TRADE Act Talking Points

A Bill that Sets Forth a Progressive Vision for Good Trade Agreements and Criteria for Renegotiating Existing Pacts

Sen. Sherrod Brown and Rep. Mike Michaud's "Trade Reform, Accountability, Development and Employment (TRADE) Act"

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Rep. Mike Michaud (D-Maine) have worked with an array of labor, environmental, consumer, faith and family farm organizations to develop a bill that presents a progressive vision of what a good trade agreement must and must not include. This initiative sets forth what we are for - shutting down the bogus claim that we oppose trade or have no alternative vision because we oppose NAFTA, CAFTA, WTO and similar damaging trade agreements.

The TRADE Act requires a review of existing trade agreements, and a renegotiation of existing trade agreements based on that review. It sets terms of what must and must not be included in future trade agreements, and expresses the sense of the Congress that the role of Congress in trade policymaking should be strengthened.

The TRADE Act shifts the debate towards discussing a new trade and globalization model. It moves beyond repeatedly fighting against expansions of the old failed model and sets a marker for where discussion should start with a new Congress and president in 2009. One of our nation's greatest challenges is to create new rules for globalization that ensure economic security and the creation of quality jobs here and offer opportunities for sustainable development in poor countries, thus countering rising income inequality and the threats our current policies pose to national security, our shared global environment, public health and safety, and democratic accountability.

We must take action now to shape the future debate. The TRADE Act recognizes the Democratic presidential candidates' calls to renegotiate some pacts and brings Congress into this process.

The TRADE Act includes:

Section 3: Review and Report on Existing U.S. Trade Agreements. The TRADE Act requires the Comptroller General to conduct a comprehensive review ofexisting trade agreements. For each agreement now in effect, the bill requires collection of an array of economic, environmental and social indicator data. The TRADE Act also requires an analysis of how the current agreements measure up against the detailed description in the bill of what must and must not be included in future U.S. trade agreements.

Section 4: What Must and Must Not Be Included in U.S. Trade Agreements. The TRADE Act contains a detailed description of the essential provisions that must be included in all future pacts, and what aspects of the existing model must never again be replicated. This section enumerates labor and environmental standards, national security exceptions and federalism protections that must be included in all pacts. Because today's "trade" agreements extend far beyond traditional trade matters, this section also sets requirements with respect to affordable medicines and essential services (such as health care and education), farm policy, foreign investment, government procurement and food and product safety policy. (Please see "Detailed Description of Section 4 of the TRADE Act" for a 4-page outline of these terms.)

The TRADE Act includes (continued):

Section 5: Renegotiation of Existing U.S. Trade Agreements. The TRADE Act requires the president to submit a plan to renegotiate current trade agreements to remedy the gaps identified by the Comptroller General between our current pacts andthe criteria for good agreements listed in section 4. The bill requires the president to submit renegotiation plans prior to negotiating new agreements and prior to congressional consideration of pending agreements. This section emphasizes Congress' exclusive constitutional trade authority "to regulate commerce with foreign nations" by providing criteria from Congress for renegotiations and a congressional role in reviewing the president's renegotiation proposal.

Section 6: Creation of a Congressional Trade Agreement Review Committee.

The Trade Act establishes a committee comprised of the chairs and ranking members of each committee whose jurisdiction is implicated by modern "trade" agreements to review and, as necessary, supplement, the president's plan for renegotiations.

Section 7: Sense-of-the-Congress: Goals Trade Agreements Should Achieve

The TRADE Act summarizes the policy outcomes that trade pacts should achieve.

Section 8: Sense-of-the-Congress: Improving the Process for Trade Negotiations.

The Trade Act concludes with a sense-of-the-Congress provision that sets out criteria for a new mechanism to replace the Fast Track negotiating process. To obtain agreements that benefit a wider array of interests, this new process includes Congress setting readiness criteria to select future negotiating partners; mandatory negotiating objectives based on the section 4 criteria of what must be and must not be in future trade agreements; and the common-sense requirements that Congress must certify that the objectives were met, and then vote on an agreement before it can be signed. These criteria for a new trade negotiating mechanism to replace Fast Track have been supported in AFL-CIO, Change to Win and National Farmers Union resolutions.

We support responsible trade between the United States and countries across the globe, but our current system has not worked, has not met past promises, and has not served the interests of a majority of people across our country, or the world. This proposal marks out policy space to show what we are for in future trade pacts and how to remedy our existing agreements. This bill sets forth concrete ways to deliver on our shared conviction that trade and investment are not ends unto themselves, but must serve as a means for achieving societal goals such as economic justice and promotion of basic human rights, healthy communities and environmental wellbeing.

Kim Glas in Rep. Michaud's office (kim.glas@mail.house.gov) and Chris Slevin in Sen. Brown's office (chris_slevin@brown.senate.gov) are the principal contact people.