[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 94 (Monday, May 17, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26811-26812]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-12377]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

OFFICE OF THE U.S. TRADE REPRESENTATIVE


Free Trade Area of the Americas: Request for Public Comment on 
Identification of a Private Sector Expert on Consumer Issues Related to 
Electronic Commerce

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.

ACTION: Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Joint Government-Private 
Sector Experts Committee on Electronic Commerce (Joint Committee) 
request for public comment on the identification of a private sector 
expert on consumer issues related to electronic commerce who may wish 
to participate in the work of the Joint Committee.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Joint Committee on Electronic Commerce was established by 
the 34 countries in the Western Hemisphere participating in the Free 
Trade Area of the Americas. The Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) 
seeks to identify a U.S. private sector expert on consumer issues 
related to electronic commerce who may be interested in participating 
in the work of the Joint Committee. Interested members of the public 
are invited to submit written notice of their interest and their 
qualifications.

DATES: Written expressions of interest in participating in the work of 
the Joint Committee should be submitted no later than May 28, 1999.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For procedural questions concerning 
public comments contact Gloria Blue, Executive Secretary, Trade Policy 
Staff Committee, Office of the United States Trade Representative, 
(202) 395-3475. All questions concerning the Joint Committee may be 
directed to Regina Vargo, Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Western 
Hemisphere, U.S. Department of Commerce (202) 482-5324, 
Regina__V[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: At the Second Summit of the Americas in 
April 1998, in Santiago, Chile, the 34 democratically elected Western 
Hemisphere countries initiated negotiations to create the FTAA by the 
year 2005 and to achieve concrete progress toward that objective by the 
end of the century. They established nine initial negotiating groups, a 
consultative group, and two committees, one of which is the Joint 
Committee. The Joint Committee is chaired by Mr. Dale Marshall of the 
Government of Barbados. Ms. Regina Vargo, Deputy Assistant Secretary 
for the Western Hemisphere, U.S. Department of Commerce, leads the 
joint U.S. government--private sector delegation to the Joint 
Committee.
    Joint Committee Terms of Reference: The objective of the Committee 
is to make recommendations to Ministers on how to increase and broaden 
the benefits of electronic commerce and how electronic commerce should 
be dealt with in the context of the FTAA negotiations. The Joint 
Committee is to provide recommendations to the Vice-Ministerial Trade 
Negotiations Committee (TNC) four weeks before the November 3-4, 1999 
Trade Ministerial meeting. In order to develop its recommendations, the 
Joint Committee is focusing on:
     Increasing understanding of the potential benefits of 
electronic commerce to countries in the hemisphere;

[[Page 26812]]

     Identifying the environment that will allow electronic 
commerce to flourish;
     Discussing infrastructure questions; and
     Identifying how electronic commerce can facilitate the 
operation of trade obligations.
    Joint Committee Update: The Joint Committee is not a negotiating 
group; rather it is examining a broad range of electronic commerce 
issues relevant to identifying the environment that will extend the 
advantages of ecommerce throughout the Western Hemisphere, in part by 
keeping itself apprised of related developments in other international 
fora.
    A meeting of Joint Committee government representatives addressed 
organizational issues in Miami in October 1998. They scheduled four 
additional meetings in Miami for 1999. At the meeting on January 6-8, 
the topics covered included small business, smaller economies, 
governments as model users, business-to-business applications, raising 
skills and awareness, network access and reliability and standards for 
forms of transmissions. The meeting on April 24-26 covered trade, tax 
and selected legal issues related to electronic commerce and included 
expert presentations by World Trade Organization (WTO) personnel and 
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) personnel. The meeting 
on June 14-16 is scheduled to discuss issues related to jurisdiction 
and contract law, privacy, security and reliability, authentication, 
and consumer protection, and to include expert presentations by 
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) personnel 
and United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) 
personnel. The fourth meeting on August 30-September 1, will focus on 
other issues and on the report to Ministers.
    Joint Committee Private Sector Representation: FTAA governments 
decided that the Joint Committee would include private sector 
representatives, which is consistent with President Clinton's principle 
that the private sector should take the lead in developing the rules 
for global electronic commerce. FTAA Vice Ministers for trade 
determined that individual governments would identify private sector 
participants, with a view toward balanced hemispheric representation in 
terms of geography and electronic commerce issue expertise. On August 
6, 1998, a Federal Register notice (63 FR 42090) was published inviting 
expressions of interest and qualifications to participate in the work 
of the Joint Committee. Based on responses, U.S. private sector 
representatives were selected to reflect a balance of interests and 
electronic commerce issue expertise. At that time, however, no 
submissions were received from interested consumer groups. The TPSC is 
now seeking to expand private sector participation on the Joint 
Committee to include an expert on consumer issues related to electronic 
commerce.

Public Comments

    In order to assist the TPSC in identifying a U.S. private sector 
expert on consumer issues related to electronic commerce, which are 
scheduled to be discussed at the June 14-16 meeting, members of the 
public are invited to submit written notice of their interest and 
describe their qualifications. Qualifications of interest include: 
demonstrated expertise in one or more aspects of electronic commerce 
and consumer protection; an ability and willingness to broadly solicit 
views from and disseminate information to consumer groups; and 
familiarity with U.S. and foreign trade and investment policies and 
obligations. Knowledge of the Western Hemisphere, including established 
contacts with foreign private sector interests in the region, would be 
helpful.
    Those persons wishing to make written submissions should provide 
twenty (20) typed copies (in English) no later than noon, Friday, May 
28, 1999 to Gloria Blue, Executive Secretary, Trade Policy Staff 
Committee, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, Room 122, 600 17th 
Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20508.
    Written submissions in connection with this request will be 
available for public inspection in the USTR Reading Room, Room 101, 
Office of the United States Trade Representative, 600 17th St., NW, 
Washington, D.C. An appointment to review the file may be made by 
calling Brenda Webb (202) 395-6186. The Reading Room is open to the 
public from 9:30 a.m. to 12 noon, and from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday 
through Friday.
Frederick L. Montgomery,
Chairman, Trade Policy Staff Committee.
[FR Doc. 99-12377 Filed 5-14-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3901-01-P