In 2005, Congress will have the opportunity to vote on a number of issues that are critical to the future of U.S. trade policy and the global competitiveness of the United States.

Renewed Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) — providing the tools for successful trade negotiations.

• The Trade Act of 2002 provided the president with TPA. TPA power will expire on June 1, 2005, unless the president works closely with Congress to rebuff any attempt to disapprove its extension. TPA should be extended to ensure that the United States can continue to negotiate bilateral and multilateral trade and investment agreements that open new markets and provide new opportunities for U.S. businesses, workers and farmers.
• TPA gives Congress an active and central role in trade negotiations. In granting this authority, Congress determines U.S. negotiating objectives and requires the president to consult with Congress and the public during negotiations.
• Since Congress first adopted a procedure like TPA in 1974, the United States has had unprecedented success in furthering its trade objectives. The Tokyo Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) negotiations; the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA); the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement; and free trade agreements with Israel, Australia, Chile, Singapore and Morocco have been completed and approved by Congress. Agreements with Bahrain and Central America also have been completed. Talks are moving forward with the countries of South Africa and the Americas. A breakthrough framework agreement for the next round of WTO negotiations also was achieved in 2004. Without continued TPA the president’s ability to continue such successful negotiations will be undermined.

Continued approval of WTO membership — building on success, working for the future.

• The United States was a leader in establishing the WTO in 1995. In 2005, Congress will consider continued approval of U.S. membership in the WTO. Congress should demonstrate its support for U.S. participation in the WTO.
• The WTO ensures that U.S. manufacturers, farmers and service providers have access to the 96 percent of the world’s population that lives outside U.S. borders. Pursuant to WTO rules, countries have significantly slashed tariffs on U.S. goods and lifted barriers to U.S. services. The WTO’s dispute settlement system ensures that member countries honor their WTO commitments and prevents foreign governments and companies from engaging in unfair trade practices that are harmful to U.S. businesses and workers.
• The WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property protects U.S. intellectual property rights around the world. Intellectual property protections ensure that U.S. drug producers are able to profitably research new lifesaving drugs, U.S. artists are paid for their work and U.S. software developers continue to be rewarded for innovation.
• Termination of congressional support for U.S. WTO membership sends the wrong message to our trading partners. If the United States signals its intent to withdraw from its WTO obligations, other countries quickly will do the same, denying U.S. workers, businesses and consumers the benefits of market access and protection of WTO rules.

Approval and implementation of completed free trade agreements.

• The president has concluded negotiations of a number of important free trade agreements that must be approved by Congress. The president should send these agreements to Congress in 2005, and Congress should approve and implement the agreements as quickly as possible to ensure that U.S. manufacturers, farmers and service providers are able to benefit immediately from improved market access for their products and to provide U.S. consumers with the benefits of lower tariffs on imports from our trading partners.
• The concluded agreements that must be submitted to Congress include free trade agreements with Bahrain and with the Dominican Republic and Central America (Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement or DRCAFTA). The DR-CAFTA agreement will immediately eliminate duties on 80 percent of U.S. merchandise exports and more than 50 percent of all U.S. farm exports to the region. The DR-CAFTA countries also will significantly liberalize their services markets. The Bahrain agreement offers similar benefits. In addition, both agreements contain provisions that safeguard U.S. labor and environment laws and provide significant protection for U.S. investors.

Congress must continue its support of global trade and investment liberalization to ensure that the United States continues to set the global trade agenda for the benefit of U.S. businesses, workers, farmers and consumers.