[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2821 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2821

 To require a review of existing trade agreements and renegotiation of 
 existing trade agreements based on the review, to establish terms for 
future trade agreements, to express the sense of the Congress that the 
role of Congress in making trade policy should be strengthened, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            December 1, 2009

 Mr. Brown (for himself, Mr. Feingold, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Dorgan, Mr. 
  Casey, Mr. Sanders, and Mr. Merkley) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require a review of existing trade agreements and renegotiation of 
 existing trade agreements based on the review, to establish terms for 
future trade agreements, to express the sense of the Congress that the 
role of Congress in making trade policy should be strengthened, and for 
                            other purposes.

    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 ``Trade Reform, Accountability, 
Development, and Employment Act of 2009'' or the ``TRADE Act of 2009''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Core labor rights.--The term ``core labor rights'' 
        means the core labor rights as stated in the International 
        Labour Organization conventions dealing with--
                    (A) freedom of association and the effective 
                recognition of the right to collective bargaining;
                    (B) the elimination of all forms of forced or 
                compulsory labor;
                    (C) the effective abolition of child labor; and
                    (D) the elimination of discrimination with respect 
                to employment and occupation.
            (2) Major u.s. trading partners.--The term ``major U.S. 
        trading partners'' means the top 10 countries that represent 
        the largest trade in dollar value of imports into the United 
        States and exports from the United States, excluding petroleum 
        and petroleum products, based on data compiled by the 
        Department of Commerce for the most recent 12-month period 
        preceding the date of the enactment of this Act.
            (3) Multilateral environmental agreement.--The term 
        ``multilateral environmental agreement'' means any 
        international agreement or provision thereof to which the 
        United States is a party and which is intended to protect, or 
        has the effect of protecting, the environment or human health.
            (4) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the several 
        States, the District of Columbia, and any commonwealth, 
        territory, or possession of the United States.
            (5) Trade agreement.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``trade agreement'' 
                includes the following:
                            (i) The North American Free Trade 
                        Agreement.
                            (ii) The Agreement between the United 
                        States of America and the Hashemite Kingdom of 
                        Jordan on the Establishment of a Free Trade 
                        Area.
                            (iii) The Dominican Republic-Central 
                        America-United States Free Trade Agreement.
                    (B) Uruguay round agreements.--The term ``trade 
                agreement'' includes the following agreements resulting 
                from the Uruguay Round of Multilateral trade 
                negotiations:
                            (i) The General Agreement on Tariffs and 
                        Trade (GATT 1994) annexed to the WTO Agreement.
                            (ii) The WTO Agreement described in section 
                        2(9) of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (19 
                        U.S.C. 3501(9)).
                            (iii) Each of the agreements described in 
                        section 101(d) of the Uruguay Round Agreements 
                        Act (19 U.S.C. 3511(d)).
                            (iv) Any multilateral agreement entered 
                        into under the auspices of the World Trade 
                        Organization dealing with information 
                        technology, telecommunications, or financial 
                        services.
            (6) Trade agreement country.--The term ``trade agreement 
        country'' means a country that is--
                    (A) a party to an agreement described in paragraph 
                (5)(A); or
                    (B) a major U.S. trading partner that is a party to 
                an agreement described in paragraph (5)(B).
            (7) TRIPS agreement.--The term ``TRIPS Agreement'' means 
        the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property 
        Rights described in section 101(d)(15) of the Uruguay Round 
        Agreements Act (19 U.S.C. 3511(d)(5)).
            (8) World trade organization.--The term ``World Trade 
        Organization'' means the organization established pursuant to 
        the WTO Agreement.

SEC. 3. REVIEW AND REPORT ON EXISTING TRADE AGREEMENTS.

    (a) Review and Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than June 30, 2011, the 
        Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a 
        review, and submit a report to the Committee on Finance of the 
        Senate and the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 
        Representatives, with respect to each trade agreement described 
        in section 2(5)(A) and each trade agreement described in 
        section 2(5)(B) to the extent such agreement is in effect with 
        respect to a major U.S. trading partner. The report shall 
        include an evaluation of the economic, employment, 
        environmental, national security, health, safety, and other 
        effects of each such agreement.
            (2) Cooperation of agencies.--The Secretaries of State, 
        Agriculture, Commerce, Labor, and the Treasury, and the heads 
        of other executive departments and agencies shall cooperate 
        with the Comptroller General in providing access to officials 
        and documents to facilitate the preparation of the report.
