                        TITLE 19--CUSTOMS DUTIES
 
                      CHAPTER 4--TARIFF ACT OF 1930
 
                     SUBTITLE II--SPECIAL PROVISIONS
 
                          Part I--Miscellaneous
 
Sec. 1308. Prohibition on importation of dog and cat fur 
        products
        

(a) Definitions

    In this section:

                             (1) Cat fur

        The term ``cat fur'' means the pelt or skin of any animal of the 
    species Felis catus.

                       (2) Interstate commerce

        The term ``interstate commerce'' means the transportation for 
    sale, trade, or use between any State, territory, or possession of 
    the United States, or the District of Columbia, and any place 
    outside thereof.

                          (3) Customs laws

        The term ``customs laws of the United States'' means any other 
    law or regulation enforced or administered by the United States 
    Customs Service.

                      (4) Designated authority

        The term ``designated authority'' means the Secretary of the 
    Treasury, with respect to the prohibitions under subsection 
    (b)(1)(A) of this section, and the President (or the President's 
    designee), with respect to the prohibitions under subsection 
    (b)(1)(B) of this section.

                             (5) Dog fur

        The term ``dog fur'' means the pelt or skin of any animal of the 
    species Canis familiaris.

                     (6) Dog or cat fur product

        The term ``dog or cat fur product'' means any item of 
    merchandise which consists, or is composed in whole or in part, of 
    any dog fur, cat fur, or both.

                             (7) Person

        The term ``person'' includes any individual, partnership, 
    corporation, association, organization, business trust, government 
    entity, or other entity subject to the jurisdiction of the United 
    States.

                          (8) United States

        The term ``United States'' means the customs territory of the 
    United States, as defined in general note 2 of the Harmonized Tariff 
    Schedule of the United States.

(b) Prohibitions

                           (1) In general

        It shall be unlawful for any person to--
            (A) import into, or export from, the United States any dog 
        or cat fur product; or
            (B) introduce into interstate commerce, manufacture for 
        introduction into interstate commerce, sell, trade, or advertise 
        in interstate commerce, offer to sell, or transport or 
        distribute in interstate commerce in the United States, any dog 
        or cat fur product.

                            (2) Exception

        This subsection shall not apply to the importation, exportation, 
    or transportation, for noncommercial purposes, of a personal pet 
    that is deceased, including a pet preserved through taxidermy.

(c) Penalties and enforcement

                         (1) Civil penalties

        (A) In general

            Any person who violates any provision of this section or any 
        regulation issued under this section may, in addition to any 
        other civil or criminal penalty that may be imposed under title 
        18 or any other provision of law, be assessed a civil penalty by 
        the designated authority of not more than--
                (i) $10,000 for each separate knowing and intentional 
            violation;
                (ii) $5,000 for each separate grossly negligent 
            violation; or
                (iii) $3,000 for each separate negligent violation.

        (B) Debarment

            The designated authority may prohibit a person from 
        importing, exporting, transporting, distributing, manufacturing, 
        or selling any fur product in the United States, if the 
        designated authority finds that the person has engaged in a 
        pattern or practice of actions that has resulted in a final 
        administrative determination with respect to the assessment of 
        civil penalties for knowing and intentional or grossly negligent 
        violations of any provision of this section or any regulation 
        issued under this section.

        (C) Factors in assessing penalties

            In determining the amount of civil penalties under this 
        paragraph, the designated authority shall take into account the 
        degree of culpability, any history of prior violations under 
        this section, ability to pay, the seriousness of the violation, 
        and such other matters as fairness may require.

        (D) Notice

            No penalty may be assessed under this paragraph against a 
        person unless the person is given notice and opportunity for a 
        hearing with respect to such violation in accordance with 
        section 554 of title 5.

                           (2) Forfeiture

        Any dog or cat fur product manufactured, taken, possessed, sold, 
    purchased, offered for sale or purchase, transported, delivered, 
    received, carried, shipped, imported, or exported contrary to the 
    provisions of this section or any regulation issued under this 
    section shall be subject to forfeiture to the United States.

                           (3) Enforcement

        The Secretary of the Treasury shall enforce the provisions of 
    this section with respect to the prohibitions under subsection 
    (b)(1)(A) of this section, and the President shall enforce the 
    provisions of this section with respect to the prohibitions under 
    subsection (b)(1)(B) of this section.

