The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“TRADE AGREEMENT COMPLIANCE” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Commerce was published in the Senate section on pages S1741 on March 1, 2001.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
TRADE AGREEMENT COMPLIANCE
Mr. BAUCUS. Mr. President, yesterday, I led a group of 11 Senators in urging President Bush to ensure that there will be full funding for the Commerce Department's International Trade Administration efforts to make sure that our Nation's trade agreements are fully implemented and followed by our trading partners. In the days leading up to the President's budget proposal, we were seriously concerned by reports that there would be deep cuts in this program. Although it appears that the fiscal 2002 budget does not include cuts, we continue to be concerned that anyone would even consider such a damaging move.
This Nation has had a serious problem over the past two decades with many of our most important trading partners who have not complied with commitments made in trade agreements. The Japanese record, for example, of compliance with trade agreements is poor. We have brought disputes against the European Union at the WTO, and won those cases, yet the EU still does not comply with its obligations. China has presented major problems in implementing agreements on intellectual property rights protection and on market access, and China's entry into the WTO will bring new and even more difficult challenges to our efforts to ensure compliance.
It is critical that our Government agencies have the resources they need to monitor compliance, and then to take the actions necessary to enforce the commitments made by other nations. Shortchanging those agencies means shortchanging the American farmer, rancher, worker, and business owner. Further, when our trading partners fail to comply with a trade agreement, it corrupts the negotiating process and leads to a loss of confidence in the entire trading system. We cannot allow that to happen.
Therefore, we 11 Senators are calling on the President to ensure that the Department of Commerce, USTR, and other agencies responsible for trade agreement compliance are fully funded to ensure that our trading partners follow the rules that they have agreed to follow.
I ask unanimous consent that the letter we sent to the President be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the letter was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
February 28, 2001.President George W. Bush,The White House,Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. President: Over the past twenty years, the United States has negotiated hundreds of bilateral, regional and multilateral trade agreements. Unfortunately, the record of compliance by many of our trading partners is woefully inadequate. In the case of Japan, for example, the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan has concluded that barely half of our major bilateral trade agreements were fully or mostly successful. China's imminent accession to the WTO gives us an unprecedented challenge in ensuring compliance with their new commitments to open and liberalize the Chinese market.
In order to rebuild the consensus on trade in this country, it is imperative that we demonstrate, to our businesses and to our citizens, that the agreements we have concluded produce results. Agreements without full compliance debase the entire trade negotiating process. Ensuring compliance must be a top priority for the United States.
Therefore, we are distressed by recent reports that the proposal for fiscal 2002 funding for the Commerce Department's International Trade Administration will not provide sufficient resources for compliance activities. Congress provided significant new funding to USTR and the International Trade Administration to increase their compliance capabilities in fiscal 2001. It would be a serious mistake to reduce our government's ability to ensure that trade agreements fulfill their goals and that our manufacturers, farmers and ranchers, service providers, and exporters benefit.
We urge you to ensure full budgetary support for these critically important compliance efforts.
Sincerely,
Max Baucus, Jeff Bingaman, Blanche L. Lincoln, Dick
Durbin, Dianne Feinstein, Ted Kennedy, Byron L. Dorgan,
Bob Graham, Max Cleland, Jack Reed, Patty Murray.
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