    (b) Information With Respect to Trade Agreements.--The report 
required by subsection (a) shall, with respect to each trade agreement 
described in subsection (a), to the extent practicable, include the 
following information covering the period between the date on which the 
agreement entered into force with respect to the United States and the 
date on which the Comptroller General completes the review:
            (1) An analysis of indicators of the economic impact of 
        each trade agreement, including the following:
                    (A) The dollar value of goods exported from the 
                United States and imported for consumption into the 
                United States by sector, year, and trade agreement 
                country, including a list of those goods for which 
                there has been a change in 10 percent or more in 
                bilateral trade with each such country.
                    (B) The employment effects of the agreement, 
                including job gains and losses in the United States by 
                sector and changes in wage levels in the United States 
                in dollars by sector and year, and the employment 
                effects of the agreement in each trade agreement 
                country.
                    (C) The share of global production, productive 
                capacity, investment, exports, employment, and other 
                indicators of the competitive position of industries in 
                the United States significantly affected by each such 
                trade agreement, taking into account changes in 
                sourcing patterns before and after entry into force of 
                the trade agreement.
            (2) The effect of each trade agreement on agriculture, 
        including--
                    (A) the trend on a year-to-year basis of--
                            (i) the prices and production volumes of 
                        agricultural commodities, food products, and 
                        ingredients in the United States and in each 
                        trade agreement country;
                            (ii) the prices and volumes of such 
                        commodities, products, and ingredients exported 
                        from the United States to each such trade 
                        agreement country; and
                            (iii) the prices and volumes of such 
                        commodities, products, and ingredients imported 
                        into the United States from each such trade 
                        agreement country;
                    (B) the number of farms operating in the United 
                States detailed by farm typology and sales level and 
                the number of acres under production by crop used to 
                produce agricultural commodities that are exported from 
                the United States to a country that is a party to each 
                agreement listed in section 2(5)(A) on a year-to-year 
                basis; and
                    (C) changes in United States meat exports and the 
                employment impacts of meat exports.
            (3) An analysis of the progress being made in implementing 
        the commitments contained in each agreement and the record of 
        compliance with the terms of each agreement in effect between 
        the United States and a trade agreement country.
            (4) A description of any outstanding disputes between the 
        United States and any trade agreement country, including a 
        description of laws, regulations, or policies of the United 
        States or any State that a trade agreement country has 
        challenged, or threatened to challenge, under a trade 
        agreement.
            (5) An analysis of the ability of the United States to 
        ensure that any trade agreement country complies with laws and 
        regulations of the United States, including--
                    (A) the customs laws of the United States;
                    (B) laws relating to the payment of duties on goods 
                imported into the United States;
                    (C) health, safety, and inspection requirements 
                with respect to food and other products imported into 
                the United States; and
                    (D) prohibitions on the transshipment of goods that 
                are ultimately imported into the United States.
            (6) An analysis of any privatization of public sector 
        services in the United States and in each trade agreement 
        country if the service involved is covered by the investment, 
        financial services, or services provisions of a trade 
        agreement. The analysis shall include any effect privatization 
        has on consumer access to essential services, such as health 
        care, electricity, gas, water, telephone service, or other 
        utilities.
            (7) An assessment of the impact the intellectual property 
        provisions of each trade agreement has on consumer access to 
        pharmaceuticals and on the retail price of pharmaceuticals in 
        each trade agreement country and the effect, if any, that 
        changes in the price of pharmaceuticals have had on access by 
        consumers to pharmaceuticals.
            (8) An analysis of the impact of the government procurement 
        provision of each trade agreement on the procurement of goods 
        and services by Federal and State agencies and by each trade 
        agreement country.
            (9) An assessment of the consequences of significant 
        currency movements of each trade agreement country and a 
        determination of whether the currency of the country is 
        misaligned deliberately to promote a competitive advantage in 
        international trade for that country.
