FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Contact: (202) 225-1721
April 14, 1997
No. TR-5
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 status and outlook for negotiations aimed at achieving a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). This hearing is the second in a series which began March 18, 1997, to consider major U.S. trade initiatives. The hearing will take place on Thursday, May 8, 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 both invited and public witnesses. Invited witnesses will include Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Jeffrey Lang. Also, any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee or for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.
BACKGROUND:
The goal of free trade in the Western Hemisphere was first put forward by President Bush in June 1990 when he proposed the Enterprise of the Americas Initiative. At the December 1994 Summit of the Americas in Miami, leaders of 34 Western Hemisphere democracies agreed to establish a FTAA in which barriers to trade and investment will be progressively eliminated. They committed to begin the process immediately, make concrete progress by the year 2000, and to conclude negotiations by no later than 2005. The Summit Declaration signed on December 11, 1994, identified 11 major areas that will be covered in the negotiations: market access, customs procedures and rules of origin, investment, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, standards and technical barriers to trade, subsidies, antidumping and countervailing duties, smaller economies, competition policy, government procurement, intellectual property rights, and services. Subsequent ministerial meetings held in 1995 and 1996 have established working groups to prepare for negotiations on these issues.
Recognizing that substantial progress towards economic integration in the hemisphere has already been made, the Declaration calls for building on "existing sub-regional and bilateral arrangements in order to broaden and deepen hemispheric economic integration and to bring the agreements together."
Since 1990, four sub-regional groups in particular have made considerable progress in breaking down intra-regional trade barriers. Mercado Común del Sur, the "Common Market of the South," consists of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay and is the second largest preferential trading group in the Americas, after the North American Free Trade Agreement. The Andean Pact, consisting of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela, ranks third. The Caribbean Community and Common Market, consisting of 13 English speaking Caribbean nations, has agreed to implement a common external tariff over a period of 6 years, although members will be able to maintain their own non-tariff barriers. The Central American Common Market, originally established in 1961, was reinvigorated in 1990.
There is growing concern, however, that the exclusive nature of these trade alliances may prove disadvantageous to U.S. business opportunities and leadership in the region, and inconsistent with the goal of free trade in the hemisphere.
Western Hemisphere Trade Ministers held their first meeting under the FTAA process in June 1995 in Denver, Colorado, and the second meeting in March 1996 in Cartagena, Colombia. On May 15, 1997, in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Ministers will consider when and how to formally begin FTAA negotiations. In March 1998, President Clinton will join Western Hemisphere leaders in Santiago, Chile, where it is expected that leaders will formally launch negotiations.
In announcing the hearing, Chairman Crane stated: "The Summit of the Americas Declaration represents a historic commitment by countries in the Western Hemisphere to promote their economic growth and that of the region through free trade, open markets, and diminished government regulation. It is important that Congress monitor the progress U.S. trade negotiators are making toward the goal of establishing the FTAA by 2005."
FOCUS OF THE HEARING:
The focus of the hearing will be to examine: (1) progress in the FTAA negotiations, and (2) whether and under what conditions these talks are in the national economic and security interest of the United States. Testimony will be received on specific objectives for the negotiations, the outlook for the Bela Horizonte Ministerial meeting, and the anticipated impact of expanding trade in the hemisphere on U.S. workers, industries, and other affected parties. Finally, witnesses may also address that status of existing sub-regional trade arrangements in the Western Hemisphere, and their impact on U.S. economic interests.
DETAILS FOR SUBMISSIONS OF REQUESTS TO BE HEARD:
Requests to be heard at the hearing must be made by telephone to Traci Altman or Bradley Schreiber at (202) 225-1721 no later than the close of business, Wednesday, April 30, 1997. The telephone request should be followed by a formal written request 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. The staff of the Subcommittee on Trade will notify by telephone those scheduled to appear as soon as possible after the filing deadline. Any questions concerning a scheduled appearance should be directed to the Subcommittee on Trade staff at (202) 225-6649.
In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, the Subcommittee may not be able to accommodate all requests to be heard. Those persons and organizations not scheduled for an oral appearance are encouraged to submit written statements for the record of the hearing. All persons requesting to be heard, whether they are scheduled for oral testimony or not, will be notified as soon as possible after the filing deadline.
Witnesses scheduled to present oral testimony are required to summarize briefly their written statements in no more than five minutes. THE FIVE-MINUTE RULE WILL BE STRICTLY ENFORCED. The full written statement of each witness will be included in the printed record, in accordance with House Rules.
In order to assure the most productive use of the limited amount of time available to question witnesses, all witnesses scheduled to appear before the Subcommittee are required to submit 200 copies of their prepared statement and a 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or ASCII format, for review by Members prior to the hearing. Testimony should arrive at the Subcommittee on Trade office, room 1104 Longworth House Office Building, no later than close of business, Tuesday, May 6, 1997. Failure to do so may result in the witness being denied the opportunity to testify in person.
WRITTEN STATEMENTS IN LIEU OF PERSONAL APPEARANCE:
Any person or organization wishing to submit a written statement for the printed record of the hearing should submit at least six (6) copies of their statement and a 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or ASCII format, with their address and date of hearing noted, by the close of business, Thursday, May 22, 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 a 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or ASCII format.
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 202-225-1904 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.