                           (4) Regulations

        Not later than 270 days after November 9, 2000, the designated 
    authorities shall, after notice and opportunity for comment, issue 
    regulations to carry out the provisions of this section. The 
    regulations of the Secretary of the Treasury shall provide for a 
    process by which testing laboratories, whether domestic or foreign, 
    can qualify for certification by the United States Customs Service 
    by demonstrating the reliability of the procedures used for 
    determining the type of fur contained in articles intended for sale 
    or consumption in interstate commerce. Use of a laboratory certified 
    by the United States Customs Service to determine the nature of fur 
    contained in an item to which subsection (b) of this section applies 
    is not required to avoid liability under this section but may, in a 
    case in which a person can establish that the goods imported were 
    tested by such a laboratory and that the item was not found to be a 
    dog or cat fur product, prove dispositive in determining whether 
    that person exercised reasonable care for purposes of paragraph (6).

                             (5) Reward

        The designated authority shall pay a reward of not less than 
    $500 to any person who furnishes information that establishes or 
    leads to a civil penalty assessment, debarment, or forfeiture of 
    property for any violation of this section or any regulation issued 
    under this section.

                       (6) Affirmative defense

        Any person accused of a violation under this section has a 
    defense to any proceeding brought under this section on account of 
    such violation if that person establishes by a preponderance of the 
    evidence that the person exercised reasonable care--
            (A) in determining the nature of the products alleged to 
        have resulted in such violation; and
            (B) in ensuring that the products were accompanied by 
        documentation, packaging, and labeling that were accurate as to 
        the nature of the products.

                  (7) Coordination with other laws

        Nothing in this section shall be construed as superseding or 
    limiting in any manner the functions and responsibilities of the 
    Secretary of the Treasury under the customs laws of the United 
    States.

(d) Publication of names of certain violators

    The designated authorities shall, at least once each year, publish 
in the Federal Register a list of the names of any producer, 
manufacturer, supplier, seller, importer, or exporter, whether or not 
located within the customs territory of the United States or subject to 
the jurisdiction of the United States, against whom a final 
administrative determination with respect to the assessment of a civil 
penalty for a knowing and intentional or a grossly negligent violation 
has been made under this section.

(e) Reports

    In order to enable Congress to engage in active, continuing 
oversight of this section, the designated authorities shall provide the 
following:

                      (1) Plan for enforcement

        Within 3 months after November 9, 2000, the designated 
    authorities shall submit to Congress a plan for the enforcement of 
    the provisions of this section, including training and procedures to 
    ensure that United States Government personnel are equipped with 
    state-of-the-art technologies to identify potential dog or cat fur 
    products and to determine the true content of such products.

                  (2) Report on enforcement efforts

        Not later than 1 year after November 9, 2000, and on an annual 
    basis thereafter, the designated authorities shall submit a report 
    to Congress on the efforts of the United States Government to 
    enforce the provisions of this section and the adequacy of the 
    resources to do so. The report shall include an analysis of the 
    training of United States Government personnel to identify dog and 
    cat fur products effectively and to take appropriate action to 
    enforce this section. The report shall include the findings of the 
    designated authorities as to whether any government has engaged in a 
    pattern or practice of support for trade in products the importation 
    of which are prohibited under this section.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title III, Sec. 308, as added Pub. L. 106-476, 
title I, Sec. 1443(a), Nov. 9, 2000, 114 Stat. 2164.)

                       References in Text

    The Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, referred to in 
subsec. (a)(8), is not set out in the Code. See Publication of 
Harmonized Tariff Schedule note set out under section 1202 of this 
title.


                            Prior Provisions

    A prior section 1308, acts June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title III, 
Sec. 308, 46 Stat. 690; June 25, 1938, ch. 679, Sec. 4, 52 Stat. 1079; 
Aug. 8, 1953, ch. 397, Sec. 10(a)(1), (b) to (f), 67 Stat. 512; Aug. 28, 
1954, ch. 1045, Sec. 1, 68 Stat. 914; Aug. 28, 1957, Pub. L. 85-211, 
Sec. 3, 71 Stat. 487; Apr. 16, 1958, Pub. L. 85-379, 72 Stat. 88; May 
16, 1958, Pub. L. 85-414, Sec. 1, 72 Stat. 118, prescribed articles for 
temporary free importation under bond for exportation, prior to repeal 
by Pub. L. 87-456, title III, Sec. 301(a), title V, Sec. 501(a), May 24, 
1962, 76 Stat. 75, 78, effective with respect to articles entered, or 
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after Aug. 31, 1963.