    (c) Information on Countries That Are Parties to Trade 
Agreements.--In addition to the information required by subsection (b), 
the report required under subsection (a) shall include, with respect to 
each trade agreement country, information regarding whether the 
country--
            (1) has a democratic form of government;
            (2) has adopted into domestic law and regulations the core 
        labor rights and effectively enforces those rights as reflected 
        in reports of the Committee of Experts on the Application of 
        Conventions and Recommendations, the Conference Committee on 
        the Application of Standards, and the Committee on Freedom of 
        Association of the International Labour Organization;
            (3) respects fundamental human rights, as reflected in the 
        annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices of the 
        Department of State;
            (4) is designated as a country of particular concern with 
        respect to religious freedom under section 402(b)(1) of the 
        International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 
        6442(b)(1));
            (5) is on a list described in subparagraph (B) or (C) of 
        section 110(b)(1) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 
        2000 (22 U.S.C. 7107(b)(1)) (commonly known as tier 2 or tier 3 
        of the Trafficking in Persons List of the Department of State);
            (6) has taken effective measures to combat and prevent 
        public and private corruption, including measures with respect 
        to tax evasion and money laundering and has ratified the 
        Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in 
        International Business Transactions of the Organization for 
        Economic Cooperation and Development;
            (7) complies with the multilateral environmental agreements 
        to which the country is a party;
            (8) has in force adequate environmental laws and 
        regulations, has devoted sufficient resources to implementing 
        such laws and regulations, and has an adequate record of 
        enforcement of such law and regulations;
            (9) enforces the rights and flexibilities of the TRIPS 
        Agreement; and
            (10) provides for government transparency, due process of 
        law, and respect for international agreements.
    (d) National Security Analysis.--The report required by subsection 
(a) shall include with respect to each trade agreement country an 
assessment of the country's transfer of technology, production, and 
services and an analysis of whether the country poses a potential 
concern to the national security of the United States.
    (e) Recommendations.--Each report required under subsection (a) 
shall include recommendations of the Comptroller General for addressing 
the problems identified under subsections (b), (c), and (d) with 
respect to each trade agreement. The recommendations shall include 
suggestions for renegotiating the agreement based on the requirements 
described in section 4(b).
    (f) Citations.--The Comptroller General shall include in the report 
required under subsection (a) citations to the sources of data used in 
preparing the report and a description of the methodologies employed in 
preparing each report.
    (g) Public Comment.--In preparing each report required under 
subsection (a), the Comptroller General shall--
            (1) hold hearings that are open to the public; and
            (2) provide an opportunity for members of the public to 
        testify and submit written comments.
    (h) Public Availability.--Each report required under subsection (a) 
shall be made available to the public not later than 14 days after the 
Comptroller General completes the report.

SEC. 4. INCLUSION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS IN TRADE AGREEMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding section 151 of the Trade Act of 
1974 (19 U.S.C. 2191) or any other provision of law, any bill 
implementing a trade agreement between the United States and another 
country that is introduced in Congress after the date of the enactment 
of this Act shall be subject to a point of order pursuant to subsection 
(c) unless the trade agreement meets the requirements described in 
subsection (b).
    (b) Requirements.--Each trade agreement between the United States 
and another country with respect to which an implementing bill is 
introduced on or after the date of the enactment of this Act shall meet 
the following requirements:
            (1) Labor standards.--The labor provisions of the agreement 
        shall--
                    (A) be included in the core text of the agreement;
                    (B) require each country that is a party to the 
                agreement--
                            (i) to adopt and maintain laws and 
                        regulations (including laws applicable to any 
                        designated zone in the country) that establish 
                        core labor rights; and
                            (ii) to effectively enforce laws relating 
                        to core labor rights and laws relating to 
                        acceptable conditions of work (including laws 
                        relating to minimum wages, hours of work, and 
                        occupational safety and health);
                    (C) prohibit a country that is a party to the 
                agreement from waiving or otherwise derogating from, or 
                offering to waive or otherwise derogate from, the 
                country's laws and regulations relating to the core 
                labor rights and acceptable conditions of work 
                described in subparagraph (B);
                    (D) provide that failures to meet the labor 
                requirements of the agreement, regardless of the effect 
                that failure has on trade, shall be subject to the 
                dispute resolution and enforcement mechanisms and 
                penalties of the agreement;
                    (E) provide that enforcement mechanisms and 
                penalties for failures described in subparagraph (D) 
                are included in the core text of the agreement and are 
                at least as effective as the mechanisms and penalties 
                that apply to the commercial provisions of the 
                agreement;
                    (F) strengthen the capacity of each country that is 
                a party to the agreement to promote, protect, and 
                enforce core labor rights;
                    (G) require that each country that is a party to 
                the agreement have a national contact point for every 
                labor complaint, produce a report that addresses all 
                the issues raised in the complaint and include 
                recommendations on all confirmed allegations, including 
                specific recommendations for employers directly or 
                indirectly implicated in the complaint; and
                    (H) require that--
                            (i) there is a full and expeditious 
                        remediation of all labor complaints; and
                            (ii) the remediation plan is satisfactory 
                        to all parties and conforms to the findings and 
                        recommendations of the national contact point 
                        described in subparagraph (G).
