[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1268 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1268

 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the United 
    States should initiate negotiations to enter into a free trade 
                         agreement with Taiwan.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 17, 2020

   Mr. Reschenthaler (for himself, Mr. Diaz-Balart, and Mr. Chabot) 
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 should initiate negotiations to enter into a free trade 
                         agreement with Taiwan.

Whereas pursuant to section 2(b)(1) of the Taiwan Relations Act (22 U.S.C. 
        3301(b)(1)), it is the policy of the United States to ``promote 
        extensive, close, and friendly commercial, cultural, and other relations 
        between the people of the United States and the people of Taiwan'';
Whereas the friendship between the United States and Taiwan is based on a shared 
        commitment to individual and economic freedom, shared values, and an 
        appreciation for the blessings of liberty and democracy;
Whereas the United States and Taiwan enjoy a robust trade partnership, marked by 
        the exchange of goods and services and international travel;
Whereas Taiwan has shown an interest in strengthening its economic relationship 
        with the United States by investing in technology manufacturing 
        facilities located within the United States and agreeing to lift 
        restrictions on the import of certain U.S. agricultural products;
Whereas Taiwan has demonstrated a commitment to protecting intellectual property 
        and individual freedom by serving as a leader in the responsible 
        development of technology, as evidenced through a Joint Declaration on 
        5G Security announced between the American Institute in Taiwan and the 
        Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in August 2020;
Whereas Taiwan has played an integral role in the global supply chain during the 
        coronavirus disease 2019 (commonly known as ``COVID-19'') pandemic, 
        producing massive amounts of masks at the time when masks were most 
        scarce and ensuring that this critical tool was available to individuals 
        around the world;
Whereas the United States has consistently supported peaceful relations between 
        Taiwan and the People's Republic of China, and respected the provisions 
        of both the Taiwan Relations Act (22 U.S.C. 3301 et seq.) and the Six 
        Assurances offered by President Ronald Reagan to Taiwan in 1982;
Whereas the People's Republic of China has shown a hostility to Taiwan, 
        aggressively asserting its military power, using coercive economic 
        measures to keep Taiwan economically dependent on the People's Republic 
        of China, and seeking to isolate Taiwan from the rest of the world;
Whereas the policy of the United States is to advance a free and open Indo-
        Pacific region, and achieving that vision must include working with 
        like-minded countries in the region to liberalize trade;
Whereas the United States is currently Taiwan's 2nd largest trading partner, and 
        Taiwan is the 10th largest trading partner of the United States in goods 
        and 11th largest trading partner overall;
Whereas Taiwan has been a member of the World Trade Organization since 2002;
Whereas bilateral trade in goods between Taiwan and the United States increased 
        from $62,000,000,000 in 2010 to $86,000,000,000 in 2019, according to 
        the United States Census Bureau;
Whereas Taiwan's foreign direct investment stock in the United States was 
        $11,100,000,000 as of 2019;
Whereas trade with Taiwan supports an estimated 208,000 United States jobs 
        according to estimates of the United States Department of Commerce as of 
        2015;
Whereas closer engagement with Taiwan through trade negotiations would encourage 
        even greater access to Taiwan's market and would benefit both security 
        and economic growth for the United States, Taiwan, and the Indo-Pacific 
        region;
Whereas it is essential that a free trade agreement negotiated between the 
        United States and Taiwan lower tariff and nontariff barriers to trade, 
        including meaningfully expanded access to agricultural markets and 
        ensuring that science-based standards govern international trade in 
        animals and animal products;
Whereas the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 
        2015 (19 U.S.C. 4201 et seq.) enables the President to negotiate 
        reciprocal reductions of nontariff barriers while preserving the 
        authority of Congress over foreign trade as required by section 8 of 
        article I of the Constitution of the United States;
Whereas the procedures laid out in the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities 
        and Accountability Act of 2015 were designed by Congress to maintain the 
        sovereignty of Congress over trade; and
Whereas for legislation implementing a trade agreement to qualify for trade 
        authorities procedures under the Bipartisan Congressional Trade 
        Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015, the trade agreement is 
        required to make progress toward achieving the applicable objectives, 
        policies, and priorities set forth by Congress in that Act, and failure 
        by the administration of a President to adhere to the trade negotiating 
        objectives and notification and consultation requirements established by 
        Congress renders a trade agreement ineligible for fast-track 
        consideration: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that 
the United States should initiate negotiations to enter into a free 
trade agreement with Taiwan.
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