[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 124 (Thursday, June 29, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29622-29623]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-13610]


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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE

[Docket Number USTR-2017-0010]


Request for Comments Regarding the Administration's Reviews and 
Report to the President on Trade Agreement Violations and Abuses

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative and the 
Department of Commerce

ACTION: Request for comments.

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SUMMARY: Executive Order 13796 of April 29, 2017 (82 FR 20819), 
requires the United States Trade Representative and the Secretary of 
Commerce, in consultation with the Secretary of State, the Secretary of 
the Treasury, the Attorney General, and the Director of the Office of 
Trade and Manufacturing Policy, to conduct comprehensive performance 
reviews of all bilateral, plurilateral, and multilateral trade 
agreements and investment agreements to which the United States is a 
party and all trade relations with countries governed by the rules of 
the World Trade Organization (WTO) with which the United States does 
not have free trade agreements but with which the United States runs 
significant trade deficits in goods. The Office of the United States 
Trade Representative (USTR) and the Department of Commerce (DoC) are 
seeking comments that they will consider as part of these performance 
reviews and in the preparation of the subsequent report to the 
President.

DATES: Written comments are due by 11:59 p.m. (EDT) on July 31, 2017.

ADDRESSES: USTR and DoC strongly prefer electronic submissions made 
through the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments in section II below. 
The docket number is USTR-2017-0010. For alternatives to on-line 
submissions, please contact Yvonne Jamison, Trade Policy Staff 
Committee, at (202) 395-3475.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For procedural questions concerning 
written comments, contact Yvonne Jamison at (202) 395-3475. Direct all 
other questions regarding this notice to Sloane Strickler, USTR Office 
of General Counsel, at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Topics on Which USTR and Commerce Seek Information

    To assist USTR and DoC in conducting the performance reviews of 
trade agreements and preparing the report, commenters should submit 
information related to one or more of the following assessments:
    a. The performance of individual free trade agreements (FTAs) and 
bilateral investment treaties (BITs) to which the United States is a 
party. There currently are 14 FTAs in force: https://ustr.gov/trade-agreements/free-trade-agreements.There currently are 40 BITs in force: 
http://tcc.export.gov/Trade_Agreements/Bilateral_Investment_Treaties/index.asp.
    b. The performance of the WTO agreements with regard to our trade 
relations with those trading partners with which the United States does 
not have an FTA, but with which the United States runs significant 
trade deficits in goods. Consistent with the Federal Register notice 
regarding the Report on Significant Trade Deficits (82 FR 18110), the 
trading partners subject to these performance reviews are in 
alphabetical order: China, the European Union, India, Indonesia, Japan, 
Malaysia, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. You can find a 
complete list of the WTO agreements at https://

[[Page 29623]]

www.wto.org/english/docs_e/legal_e/legal_e.htm.
    c. The performance of U.S. trade preference programs. You can find 
a complete list of the preference programs at https://ustr.gov/issue-areas/preference-programs.
    d. In commenting on assessments (a), (b), or (c), you may want to 
address any specific harm or benefit resulting from any agreement, 
treaty including:
    1. Whether there have been violations or abuses of the agreement, 
treaty, or program that have harmed American workers or domestic 
manufacturers, farmers, or ranchers; harmed intellectual property 
rights held by U.S. companies and U.S. persons; reduced the rate of 
innovation in the United States; or impaired research and development 
from occurring in the United States.
    2. Whether any unfair treatment by trade and investment partners 
has harmed American workers or domestic manufacturers, farmers, or 
ranchers; harmed intellectual property rights held by U.S. companies 
and U.S. persons; reduced the rate of innovation in the United States; 
or deterred performance of research and development in the United 
States.
    3. Whether an agreement, treaty, or preference program listed in 
(a), (b), or (c) has not met predictions with regard to new jobs 
created, favorable effects on the trade balance, expanded market 
access, lowered trade barriers, or increased United States exports.
    Commenters also may submit information describing benefits or 
opportunities created as part of these agreements, treaties, programs, 
and trade relations with respect to, inter alia, export opportunities 
for American workers or domestic manufacturers, farmers, or ranchers; 
lowered trade barriers; promotion of U.S. intellectual property rights 
holders; the rate of innovation in the United States; U.S. based 
research and development; protection of rights of U.S. persons 
investing abroad; and any other relevant information.

II. Request for Public Written Comments

    USTR and DoC seek public comments with respect to the issues 
described in Section I. To be assured of consideration, you must submit 
written comments by 11:59 p.m. (EDT) on July 31, 2017. All comments 
must be in English and must identify on the reference line of the first 
page of the submission ``Comments in Response to Executive Order 
Regarding Trade Agreements Violations and Abuses.''
    USTR and DoC strongly encourage commenters to make on-line 
submissions, using the www.regulations.gov Web site. To submit comments 
via www.regulations.gov, enter docket number USTR-2017-0010 on the home 
page and click ``search.'' The site will provide a search-results page 
listing all documents associated with this docket. Find a reference to 
this notice and click on the link entitled ``Comment Now!'' For further 
information on using the www.regulations.gov Web site, please consult 
the resources provided on the Web site by clicking on ``How to Use 
Regulations.gov'' on the bottom of the home page. We will not accept 
hand-delivered submissions.
    The www.regulations.gov Web site allows users to provide comments 
by filling in a ``Type Comment'' field, or by attaching a document 
using an ``Upload File'' field. USTR and DoC prefer that you provide 
comments as an attached document. If you attach a document, please 
identify the name of the country to which the submission pertains in 
the ``Type Comment'' field. For example: ``See attached comments with 
respect to (name of trade agreement or country)''. USTR and DoC prefer 
submissions in Microsoft Word (.doc) or Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) format. If 
the submission is in another file format, please indicate the name of 
the software application in the ``Type Comment'' field. File names 
should reflect the name of the person or entity submitting the 
comments. Please do not attach separate cover letters to electronic 
submissions; rather, include any information that might appear in a 
cover letter in the comments themselves. Similarly, to the extent 
possible, please include any exhibits, annexes, or other attachments in 
the same file as the comment itself, rather than submitting them as 
separate files.
    For any comments submitted electronically that contain business 
confidential information, the file name of the business confidential 
version should begin with the characters ``BC''. Any page containing 
business confidential information must be clearly marked ``BUSINESS 
CONFIDENTIAL'' on the top of that page and the submission should 
clearly indicate, via brackets, highlighting, or other means, the 
specific information that is business confidential. A filer requesting 
business confidential treatment must certify that the information is 
business confidential and would not customarily be released to the 
public by the submitter.
    Filers of submissions containing business confidential information 
also must submit a public version of their comments. The file name of 
the public version should begin with the character ``P''. The ``BC'' 
and ``P'' should be followed by the name of the person or entity 
submitting the comments. Filers submitting comments containing no 
business confidential information should name their file using the name 
of the person or entity submitting the comments.
    As noted, USTR and DoC strongly urge submitters to file comments 
through www.regulations.gov. You must make any alternative arrangements 
with Yvonne Jamison in advance of transmitting a comment. You can 
contact Ms. Jamison at (202) 395-3475. General information concerning 
USTR is available at www.ustr.gov and about DoC at www.commerce.gov.
    We will post comments in the docket for public inspection, except 
business confidential information. You can view comments on the 
www.regulations.gov Web site by entering the relevant docket number in 
the search field on the home page.

Edward Gresser,
Chair of the Trade Policy Staff Committee, Office of the United States 
Trade Representative.
[FR Doc. 2017-13610 Filed 6-28-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3290-F7-P