US Senate files bill for RP garments

A SENATE version of the US bill that would provide preferential treatment to certain Philippine-made garments has been filed, according to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

Senator Christopher Bond of Missouri introduced the Save our Industries Act of 2010, or “SAVE Act” to the US Senate on March 25. The bill was co-sponsored by Senator Daniel Inouye of Hawaii.

“This will signify to [garments] investors that the Philippine government is really working very hard to make sure that this bill gets passed, [so that] expansion and future investment plans in the Philippines will be given assurance,” Trade Undersecretary Elmer Hernandez told reporters last week.

“With the Senate bill, we now have a parallel approach,” he added.

A similar measure was filed in the US House of Representatives last year.

Under the SAVE Act, certain Philippine-made clothing that used American-made fabric would enter the US duty-free, while those made of US yarns would enter at reduced tariffs.

Aa side component provides for duty-free entry to the US of certain Philippine-made apparel regardless of the source of fabric.

The US Senate version of SAVE Act calls for enforcement measures, including the reestablishment of the Electronic Visa Information System to prevent transshipment and counterfeiting of documents.

Hernandez said Trade department has “committed that [it] will be fully responsible for full implementation of the law.”

The Ways and Means Committees of both chambers of the US Congress would have to conduct consultations on the SAVE Act with stakeholders, such as the US Department of Commerce and the US Trade Representative Office’s (USTR) garments and textiles unit, before the bill gets enacted, Hernandez said.

He said the department expects the bill’s passage this year.

The Confederation of Garment Exporters of the Philippines (Congep) had said that the bill’s passage into law would allow an additional $1.1-billion worth of Philippine garment exports to the US after the first year of implementation, and about $480-million worth of new investments in the Philippines creating 210,000 jobs. –Ben Arnold O. De Vera, Manila Times