Commercial Information Circulars

24-hour hotline : 23 922 922

e-mail address : enquiry@tid.gov.hk

Ref : EIC 111/1/5/1

29 September 2009

Dear Sirs,

Commercial Information Circular No. 487/2009

US : Initial Determination Updating the List of Products Requiring Federal Contractor Certification as to Forced/Indentured Child Labour Pursuant to Executive Order 13126

The US Department of Labour (DoL) published in the Federal Register (FR) notice of 11 September 2009 the initial determination proposing update the "List of Products Requiring Federal Contractor Certification as to Forced/Indentured Child Labour" pursuant to the Executive Order No. 13126 ("Prohibition of Acquisition of Products Produced by Forced or Indentured Child Labour") (EO 13126). Interested parties may submit comments on the proposed update to the DoL by 10 December 2009. A copy (pdf format) of the FR notice is appended to this circular for reference.

DETAILS

2. The EO 13126, published in the FR on 16 June 1999, was the US policy that the executive agencies must take appropriate actions to enforce the laws prohibiting the manufacture or importation of good, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced or manufactured wholly or in part by forced or indentured child labour. Pursuant to the EO 13126, and following public notice and comment, the DoL published in the FR of 18 January 2001 a final list of products (the List), identified by their country of origin, that the DoL, in consultation and cooperation with the US Departments of State and Treasury, had a reasonable basis to believe might have been mined, produced or manufactured with forced or indentured child labour. In addition to the List, the DoL also published on 18 January 2001, "Procedural Guidelines for Maintenance of the List of Products Requiring Federal Contractor Certification as to Forced or Indentured Child Labour" (Procedural Guidelines), which provide for maintaining, reviewing, and, as appropriate, revising the List. The current List and the Procedural Guidelines are available on the website of the DoL at
   http://www.dol.gov/ILAB/regs/eo13126/main.htm. 
    
3. Pursuant to Section 3 of the EO 13126, the US Federal Acquisition Regulatory Councils published a final rule in the FR on 18 January 2001, providing, amongst other requirements, that Federal contractors who supply products that appear on the List issued by the DoL must certify to the contracting officer that the contractor, or, in the case of an incorporated contractor, a responsible official of the contractor, has made a good faith effort to determine whether forced or indentured child labour was used to mine, produce or manufacture any product furnished under the contract and that, on the basis of those efforts, the contractor is unaware of any such use of child labour.
    
4. In accordance with the Procedural Guidelines, the DoL proposes to update the List. The FR notice sets forth an updated list of products, by country of origin, which the DoL preliminarily believes might have been mined, produced, or manufactured by forced or indentured child labour. It is noted that a number of products from the Mainland of China are proposed to be added to the List, including bricks, cotton, electronics, and toys. Details of the proposed update are set out in the FR notice.

ENQUIRIES

5. For enquiries concerning the content of this circular, please contact the undersigned at 2398 5682.

Yours faithfully,

(Miss Bonny CHAO)

for Director-General of Trade and Industry