            (2) Environmental and public safety standards.--The 
        environmental provisions of the agreement shall--
                    (A) be included in the text of the agreement;
                    (B) prohibit each country that is a party to the 
                agreement from weakening, eliminating, or failing to 
                enforce domestic environmental or other public interest 
                standards to promote trade or attract investment;
                    (C) require each such country to implement and 
                enforce fully and effectively the country's obligations 
                under multilateral environmental agreements and provide 
                for the enforcement of such obligations under the 
                agreement;
                    (D) prohibit the trade of products that are 
                illegally harvested or extracted and the trade of goods 
                derived from illegally harvested or extracted natural 
                resources, including timber and timber products, fish, 
                wildlife, and associated products, mineral resources, 
                or other environmentally sensitive goods;
                    (E) provide that the failure to meet the 
                environmental standards required by the agreement be 
                subject to dispute resolution and enforcement 
                mechanisms and penalties that are at least as effective 
                as the mechanisms and penalties that apply to the 
                commercial provisions of the agreement; and
                    (F) allow each country that is a party to the 
                agreement to adopt and implement environmental, health, 
                and safety standards, recognizing the legitimate right 
                of governments to protect the environment and public 
                health and safety.
            (3) Food and product health and safety standards.--If the 
        agreement contains health and safety laws and regulations for 
        food and other products, the agreement shall--
                    (A) establish that food, feed, food ingredients, 
                and other products relating to food may be imported 
                into the United States from a country that is a party 
                to the agreement only if such food and related products 
                meet or exceed United States laws and regulations with 
                respect to food safety, pesticides, inspections, 
                packaging, and labeling;
                    (B) establish that nonfood products may be imported 
                into the United States from a country that is a party 
                to the agreement only if such products meet or exceed 
                United States laws and regulations with respect to 
                health and safety, inspection, packaging, and labeling;
                    (C) authorize the Commissioner of the Food and Drug 
                Administration (in this Act, referred to as the 
                ``Commissioner'') and the Consumer Product Safety 
                Commission (in this Act, referred to as the 
                ``Commission'') to assess the regulatory system of each 
                country that is a party to the agreement to determine 
                whether the regulatory system of that country provides 
                the same or better protection of health and safety for 
                food and other products as provided under the 
                regulatory system of the United States;
                    (D) if the Commissioner or the Commission 
                determines that the regulatory system of a country does 
                not provide the same or better protection of health and 
                safety for food and other products as provided under 
                the regulatory system of the United States, the 
                agreement shall provide that the President may 
                temporarily suspend the importation into the United 
                States of food and other products from that country;
                    (E) provide a process for inspecting and approving 
                facilities in countries that the Commissioner or the 
                Commission have found do not meet United States laws 
                and regulations with respect to health and safety in 
                order to allow products from approved facilities to be 
                imported into the United States; and
                    (F) if harmonization of food or product health or 
                safety laws and regulations is necessary to facilitate 
                trade, the agreement shall provide that such 
                harmonization shall be based on standards that are no 
                less stringent than United States laws and regulations.
            (4) Services provisions.--If the agreement contains 
        provisions relating to services, such provisions shall--
                    (A) preserve the right of Federal, State, and local 
                governments to maintain essential public services and 
                to regulate, for the benefit of the public, services 
                provided to consumers;
                    (B)(i) provide that a service is not subject to the 
                agreement unless a country that is a party to the 
                agreement establishes a positive list of each service 
                sector that will be subject to the obligations of the 
                country under the agreement; and
                    (ii) apply the agreement only to the service 
                sectors that are on the list described in clause (i);
                    (C) establish a general exception to the market 
                access obligations contained in the agreement by 
                allowing a country that is a party to the agreement to 
                maintain or establish a ban on services that the 
                country considers harmful to public health or safety, 
                the environment, or public morals if the ban is applied 
                to domestic and foreign services and service providers 
                equally;
                    (D) require service providers in a country that is 
                a party to the agreement that provide services through 
                a commercial presence in the United States to consumers 
                in the United States to comply with applicable United 
                States environmental, land use, safety, privacy, 
                transparency, professional qualification, and consumer 
                access laws and regulations;
                    (E) require that services provided to consumers in 
                the United States that would be subject to privacy laws 
                and regulations in the United States may only be 
                provided by service providers in other countries if 
                those countries have privacy protections and 
                protections regarding confidential information that are 
                equal to or exceed the protections provided by United 
                States privacy laws and regulations;
                    (F) provide that privatization of public services 
                in any country that is a party to the agreement or the 
                deregulation of a service is not required, including 
                services relating to national security, social 
                security, health, public safety, education, water, 
                sanitation, other utilities, ports, or transportation; 
                and
                    (G) provide that local governments are not subject 
                to the service sector obligations under the agreement.
