FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Contact: (202) 225-6649
September 25, 1997
No. TR-17
Congressman Philip M. Crane (R-IL), Chairman, Subcommittee on Trade of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the extension of fast track negotiating authority to the Administration for use in negotiating trade agreements, and on the report required under section 108 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) (P.L. 103-182). The hearing will take place on Tuesday, September 30, 1997, in the main Committee hearing room, 1100 Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 10:00 a.m.
Oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. These witnesses will include United States Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky. Any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.
BACKGROUND:
Certain trade agreements cannot enter into force as a matter of U.S. law unless implementing legislation approving the agreement and any changes to U.S. law is enacted into law. In order to implement a number of trade agreements, including most recently the Uruguay Round Agreements and NAFTA, Congress enacted certain "fast track" procedures.
The purpose of the fast track approval process is to preserve the constitutional role and fulfill the legislative responsibility of Congress with respect to trade agreements. The process assures that Congressional views and recommendations with respect to provisions of the proposed agreement and possible changes to U.S. law are fully taken into account. At the same time, the process is designed to ensure certain and expeditious action on the results of the negotiations and on the implementing bill.
Now expired with respect to any new trade agreements, the fast track provisions required the President, before entering into any trade agreement, to consult with Congress as to the nature of the agreement, how and to what extent the agreement will achieve applicable purposes, policies, and objectives, and all matters relating to agreement implementation. In addition, the President was required to give Congress at least 90 calendar days advance notice of his intent to enter into a trade agreement. After entering into the agreement, the President was required to submit to Congress the draft agreement, implementing legislation, and a statement of administrative action. Subsequently, the House committees of jurisdiction had 45 days to report the bill to the House, which was required to vote on the bill within 15 legislative days after being reported from the committees. Fifteen days were provided for Senate consideration (assuming the implementing bill was a revenue bill), and the Senate floor action was required within 15 additional days. Accordingly, the maximum period for Congressional consideration of an implementing bill from the date of introduction was 90 days. Amendments to the legislation were not permitted once the bill was formally introduced; the committee and floor actions consisted only of "up or down" votes on the bill as introduced. However, before formal introduction, the committees of jurisdiction would hold informal hearings and mark-ups in order to develop a draft implementing bill, together with the Administration before formal introduction.
Because the fast track authority used for the Uruguay Round Agreements and the NAFTA has expired, the Committee is now considering the extension of additional fast track authority for future trade initiatives, including the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas, multilateral agreements under the auspices of the World Trade Organization, and possible further sectoral initiatives. Negotiations with Chile began on June 7, 1995, and have been suspended pending passage of fast track legislation. The President transmitted a proposal to the Congress on September 16, 1997, to renew fast track trade agreement authority.
This hearing is the fourth in a series which began on March 18, 1997, to consider major U.S. trade initiatives. In addition, during the 104th Congress, the Subcommittee held two hearings on fast track negotiating authority: the first on May 11, 1995, and the other on May 17, 1995. Also during the 104th Congress, the Committee on Ways and Means approved H.R. 2371, the Trade Agreements Authority Act of 1995. However, the Administration announced that it did not support H.R. 2371, and it was not considered on the House Floor.
In announcing the hearing, Chairman Crane stated: "Because future trade agreements will offer essential opportunities to expand and ensure the success of U.S. businesses and workers in the international economy, I believe it is critical for Congress to move ahead with fast track legislation in the next few weeks. However, in order to achieve broad support in the House, fast track must be well defined so that its use is limited to those matters that are directly related to trade."
FOCUS OF THE HEARING:
The focus of the hearing is to discuss the extension of fast track authority to negotiate and implement trade agreements, including the elements that should be included within fast track rules, the scope of the negotiating objectives for trade agreements, and the nature and extent of the consultation requirements between the Administration and Congress. In addition, the hearing will focus on the President's report under section 108 of P.L. 103-182, which requires the President to identify those countries with which the United States should seek to negotiate free trade agreements.
DETAILS FOR SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN COMMENTS:
Any person or organization wishing to submit a written statement for the printed record of the hearing should submit at least six (6) single-space legal-size copies of their statement, along with an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in ASCII DOS Text or WordPerfect 5.1 format only, with their name, address, and hearing date noted on a label, by close of business, Tuesday, October 7, 1997, to A.L. Singleton, Chief of Staff, Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives, 1102 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515. If those filing written statements wish to have their statements distributed to the press and interested public at the hearing, they may deliver 200 additional copies for this purpose to the Subcommittee on Trade office, room 1104 Longworth House Office Building, at least one hour before the hearing begins.
FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS:
Each statement presented for printing to the Committee by a witness, any written statement or exhibit submitted for the printed record or any written comments in response to a request for written comments must conform to the guidelines listed below. Any statement or exhibit not in compliance with these guidelines will not be printed, but will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.
1. All statements and any accompanying exhibits for printing must be typed in single space on legal-size paper and may not exceed a total of 10 pages including attachments. At the same time written statements are submitted to the Committee, witnesses are now requested to submit their statements on an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in ASCII DOS Text or WordPerfect 5.1 format. Witnesses are advised that the Committee will rely on electronic submissions for printing the official hearing record.
2. Copies of whole documents submitted as exhibit material will not be accepted for printing. Instead, exhibit material should be referenced and quoted or paraphrased. All exhibit material not meeting these specifications will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.
3. A witness appearing at a public hearing, or submitting a statement for the record of a public hearing, or submitting written comments in response to a published request for comments by the Committee, must include on his statement or submission a list of all clients, persons, or organizations on whose behalf the witness appears.
4. A supplemental sheet must accompany each statement listing the name, full address, a telephone number where the witness or the designated representative may be reached and a topical outline or summary of the comments and recommendations in the full statement. This supplemental sheet will not be included in the printed record.
The above restrictions and limitations apply only to material being submitted for printing. Statements and exhibits or supplementary material submitted solely for distribution to the Members, the press and the public during the course of a public hearing may be submitted in other forms.
The
Committee seeks to make its facilities accessible to persons with
disabilities. If you are in need of special accommodations, please
call 202-225-1721 or 202-226-3411 TTD/TTY in advance of the event
(four business days notice is requested). Questions with regard to
special accommodation needs in general (including availability of
Committee materials in alternative formats) may be directed to the
Committee as noted above.