[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 935 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 935

    To authorize the negotiation of a Free Trade Agreement with the 
 Commonwealth of Australia, and to provide for expedited congressional 
                  consideration of such an agreement.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 23, 2001

  Mr. Baucus introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
                  referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To authorize the negotiation of a Free Trade Agreement with the 
 Commonwealth of Australia, and to provide for expedited congressional 
                  consideration of such an agreement.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``United States-Commonwealth of 
Australia Free Trade Agreement Act of 2001''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Economic growth in the United States has been 
        considerably enhanced by bilateral agreements to lower barriers 
        for United States exports.
            (2) Increased trade and economic growth are not ends in 
        themselves. Trade and economic growth should encourage 
        sustainable development, raise living standards, promote higher 
        labor standards, and enhance the welfare and quality of life of 
        all citizens of the United States and the Commonwealth of 
        Australia.
            (3) It is inappropriate to encourage trade by relaxing 
        domestic environmental laws or domestic labor laws.
            (4) Countries that open their domestic markets, remove 
        barriers to foreign direct investment, and promote free 
        enterprise, empower their citizens to alleviate poverty and 
        maintain social and environmental values.
            (5) The Commonwealth of Australia has participated fully in 
        World Trade Organization programs and policies that promote 
        open trade.
            (6) At the 1996 World Trade Organization Ministerial in 
        Singapore, the Commonwealth of Australia reaffirmed its 
        commitment to internationally recognized core labor standards.

SEC. 3. UNITED STATES POLICY WITH RESPECT TO TRADE.

    It is the policy of the United States to seek the elimination of 
tariff and nontariff barriers in order to achieve more open market 
access, on a reciprocal basis, to internationally traded goods and 
service, through bilateral free trade agreements with like-minded 
countries. Such agreements should address the following:
            (1) National treatment and market access for agricultural 
        and industrial products.
            (2) Rules for determining which goods originate in the 
        territory of the United States and the Commonwealth of 
        Australia.
            (3) Customs procedures that facilitate trade and collection 
        of trade statistics, while ensuring the validity of claims for 
        preferential treatment.
            (4) Science-based, nondiscriminatory sanitary, 
        phytosanitary, and technical standards, including voluntary 
        standards.
            (5) Safeguard provisions for industries that have 
        sustained, or are threatened with, serious economic injury from 
        import surges.
            (6) Government procurement procedures.
            (7) National treatment and rights of establishment for 
        foreign direct investors.
            (8) National treatment and market access for traded 
        services, including consumption of services abroad, cross-
        border provision of services, rights of establishment of 
        commercial presence, and the movement of natural persons.
            (9) Protection of intellectual property.
            (10) Transparency of legal and regulatory regimes.
            (11) Measures to promote electronic commerce.
            (12) Trade-related environmental measures, and the 
        potential for both favorable and adverse environmental impacts.
            (13) Adherence to internationally recognized core labor 
        standards.

SEC. 4. NEGOTIATION OF A FREE TRADE AGREEMENT WITH COMMONWEALTH OF 
              AUSTRALIA.

    Subject to section 5, the President is authorized to enter into an 
agreement with Commonwealth of Australia consistent with the policy 
described section 3, and the provisions of section 151(c) of the Trade 
Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 219 1(c)) shall apply with respect to a bill to 
implement such agreement.

SEC. 5. INTRODUCTION AND FAST TRACK CONSIDERATION OF IMPLEMENTING BILL.

    (a) Introduction in House of Representatives and Senate.--Whenever 
the President submits to Congress a bill to implement a trade agreement 
described in section 4, the bill shall be introduced (by request) in 
the House of Representatives and in the Senate as described in section 
151(c) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2191(c)).
    (b) Permissible Content in Implementing Legislation.--A bill to 
implement a trade agreement described in section 4 shall contain 
provisions that are necessary to implement the trade agreement, and 
shall include trade-related labor and environmental protection 
standards, but may not include amendments to title VII of the Tariff 
Act of 1930, title II of the Trade Act of 1974, or any antitrust law of 
the United States.
    (c) Applicability of Fast Track Procedures.--Section 151 of the 
Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2191) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting ``section 5 of the 
        United States-Commonwealth of Australia Free Trade Agreement 
        Act of 2001,'' after ``the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness 
        Act of 1988,''; and
            (2) in subsection (c)(1), by inserting ``or under section 5 
        of the United States-Commonwealth of Australia Free Trade 
        Agreement Act of 2001,'' after ``the Uruguay Round Agreements 
        Act,''.
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