            (5) Investment provisions.--If the agreement contains 
        provisions relating to investment, such provisions shall--
                    (A) preserve the ability of each country that is a 
                party to the agreement to regulate foreign investment 
                in a manner consistent with the needs and priorities of 
                the country;
                    (B) preserve the ability of each country to place 
                prudential restrictions on speculative capital to 
                promote financial stability;
                    (C) ensure that foreign investors operating in the 
                United States are not afforded greater procedural or 
                substantive rights under the trade agreement than those 
                afforded to domestic investors under the Constitution 
                and laws of the United States;
                    (D) ensure that the adoption or application by any 
                government of a nondiscriminatory measure intended to 
                serve a public purpose is not prohibited by the 
                agreement and is not a violation of the agreement;
                    (E) provide that the term ``investment'' only means 
                a commitment of capital or the acquisition of real 
                property as understood under the laws of the country 
                that is a party to the agreement and excludes the 
                assumption of risk or expectation of gain or profit;
                    (F) provide that the term ``investor'' means only a 
                person who makes a commitment or an acquisition 
                described in subparagraph (E);
                    (G) limit protections against expropriations to 
                direct expropriation of real property and provide that 
                ``direct expropriation'' means government action that 
                does not merely diminish the value of real property but 
                destroys all value of the real property permanently; 
                and
                    (H) define the standard of minimum treatment to 
                provide that foreign investors do not have greater 
                legal rights than United States citizens possess under 
                the due process clause of section 1 of the 14th 
                Amendment to the Constitution.
            (6) Procurement standards.--If the agreement contains 
        government procurement provisions, such provisions shall--
                    (A) provide that an industry sector, goods, and 
                services are not subject to an agreement unless a 
                country that is a party to the agreement establishes a 
                positive list of industry sectors, goods, and services 
                that will be subject to the obligations of the country 
                under the agreement;
                    (B) with respect to the United States, apply only 
                to a State that specifically agrees to the agreement 
                and only to the industry sectors, goods, and services 
                specifically identified by the State government and 
                shall not apply to local governments; and
                    (C) include only technical specifications for goods 
                or services, or supplier qualifications or other 
                conditions for receiving government contracts that do 
                not undermine--
                            (i) prevailing wage policies;
                            (ii) recycled content policies;
                            (iii) sustainable harvest policies;
                            (iv) renewable energy policies;
                            (v) human rights; or
                            (vi) project labor agreements.
            (7) Intellectual property requirements.--If the agreement 
        contains provisions related to the protection of intellectual 
        property rights, such provisions shall--
                    (A) promote adequate and effective protection of 
                intellectual property rights;
                    (B) include only terms relating to patents that do 
                not, overtly or in application, limit the flexibilities 
                and rights established in the Declaration on the TRIPS 
                Agreement and Public Health, adopted by the World Trade 
                Organization at the Fourth Ministerial Conference at 
                Doha, Qatar, on November 14, 2001, particularly the 
                flexibilities and rights relating to the promotion of 
                access to medicines and the issuance of compulsory 
                licenses on grounds determined by member states; and
                    (C) require that any provisions relating to the 
                patenting of traditional knowledge be consistent with 
                the Convention on Biological Diversity, concluded at 
                Rio de Janeiro June 5, 1992.
