.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in Senate" stage on January 26, 1983. 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 March 3, 1983: Committee on Agriculture. Ordered reported an original bill (S.822) in lieu of this measure.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the Senate
- Passage by the House
- 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 98th Congress (1983-84), 623 of the 10,560 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 5.9 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?
RUDOLF BOSCHWITZ (R-MN) introduced it on January 26, 1983. 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 January 26, 1983, 15981 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 15945 days ago, on March 3, 1983.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 98th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1985 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
- SenateIn committee, no floor vote yet
- HouseAwaits Senate passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers