News

Meeting on IMO III 5

The Department of State will be holding a public meeting on Friday, September 14 to prepare for the fifth session of the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Subcommittee on Implementation of IMO Instruments (III 5) to be held at the IMO headquarters in London, UK, on September 24-28. Agenda items include discussions of the alleged inadequacy of port reception facilities, measures to harmonize port state control activities and procedures worldwide, and safety issues identified from the analysis of marine safety investigation reports.

The official notice in the Federal Register can be found here and additional information here.

Interested persons may attend the meeting in person or participate via teleconference. If you would like to attend, contact Mr. Christopher Gagnon by email at christopher.j.gagnon@uscg.mil or by phone at (202) 372-1231. Those wanting to physically attend the meeting must respond to Mr. Gagnon no later than September 5, 2018.

IGTC Meetings in Geneva and Rome

A trip report is now available for Katy and Gary’s recent mission to Geneva and Rome to meet with IGTC member and corporate stakeholder and attend the IPPC’s ePhyto IAG. In Geneva, Gary and Katy held a series of bilateral meetings with IGTC corporate stakeholders and international organizations. Following their planned meetings in Geneva, Mr. Martin and Ms. Lee travelled to Rome to participate in a meeting with the International Plant Protection Convention’s (IPPC) ePhyto Industry Advisory Group (IAG). While in Rome, Mr. Martin also meet with Bryce Quick (FAS) and colleagues at the U.S. Mission to the UN Agencies to discuss current trade and agricultural policy developments.

 

Read the full rip report here.

Russia’s Implementation of its WTO Commitments

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is seeking comments from interested persons as it prepares its annual report to Congress on Russia’s compliance with its World Trade Organization (WTO) accession commitments. The Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) will also convene a public hearing to assist the USTR in its preparation of this report.

 

In particular, USTR is seeking comments on commitments in the following areas:

  1. Import regulation (e.g., tariffs, tariffrate quotas, quotas, import licenses).
  2. Export regulation.
  3. Subsidies.
  4. Standards and technical regulations.
  5. Sanitary and phytosanitary measures.
  6. Trade-related investment measures (including local content requirements).
  7. Taxes and charges levied on imports and exports.
  8. Other internal policies affecting trade.
  9. Intellectual property rights (including intellectual property rights enforcement).
  10. Government procurement.
  11. Rule of law issues (e.g., transparency, judicial review, uniform administration of laws and regulations).
  12. Other WTO commitments.

 

The official notice in the Federal Register can be found here and additional information here.

Comments should be submitted by September 25, 2018. The public hearing will take place on October 4.

U.S. National Trade Estimate Report

NAEGA members are invited to participate in comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) regarding the publication of the annual National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers (NTE Report). USTR is requesting written comments to assist the in identifying significant barriers to U.S. exports of goods and services, U.S. foreign direct investment, and the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights for inclusion in the NTE Report. USTR will also consider responses to this notice as part of the annual review of the operation and effectiveness of all U.S. trade agreements regarding telecommunications products and services that are in force with respect to the United States.

The official notice in the Federal Register can be found here and additional information here.

Comments should be submitted through regulations.gov. The deadline to submit comments is October 30, 2018.

Codex SPS Standard-Setting Activities

The USDA’s Office of Trade and Foreign Agriculture Affairs (TFAA) is requesting public comments on the sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standard-setting activities of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex). TFAA seeks comments on SPS standards under consideration and recommendations for new standards.

The official notice in the Federal Register can be found here and additional information here.

U.S.-Mexico Preliminary Trade Agreement

On August 27, U.S. President Donald Trump and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto announced that both countries have reached a preliminary trade agreement with Mexico called the ‘United States-Mexico Trade Agreement’ as part of negotiations of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Details of the deal have yet to be released, but briefing papers from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative indicate that the deal includes significant efforts to address agricultural non-tariff barriers, as well as weaker dispute settlement provisions and the requirement for a review process.

Canadian trade negotiators arrived in Washington on Tuesday to join the discussions and explore the possibility of signing on to the agreement. Both the U.S. and Mexico have attempted to reach a deal by the end of August – this would give Trump enough time to notify Congress of the finalized deal and have the deal signed by current Mexican President Nieto before President-elect Lopez Obrador takes office on December 1.

Please click here for more information.

USDA Trade Mitigation

On August 27, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced details regarding actions it will take to assist farmers in response to trade damage from unjustified retaliation by foreign nations. In July, the USDA announced it would authorize up to $12 billion in programs to mitigate retaliatory tariffs against the U.S. agriculture.

The following programs will be used to assist agricultural producers:

  • USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) will administer the Market Facilitation Program (MFP) to provide payments to corn, cotton, dairy, hog, sorghum, soybean and wheat producers starting September 4, 2018.  This is the first payment period.  The second payment period, if warranted, will be determined by USDA.
  • USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) will administer a Food Purchase and Distribution Program to purchase up to $1.2 billion in commodities unfairly targeted by retaliatory tariffs. USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) will distribute these commodities through nutrition assistance programs.
  • Through the Foreign Agricultural Service’s (FAS) Agricultural Trade Promotion Program (ATP), $200 million will be made available to develop foreign markets for U.S. agricultural products. The program will help U.S. agricultural exporters identify and access new markets and help mitigate the adverse effects of other countries’ restrictions.

Beginning September 4, MFP applications will be available online at www.farmers.gov/MFP. Producers can submit their MFP applications in person, by email, fax, or by mail.

USDA AMS Grain Inspection Advisory Committee

The USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) Grain Inspection Advisory Committee will be holding a public meeting on September 5-6, 2018 at AMS National Grain Center in Kansas City, Missouri to advise the AMS on the programs and services delivered under the U.S. Grain Standards Act. Recommendations by the Advisory Committee help AMS better meet the needs of its customers who operate in a dynamic and changing marketplace, and public participation is welcome in this endeavor.

The official notice in the Federal Register can be found here and additional information here.

Public participation will be limited to written and oral statements. If you wish to present written or oral comments, contact Kendra Kline at (202) 690-2410 or by email at Kendra.C.Kline@ams.usda.gov. Oral comment opportunities will be at a first come, first serve basis.

Deregulation of GE Canola

On August 24, the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced the deregulation of Nuseed Americas’ canola variety genetically engineered (GE) to contain in its seed increased levels of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which is an omega-3 fatty acid.

Please click here for more information, including the final plant pest risk assessment and final environment assessment.

China’s Compliance with WTO Commitments

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is seeking comments from interested parties as it prepares its annual report to Congress on China’s compliance with its World Trade Organization (WTO) accession commitments. In particular, USTR is seeking comments on commitments in the following areas:

  1. Trading rights.
  2. Import regulation (e.g., tariffs, tariff-rate quotas, quotas, import licenses).
  3. Export regulation.
  4. Internal policies affecting trade (e.g., subsidies, standards and technical regulations, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, government procurement, trade-related investment measures, taxes and charges levied on imports and exports).
  5. Intellectual property rights (including intellectual property rights enforcement).
  6. Services.
  7. Rule of law issues (e.g., transparency, judicial review, uniform administration of laws and regulations) and status of legal reform.
  8. Other WTO commitments.
  9. Unresolved compliance issues that warrant review and evaluation by USTR’s China Enforcement Task Force.

 

The official notice in the Federal Register can be found here and additional information here.

Comments should be submitted through regulations.gov. The deadline to submit comments, requests to appear and summaries of testimony at the October 3 public hearing is September 19, 2018.