            (8) Agricultural standards.--If the agreement contains 
        provisions relating to agriculture, such provisions shall--
                    (A) protect the right of each country that is a 
                party to the agreement to establish policies with 
                respect to food and agriculture that allow for 
                inventory management and strategic food and renewable 
                energy reserves, if such policies do not contribute to 
                or allow the dumping of agricultural commodities in 
                world markets at prices lower than the cost of 
                production;
                    (B) protect the right of each country that is a 
                party to the agreement to prevent dumping of 
                agricultural commodities at below the cost of 
                production through border regulations or other 
                mechanisms and policies;
                    (C) ensure that all laws relating to antitrust and 
                anti-competitive business practices remain fully in 
                effect, and that enforceability of those laws is 
                neither preempted nor compromised in any manner;
                    (D) ensure adequate and affordable supplies of safe 
                food for consumers;
                    (E) protect the right of each country that is a 
                party to the agreement to encourage conservation 
                through the use of best practices with respect to the 
                management and production of agricultural commodities;
                    (F) ensure fair treatment of farm laborers in each 
                such country; and
                    (G) not conflict with agricultural policy 
                established in the laws of the United States.
            (9) Trade remedies and safeguards.--If the agreement 
        contains trade remedy provisions, such provisions shall--
                    (A) preserve fully the ability of the United States 
                to enforce the trade laws of the United States, 
                including antidumping and countervailing duty laws and 
                safeguard laws;
                    (B) ensure the continued effectiveness of domestic 
                and international prohibitions on unfair trade, 
                especially prohibitions on dumping and subsidies, and 
                domestic and international safeguard provisions;
                    (C) establish mechanisms to address and remedy 
                market distortions that lead to dumping and 
                subsidization, including overcapacity, cartelization, 
                and market-access barriers, by imposing strong 
                sanctions against subsidies, including applying 
                countervailing duty laws in cases where exporters 
                receive tax rebates for indirect taxes upon export;
                    (D) allow the United States to maintain adequate 
                safeguards to ensure that surges of imported goods do 
                not result in economic burdens on workers, firms, or 
                farmers in the United States, including providing that 
                such safeguards go into effect automatically based on 
                certain criteria;
                    (E) establish mechanisms among the parties to the 
                agreement to examine the trade consequences of 
                significant currency movements and to scrutinize 
                whether a country's currency is misaligned in order to 
                promote a competitive advantage in international trade; 
                and
                    (F) if the currency of a country that is a party to 
                the agreement is deliberately misaligned, establish 
                safeguard remedies that apply automatically to offset 
                substantial and sustained currency movements.
            (10) Dispute resolution and enforcement provisions.--If the 
        agreement contains provisions relating to dispute resolution, 
        such provisions shall--
                    (A) incorporate the due process protections of the 
                Constitution, as well as provisions relating to access 
                to documents, open hearings, transparency, and fair and 
                impartial tribunals;
                    (B) require that any dispute settlement panel, 
                including an appellate panel, dealing with intellectual 
                property rights or environmental, health, labor, and 
                other public law issues include panelists with 
                expertise in the issues that are the subject of the 
                dispute; and
                    (C) provide that dispute resolution proceedings are 
                open to the public and provide timely public access to 
                information regarding enforcement, disputes, and 
                ongoing negotiations relating to disputes.
            (11) Technical assistance.--If the agreement contains 
        technical assistance provisions, such provisions shall--
                    (A) be designed to raise standards in developing 
                countries by providing assistance in a manner that 
                ensures diversity of development;
                    (B) be designed to empower civil society and 
                democratic governments to create sustainable, vibrant 
                economies and respect basic rights; and
                    (C) not supplant economic assistance or promote the 
                exportation of goods produced with the exploitation of 
                labor or methods that support unsustainable natural 
                resources.
            (12) Exceptions for national security and other reasons.--
        Each agreement shall--
                    (A) include an essential security exception to the 
                provisions of the agreement that permits a country that 
                is a party to the agreement to apply measures that the 
                country considers necessary for the maintenance or 
                restoration of international peace or security, or the 
                protection of its essential security interests;
                    (B) explicitly state that if a country invokes the 
                essential security exception in a dispute settlement 
                proceeding relating to any matter other than compliance 
                with the agreement's worker rights, environment, human 
                rights, health, or safety provisions, the dispute 
                settlement body hearing the matter shall find that the 
                exception applies;
                    (C) include the following language: 
                ``Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
                agreement, a provision of law that is nondiscriminatory 
                on its face and relates to domestic health, consumer 
                safety, the environment, labor rights, worker health 
                and safety, consumer access, the provision of goods or 
                services, or investment, shall not be subject to 
                challenge under the dispute resolution mechanism 
                established under this agreement, unless a principal 
                purpose of the law is to discriminate with respect to 
                market access.''; and
                    (D) include a provision that gives priority to the 
                implementation of bilateral or multilateral agreements 
                relating to public health, human and labor rights, the 
                environment, or other public interest goals in the 
                event of any inconsistency between the trade agreement 
                and such bilateral or multilateral agreement.
