The Leveling the Playing Field 2.0 Act is divided into several titles, each addressing different aspects of trade laws. It introduces special rules for handling successive investigations into potential trade violations like dumping, addresses market distortions and unfair cross-border subsidies, proposes measures to prevent the evasion of import duties, investigates currency undervaluation, and clarifies regulations concerning importers, particularly those not resident in the United States. Additionally, it outlines how these rules apply to trade with Canada and Mexico and specifies the effective date of the Act.

The section amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to establish special rules for evaluating the impact of imports on the U.S. industry during multiple antidumping and countervailing duty investigations. It clarifies how recent and concurrent investigations should be considered and defines terms related to these investigations, ensuring that temporary improvements in the industry do not influence decisions about material injury caused by imports.

In this section of the bill, updates to the Tariff Act of 1930 are proposed to allow for the initiation of additional investigations into imports regarding countervailing and antidumping duties. These successive investigations can be started if the necessary requirements are met and if similar merchandise has been or is under investigation already.

The section outlines the procedures for handling successive antidumping and countervailing duty investigations. It mandates specific timelines for preliminary and final determinations, which cannot be delayed unless the petitioner requests it, ensuring a structured approach to these trade investigations.

In this section, it outlines the timelines and procedures for the administering authority when handling successive investigations. For investigations under section 702(f), there are specific deadlines for issuing preliminary and final determinations, with possible extensions if the petitioner requests. Similarly, for investigations under section 732(f), there are set timeframes for decisions, with the possibility of extending the deadline for the final determination if requested by the petitioner.

The amendment to the Tariff Act of 1930 addresses cross-border subsidies by redefining how these subsidies are treated in countervailing duty investigations. It includes multinational corporations and transnational subsidies in its scope, ensuring that foreign government aid to companies in other countries is treated as if it comes from the country producing the goods, and stipulates conditions for considering upstream subsidies involving multinational corporations.

The bill changes the definition of "ordinary course of trade" under the Tariff Act of 1930 to include situations where there isn't enough of a foreign product to compare it accurately to the export prices.

The amendment to the Tariff Act of 1930 changes the way export prices are adjusted by aiming not to exceed the average cost of duties per unit. This means that the adjustments for duties given back to exporters will be capped at the average cost included in the production of the goods.

The section modifies how the normal value of goods is determined under the Tariff Act of 1930 by addressing cost distortions that might occur due to unusual market situations in foreign countries. It provides guidelines for identifying such market situations, including examples like government intervention or noncompetitive pricing, and allows for different calculation methods when these situations impact production costs.

The section outlines changes to the Tariff Act of 1930, allowing authorities to adjust how they value key inputs in the production of goods when they come from certain unaffiliated sources, like nonmarket economies or entities receiving unfair subsidies. This adjustment is intended to ensure the recorded transaction amounts reflect fair market values, especially when the actual amounts involve subsidies or unfair pricing practices.

The document modifies the Tariff Act of 1930 to detail procedures for conducting circumvention inquiries, which determine if goods are being imported in a way that avoids tariffs or duties. It describes the process for starting an inquiry, making preliminary and final determinations, suspending liquidations, and implementing remedies if circumvention is found, including rules for publishing these actions in the Federal Register.

The section outlines requirements for importers or other parties to provide certifications when bringing merchandise into the U.S. It states that these certifications assert that the goods are not subject to certain trade duties, and if they are not provided or are false, the authorities may suspend processing the goods, demand a cash deposit, and assess penalties.

The section mandates that importers bringing goods into the U.S. may need to provide a certification that verifies these goods and their materials are not involved in any duty proceedings. If such a certification is not provided, is fraudulent, or is omitted, authorities can suspend processing of the goods, require a cash deposit equal to potential duties, and impose penalties on the importer.

The section describes changes to the Tariff Act of 1930, giving the Department of Commerce more flexibility to determine if products imported into the U.S. are subject to special taxes meant to counter unfair trading practices. The Department does not have to follow the decisions of other agencies and can consider various factors, like how much processing was done in another country, to decide the origin and classification of products.

The section explains how the authorities decide if goods brought into the United States are subject to special taxes called antidumping or countervailing duties. They can use any suitable method, considering various factors like the origin, class, type, and processing of the goods, and they are not required to follow other federal agency decisions.

The new section 484c of the Tariff Act of 1930 requires nonresident importers to maintain enough assets in the U.S. to cover potential duties on their merchandise and to have a bond ensuring full financial responsibility. Exceptions apply to certain validated importers, and penalties are imposed for violations, including fines and possible criminal penalties under other U.S. customs laws.

Nonresident importers bringing merchandise into the United States must hold enough assets within the U.S. to cover all possible duties and may need a bond to ensure payment. Exceptions are made for importers in trusted security programs or if the Commissioner can ensure duty collection as if the importer were a resident. Penalties apply if these rules are violated.

The amendment to the Tariff Act of 1930 allows for the examination of currency undervaluation as a potential unfair subsidy in countervailing duty investigations or reviews. This means that if there is an allegation of a country undervaluing its currency, it could be scrutinized to determine if it is providing an unfair advantage to its exports.

The amendment to the Tariff Act of 1930 specifies that a benefit from exchanging an undervalued foreign currency under a unified exchange rate should consider the difference in currency received due to undervaluation. It also requires evaluating whether government actions affecting the exchange rate contribute to this undervaluation.

The section imposes new restrictions on protesting decisions made by U.S. Customs and Border Protection regarding claims of evasion related to antidumping and countervailing duty orders, specifying that certain decisions about liquidating merchandise entries cannot be contested through protest.

The section outlines modifications to existing laws related to trade, specifically focusing on procedures for investigating claims of evasion of safeguard actions. It includes amendments to the Tariff Act of 1930 and the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015, to expand the scope of investigations and enforce actions under specific trade safeguard regulations.

The section amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to apply certain rules about handling proprietary information from a different law to a specific area of proceedings, making some exceptions and changes to terms like replacing "the administering authority" with "the Commissioner." The Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection will create regulations to ensure these changes are put into practice, and these amendments will take effect 180 days following the law's enactment.

The amendments made by this Act are applicable to goods coming from Canada and Mexico, as aligned with section 418 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act.

The section outlines when certain amendments in the Act will take effect, mainly focusing on investigations and inquiries related to countervailing and antidumping duties under the Tariff Act of 1930. It specifies different applicability dates for ongoing and new investigations, and notes special retroactive rules for valuing costs from foreign countries starting from June 29, 2015.