[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 271 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 271

 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the United 
States Trade Representative should commence negotiations to enter into 
                a bilateral trade agreement with Taiwan.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 6, 2017

 Mr. Yoho (for himself, Mr. Royce of California, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, Mr. 
Diaz-Balart, and Mr. Harper) submitted the following resolution; which 
            was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the United 
States Trade Representative should commence negotiations to enter into 
                a bilateral trade agreement with Taiwan.

Whereas the United States and Taiwan share a close bilateral relationship, 
        codified in the Taiwan Relations Act (22 U.S.C. 3301 et seq.), which has 
        been of enormous economic, cultural, and strategic advantage to both the 
        United States and Taiwan;
Whereas the United States-Taiwan relationship is critical for the promotion of 
        prosperity, democratic values, and regional security throughout the 
        Asia-Pacific region;
Whereas Taiwan is a member of the World Trade Organization, the Asia-Pacific 
        Economic Cooperation grouping, and the Asian Development Bank, and is 
        one of the largest and most important economies in the Asia-Pacific 
        region;
Whereas in 1994, the United States and Taiwan signed a Trade and Investment 
        Framework Agreement (TIFA) that has served as the foundation for 
        bilateral trade promotion, trade dispute resolution, and investment 
        cooperation between the two economies;
Whereas in 2016, Taiwan was the United States tenth-largest trading partner in 
        goods with more than $65,000,000,000 in goods traded between the two, 
        and in addition the United States was the leading country for foreign 
        direct investment in Taiwan;
Whereas in 2015, Taiwan was the United States seventh-largest market for 
        agricultural products with $3,200,000,000 in United States exports to 
        Taiwan, an amount that could increase more rapidly under a bilateral 
        trade agreement;
Whereas a bilateral trade agreement between the United States and Taiwan would 
        provide a means to continue facilitating the growth of this valued 
        trading partnership while addressing certain outstanding issues 
        affecting United States exports, allowing both the United States and 
        Taiwan to continue to invest and share in each other's economic success;
Whereas a bilateral trade agreement between the United States and Taiwan could 
        reduce regulatory barriers that currently affect United States 
        agricultural products and various United States services, while 
        respecting each partner's intellectual property rights;
Whereas the United States welcomed efforts by Taiwan authorities to follow 
        through on commitments related to intellectual property rights made in 
        2015 under the TIFA;
Whereas Taiwan plays a central role in the global electronics industry, 
        producing more than 90 percent of the world's motherboards and notebook 
        computers, and is the largest consumer of semiconductor manufacturing 
        equipment and has the largest semiconductor foundry manufacturing 
        economy;
Whereas people-to-people relations between the United States and Taiwan continue 
        to grow, with travel for business and pleasure to the United States from 
        Taiwan increasing 50 percent since Taiwan's designation for 
        participation in the United States visa waiver program in October 2012;
Whereas Taiwan currently has the seventh-highest number of citizens who are 
        studying in the United States;
Whereas in 2015, the United States and Taiwan signed a memorandum of 
        understanding to establish the Global Cooperation and Training 
        Framework, which seeks to expand already robust cooperation to address 
        global challenges in third countries, in areas such as international 
        humanitarian assistance, public health, environmental protection, 
        energy, technology, education, and regional development;
Whereas Taiwan, as a democracy and free market economy, shares the United States 
        principles and values, providing a strong foundation for open, fair, and 
        mutually beneficial trade relations; and
Whereas a bilateral trade agreement between the United States and Taiwan would 
        indicate that Taiwan has committed itself to maintaining high standards 
        in international trade, which would signify that Taiwan is a sound 
        economic partner and is eager to deepen engagement in the global 
        economy: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes that the United States and Taiwan share 
        significant and continuing opportunities in our bilateral trade 
        relationship;
            (2) recognizes that a high-standard bilateral trade 
        agreement between the United States and Taiwan would help to 
        develop such opportunities, reduce barriers, deepen economic 
        cooperation, and facilitate mutual benefits; and
            (3) encourages the United States Trade Representative to 
        commence negotiations to enter into a bilateral trade agreement 
        with Taiwan.
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