            (13) Federalism.--The trade agreement may only require a 
        State government in the United States to comply with 
        procurement, investment, or services provisions contained in 
        the trade agreement if the State government has been consulted 
        in full and has given explicit consent to be bound by such 
        provisions.
    (c) Point of Order in Senate.--The Senate shall cease consideration 
of a bill to implement a trade agreement introduced on or after the 
date of enactment of this Act if--
            (1) a point of order is made by any Senator against the 
        bill based on the noncompliance of the trade agreement with the 
        requirements of subsection (b); and
            (2) the point of order is sustained by the Presiding 
        Officer.
    (d) Waivers and Appeals.--
            (1) Waivers.--Before the Presiding Officer rules on a point 
        of order described in subsection (c), any Senator may move to 
        waive the point of order and the motion to waive shall not be 
        subject to amendment. A point of order described in subsection 
        (c) is waived only by the affirmative vote of 60 Members of the 
        Senate, duly chosen and sworn.
            (2) Appeals.--After the Presiding Officer rules on a point 
        of order described in subsection (c), any Senator may appeal 
        the ruling of the Presiding Officer on the point of order as it 
        applies to some or all of the provisions on which the Presiding 
        Officer ruled. A ruling of the Presiding Officer on a point of 
        order described in subsection (c) is sustained unless 60 
        Members of the Senate, duly chosen and sworn, vote not to 
        sustain the ruling.
            (3) Debate.--Debate on the motion to waive under paragraph 
        (1) or on an appeal of the ruling of the Presiding Officer 
        under paragraph (2) shall be limited to 1 hour. The time shall 
        be equally divided between, and controlled by, the majority 
        leader and the minority leader of the Senate, or their 
        designees.

SEC. 5. RENEGOTIATION OF EXISTING TRADE AGREEMENTS.

    The President shall submit to Congress a plan for renegotiating 
each trade agreement that is in effect on the date of the enactment of 
this Act to bring the trade agreement into compliance with the 
requirements of section 4(b) not later than 90 days before the earlier 
of the day on which the President--
            (1) initiates negotiations with a foreign country with 
        respect to a new trade agreement; or
            (2) submits a bill to Congress to implement a trade 
        agreement.

SEC. 6. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON IMPROVING THE PROCESS FOR UNITED STATES 
              TRADE NEGOTIATIONS.

    It is the sense of Congress that if Congress considers legislation 
to provide for special procedures for the consideration of bills to 
implement trade agreements, that legislation shall include--
            (1) criteria for the President to use in determining 
        whether a country--
                    (A) is able to meet its obligations under a trade 
                agreement;
                    (B) meets the requirements described in section 
                3(c); and
                    (C) is willing and able to meet the requirements 
                described in section 4(b);
            (2) a process by which the Committee on Finance of the 
        Senate and the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 
        Representatives review the determination of the President 
        described in paragraph (1) to verify that the country meets the 
        criteria;
            (3) requirements for consultation with Congress during 
        trade negotiations that require more frequent consultations 
        than required by the Bipartisan Trade Promotion Authority Act 
        of 2002 (19 U.S.C. 3801 et seq.), including a process for 
        consultation with any committee of Congress with jurisdiction 
        over any area covered by the negotiations;
            (4) binding negotiating objectives and requirements 
        outlining what must and must not be included in a trade 
        agreement, including the requirements described in section 
        4(b);
            (5) a process for review and certification by Congress to 
        ensure that the negotiating objectives described in paragraph 
        (4) have been met during the negotiations;
            (6) a process--
                    (A) by which a State may give informed consent to 
                be bound by nontariff provisions in a trade agreement 
                that relate to investment, the service sector, and 
                procurement; and
                    (B) that prevents a State from being bound by the 
                provisions described in subparagraph (A) if the State 
                has not consented; and
            (7) a requirement that a trade agreement be approved by a 
        majority vote in both Houses of Congress before the President 
        may sign the agreement.
                                 <all>