[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 222 (Thursday, November 18, 1999)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 63169-63170]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-30346]



[[Page 63167]]

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Part V





The President





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Executive Order 13141--Environmental Review of Trade Agreements
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  Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 222 / Thursday, November 18, 1999 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 63169]]

                Executive Order 13141 of November 16, 1999

                
Environmental Review of Trade Agreements

                By the authority vested in me as President by the 
                Constitution and the laws of the United States of 
                America, and in order to further the environmental and 
                trade policy goals of the United States, it is hereby 
                ordered as follows:

                Section 1. Policy. The United States is committed to a 
                policy of careful assessment and consideration of the 
                environmental impacts of trade agreements. The United 
                States will factor environmental considerations into 
                the development of its trade negotiating objectives. 
                Responsible agencies will accomplish these goals 
                through a process of ongoing assessment and evaluation, 
                and, in certain instances, written environmental 
                reviews.

                Sec. 2. Purpose and Need. Trade agreements should 
                contribute to the broader goal of sustainable 
                development. Environmental reviews are an important 
                tool to help identify potential environmental effects 
                of trade agreements, both positive and negative, and to 
                help facilitate consideration of appropriate responses 
                to those effects whether in the course of negotiations, 
                through other means, or both.

                Sec. 3. (a) Implementation. The United States Trade 
                Representative (Trade Representative) and the Chair of 
                the Council on Environmental Quality shall oversee the 
                implementation of this order, including the development 
                of procedures pursuant to this order, in consultation 
                with appropriate foreign policy, environmental, and 
                economic agencies.

                    (b) Conduct of Environmental Reviews. The Trade 
                Representative, through the interagency Trade Policy 
                Staff Committee (TPSC), shall conduct the environmental 
                reviews of the agreements under section 4 of this 
                order.

                Sec. 4. Trade Agreements.

                    (a) Certain agreements that the United States may 
                negotiate shall require an environmental review. These 
                include:
                    (i) comprehensive multilateral trade rounds;
                    (ii) bilateral or plurilateral free trade 
                agreements; and
                    (iii) major new trade liberalization agreements in 
                natural resource sectors.
                    (b) Agreements reached in connection with 
                enforcement and dispute resolution actions are not 
                covered by this order.
                    (c) For trade agreements not covered under 
                subsections 4(a) and (b), environmental reviews will 
                generally not be required. Most sectoral liberalization 
                agreements will not require an environmental review. 
                The Trade Representative, through the TPSC, shall 
                determine whether an environmental review of an 
                agreement or category of agreements is warranted based 
                on such factors as the significance of reasonably 
                foreseeable environmental impacts.

                Sec. 5. Environmental Reviews.

                    (a) Environmental reviews shall be:
                    (i) written;
                    (ii) initiated through a Federal Register notice, 
                outlining the proposed agreement and soliciting public 
                comment and information on the scope of the 
                environmental review of the agreement;

[[Page 63170]]

                    (iii) undertaken sufficiently early in the process 
                to inform the development of negotiating positions, but 
                shall not be a condition for the timely tabling of 
                particular negotiating proposals;
                    (iv) made available in draft form for public 
                comment, where practicable; and
                    (v) made available to the public in final form.
                    (b) As a general matter, the focus of environmental 
                reviews will be impacts in the United States. As 
                appropriate and prudent, reviews may also examine 
                global and transboundary impacts.

                Sec. 6. Resources. Upon request by the Trade 
                Representative, with the concurrence of the Deputy 
                Director for Management of the Office of Management and 
                Budget, Federal agencies shall, to the extent permitted 
                by law and subject to the availability of 
                appropriations, provide analytical and financial 
                resources and support, including the detail of 
                appropriate personnel, to the Office of the United 
                States Trade Representative to carry out the provisions 
                of this order.

                Sec. 7. General Provisions. This order is intended only 
                to improve the internal management of the executive 
                branch and does not create any right, benefit, trust, 
                or responsibility, substantive or procedural, 
                enforceable at law or equity by a party against the 
                United States, its agencies, its officers, or any 
                person.

                    (Presidential Sig.)

                THE WHITE HOUSE,

                     November 16, 1999.

[FR Doc. 99-30346
Filed 11-17-99; 10:43 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P