 |
|||
|
|
|||
|
09/18/07
08/02/07
|
Free-Trade Agreements/Trade Promotion Authority Trade agreements are negotiated by the executive branch, although Congress has the ultimate Constitutional authority to regulate interstate and foreign commerce. Trade promotion authority (TPA) requires that the President consult with and advise Congress throughout the negotiating process. After the executive branch signs an agreement, Congress may consider implementing legislation if any statutory changes are required under the agreement. There is no deadline for submission of the legislation, but once a bill is submitted, TPA requires a final vote within 90 legislative days. The Bush Administration has made bilateral and regional free-trade agreements (FTAs) more important elements of U.S. trade policy, a strategy known as “competitive liberalization.” This strategy, it argues, will push forward trade liberalization simultaneously on bilateral, regional, and multilateral fronts. It is meant to spur trade negotiations by liberalizing trade with countries willing to join FTAs, and to pressure other countries to negotiate multilaterally. Critics contend, however, that the accent on regional and bilateral negotiations undermines the multilateral forum and increases the risk of trade diversion away from competitive countries not in the trade bloc. The completion of existing negotiations has become a priority due to the looming expiration of U.S. trade promotion authority (TPA). Potential agreements resulting from current trade negotiations may be considered by Congress under TPA legislation enacted in 2002. That legislation covers agreements signed before June 1, 2007. Nevertheless, the President must give a 90-day notification to Congress of his intent to sign an FTA, thus making the de facto deadline April 1, 2007, for reaching an agreement under TPA. Under the legislation, if the President meets notification requirements and other conditions, Congress will consider a bill to implement a trade agreement under an expedited procedure (no amendment, deadlines for votes). The notification requirements include minimum 90-day notices before starting negotiations and before signing a trade agreement. The upcoming expiration of TPA, and uncertainty over its possible extension or reauthorization, may provide a catalyst to complete certain agreements, and perhaps to scuttle others. Unenforceable Free Trade Agreements Congressman Fattah does not support the renewal of trade promotion authority or the negotiation of new free trade agreements due to a number of problematic issues, including the lack of strong labor and environmental provisions that could be enforced with sanctions.
|
||
|
|
|||
