ADVISORY
FROM THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

Subcommittee on Trade

Crane Announces Hearing on Trade to Explore Permanent Normal Trade Relations for Russia

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 to explore whether to graduate Russia from the Jackson-Vanik provisions, and extend Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR), and to assess U.S.-Russian trade relations. The hearing will take place on Thursday, April 11, 2002, 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 representatives from the U.S. Department of State and the Office of the United States Trade Representative. 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:

Russia's trade status remains subject to Title IV of the Trade Act of 1974, including the Jackson-Vanik freedom of emigration provisions. Russia was first extended normal trade relations in 1992 under a waiver from the Jackson-Vanik emigration requirements. Since 1994, the President has found Russia to be in full compliance with the emigration criteria; however, the country's trade status remains conditioned upon annual compliance determinations by the President. The compliance determinations are vulnerable to a resolution of disapproval by Congress. There has not been an annual vote in Congress on Russia's trade status because no Member of Congress has introduced a disapproval resolution. On December 20, 2001, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Thomas, Subcommittee Chairman Phil Crane, and Rules Committee Chairman David Dreier introduced H.R. 3553 to terminate the application of Jackson-Vanik to Russia and thus grant PNTR to Russia.

In announcing the hearing, Chairman Crane stated: "The Administration has placed a priority on forging a new relationship with Russia. As part of that effort, President Bush has personally indicated his interest in seeing Congress end trade restrictions on Russia. At this hearing, the Subcommittee will examine the impact that such action would have on U.S. interests."

FOCUS OF THE HEARING:

The hearing will explore the prospects and implications of granting PNTR to Russia at this time, the status of U.S.-Russian trade relations, the status of Russia's World Trade Organization accession, and Russia's record in complying with the statutory requirements of the Jackson-Vanik provisions.

DETAILS FOR SUBMISSIONS OF REQUESTS TO BE HEARD:

Requests to be heard at the hearing must be made by telephone to Traci Altman or Bill Covey at (202) 225-1721 no later than the close of business, Thursday, March 28, 2002. The telephone request should be followed by a formal written request faxed to Allison Giles, Chief of Staff, Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives, 1102 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515, at (202) 225-2610. 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.

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 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.

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 Committee are required to submit 200 copies, along with an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or MS Word format, of their prepared statement 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 12:00 p.m. on Monday, April 8, 2002, in an open and searchable package. The U.S. Capitol Police will refuse unopened and unsearchable deliveries to all House Office Buildings. Failure to do so may result in the witness being denied the opportunity to testify in person.

WRITTEN STATEMENTS IN LIEU OF PERSONAL APPEARANCE:

Please Note: Due to the change in House mail policy, any person or organization wishing to submit a written statement for the printed record of the hearing should send it electronically to hearingclerks.waysandmeans@mail.house.gov, along with a fax copy to (202) 225-2610 by the close of business, Wednesday, April 24, 2002. Those filing written statements who wish to have their statements distributed to the press and interested public at the hearing should deliver their 200 copies to the Subcommittee on Trade in room 1104 Longworth House Office Building, in an open and searchable package 48 hours before the hearing. The U.S. Capitol Police will refuse unopened and unsearchable deliveries to all House Office Buildings.

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. Due to the change in House mail policy, all statements and any accompanying exhibits for printing must be submitted electronically to hearingclerks.waysandmeans@mail.house.gov, along with a fax copy to (202) 225-2610, in WordPerfect or MS Word format and MUST NOT exceed a total of 10 pages including attachments. 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, company, address, telephone and fax numbers where the witness or the designated representative may be reached. 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.

Note: All Committee advisories and news releases are available on the World Wide Web at http://waysandmeans.house.gov.

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.