                             Effective Date

    Pub. L. 106-476, title I, Sec. 1443(c), Nov. 9, 2000, 114 Stat. 
2167, provided that: ``The amendments made by this section [enacting 
this section and amending section 69 of Title 15, Commerce and Trade] 
shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act [Nov. 9, 
2000].''


                          Findings and Purposes

    Pub. L. 106-476, title I, Sec. 1442, Nov. 9, 2000, 114 Stat. 2163, 
provided that:
    ``(a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
        ``(1) An estimated 2,000,000 dogs and cats are slaughtered and 
    sold annually as part of the international fur trade. 
    Internationally, dog and cat fur is used in a wide variety of 
    products, including fur coats and jackets, fur trimmed garments, 
    hats, gloves, decorative accessories, stuffed animals, and other 
    toys.
        ``(2) The United States represents one of the largest markets 
    for the sale of fur and fur products in the world. Market demand for 
    fur products in the United States has led to the introduction of dog 
    and cat fur products into United States commerce, frequently based 
    on deceptive or fraudulent labeling of the products to disguise the 
    true nature of the fur and mislead United States wholesalers, 
    retailers, and consumers.
        ``(3) Dog and cat fur, when dyed, is not easily distinguishable 
    to persons who are not experts from other furs such as fox, rabbit, 
    coyote, wolf, and mink, and synthetic materials made to resemble 
    real fur. Dog and cat fur is generally less expensive than other 
    types of fur and may be used as a substitute for more expensive 
    types of furs, which provides an incentive to engage in unfair or 
    fraudulent trade practices in the importation, exportation, 
    distribution, or sale of fur products, including deceptive labeling 
    and other practices designed to disguise the true contents or origin 
    of the product.
        ``(4) Forensic texts have documented that dog and cat fur 
    products are being imported into the United States subject to 
    deceptive labels or other practices designed to conceal the use of 
    dog or cat fur in the production of wearing apparel, toys, and other 
    products.
        ``(5) Publicly available evidence reflects ongoing significant 
    use of dogs and cats bred expressly for their fur by foreign fur 
    producers for manufacture into wearing apparel, toys, and other 
    products that have been introduced into United States commerce. The 
    evidence indicates that foreign fur producers also rely on the use 
    of stray dogs and cats and stolen pets for the manufacture of fur 
    products destined for the world and United States markets.
        ``(6) The methods of housing, transporting, and slaughtering 
    dogs and cats for fur production are generally unregulated and 
    inhumane.
        ``(7) The trade of dog and cat fur products is ethically and 
    aesthetically abhorrent to United States citizens. Consumers in the 
    United States have a right to know if products offered for sale 
    contain dog or cat fur and to ensure that they are not unwitting 
    participants in this gruesome trade.
        ``(8) Persons who engage in the sale of dog or cat fur products, 
    including the fraudulent trade practices identified above, gain an 
    unfair competitive advantage over persons who engage in legitimate 
    trade in apparel, toys, and other products, and derive an unfair 
    benefit from consumers who buy their products.
        ``(9) The imposition of a ban on the sale, manufacture, offer 
    for sale, transportation, and distribution of dog and cat fur 
    products, regardless of their source, is consistent with the 
    international obligations of the United States because it applies 
    equally to domestic and foreign producers and avoids any 
    discrimination among foreign sources of competing products. Such a 
    ban is also consistent with provisions of international agreements 
    to which the United States is a party that expressly allow for 
    measures designed to protect the health and welfare of animals and 
    to enjoin the use of deceptive trade practices in international or 
    domestic commerce.
    ``(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this chapter [chapter 3 
(Secs. 1441-1443) of subtitle B of title I of Pub. L. 106-476, see Short 
Title of 2000 Amendment note set out under section 1654 of this title] 
are to--
        ``(1) prohibit imports, exports, sale, manufacture, offer for 
    sale, transportation, and distribution in the United States of dog 
    and cat fur products, in order to ensure that United States market 
    demand does not provide an incentive to slaughter dogs or cats for 
    their fur;
        ``(2) require accurate labeling of fur species so that consumers 
    in the United States can make informed choices and ensure that they 
    are not unwitting contributors to this gruesome trade; and
        ``(3) ensure that the customs laws of the United States are not 
    undermined by illicit international traffic in dog and cat fur 
    products.''

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in title 15 section 69.
