Statement of
Dr. Hratch G. Semerjian
Acting Director
National Institute
of Standards and
Technology
Technology Administration
Department of Commerce
Before the
House of Representatives
Committee on Science
Subcommittee on Environment, Technology and Standards
“China,
Europe, and the use of standards as trade barriers: How should the U.S. respond?”
May 11, 2005
Mr. Chairman and Members of the
Committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today on the topic of the
role of standards in international competitiveness. Standards impact an estimated 80 percent of
world trade and are a significant factor in competitiveness worldwide. We need to take seriously the challenges
posed by the growing impact of standards on market access so that we can better
position the United States
and U.S.
companies to compete in the global market.
There is much work to be done to ensure that U.S.
standards interests have fair opportunity to be reflected in standards used
globally and that these interests are more effectively promoted in our most
important markets, such as China. This need has become more real and apparent
as more countries become active in the global market and the global standards
arena.
To
understand the global standards arena, you need to look at two types of
standards – measurement standards and
documentary standards. Measurement
standards, which are the technical forte of the National Institute of Standards
and Technology, are generic tools that are widely used by industry to support efficiency
in the marketplace. These measurements
are vital to international trade. For
example, the way that I measure electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) or flow
rates may not be the same way that a European or Chinese lab measures EMC or
flow rates. Differences in measurements
and lack of equivalency among national measurement systems can delay, and
sometimes block, entry into foreign markets.
Documentary
standards - standards embodied in written documents and promulgated by
Standards Development Organizations (SDOs) - establish the fitness of a product
for a particular use. These standards
may address product features, performance, quality, compatibility, or other
product attributes. Examples include the
dimensions of lumber, rules for the construction and operation of steam boilers
and pressure vessels, and specifications for film speed. There also are documentary standards that set
specifications for the function and operation of a device or system, covering
everything from elevators and refrigerators to handicapped access. There are thousands upon thousands of
standards like these that are invisible to most consumers but play a vital role
in facilitating global trade.
The United States
is a demand-driven, highly diversified economy and society, and its standards
system reflects this framework. Our
decentralized, sector- and technology-based standards system is diverse and
inclusive. The system is based on a
strong private-public partnership. In
the United States,
standards are typically developed in response to specific concerns and
constituent issues expressed by both industry and government. This demand-driven approach contrasts with
that of many of some of our trading partners, who favor a
much more top-down, government-driven approach.
The U.S.
standards system is highly decentralized and naturally partitioned for most
applications into industrial sectors that are supported by numerous
independent, private-sector standards development organizations (SDOs) –
currently more than 450 such organizations, with at least 150 more consortia
standards development activities underway.
Approximately 20 SDOs develop about 80 percent of standards in the United States.
Without
any central authority or direction from government, a wide variety of U.S.
voluntary standards activities have proceeded very successfully along
sector-specific lines for over a century.
Although U.S.
decisions about standards authority and responsibilities were not made
deliberately with a view to providing support for U.S. efforts in international
trade, they work well to support the domestic goals of protection of health,
safety and the environment as well as specification of products, processes and
systems.
The
American National Standards Institute (ANSI), a private sector, non-profit
organization founded in 1918 by several SDOs and U.S. government representatives,
including the Department of Commerce, functions as a central clearinghouse and
coordinating body for its member organizations, which in turn develop standards
on a decentralized, consensus basis.
ANSI is composed of more than 700 company members; 30 government
agencies; 20 institutions; and 260 professional, technical, trade, labor and
commercial organizations.
Government
agencies support standards through direct participation in standards
development, as well as through participation in policy activities of ANSI and
specific standards developing organizations in which they have a direct
interest. Many agencies are active participants
in standards development, at both the national and international levels. This participation is encouraged by both law
and policy. More than 3200 staff from 26
federal agencies participate in private sector standards development
activities. At NIST, there are more than
350 participants, more than a quarter of our technical staff.
Government
agencies are also major users of standards, to support regulation of health,
safety, and the environment, as well as for procurement of products and
services for Federal use. We currently
count more than 13,000 private sector standards in use by the Federal
Government. This substantial Federal
agency reliance on private sector standards reinforces the importance of
globally recognized standards that facilitate the seamless flow of products and
services across borders.
Both
the U.S. government and private sector participate in international standards
development in a variety of ways: through private, voluntary organizations
whose membership is on a national body basis; through treaty organizations
(governments are members); through professional and technical organizations
whose membership is on an individual or organizational basis; and through
consortia, whose membership is typically company and industry-based. We need to make effective use of our
participation in each of these venues to ensure that U.S. interests are advanced.
Our
decentralized, private sector and demand-driven U.S. standards system has many
strengths. U.S. companies derive significant
advantage from the system’s flexibility and responsiveness. The government also derives great benefit
from the system, both as a customer and user of standards. Government agencies play an important role in
the U.S.
standards system as advocates for the national interest, both here at home and
globally.
The
system serves the country well, but there is room for improvement. In particular, the growing importance of
standards to international competitiveness dictates that the United States –
both private and public sectors – move quickly to strengthen the interface
between the U.S. standards system and the international system. This need was
pointed out clearly two years ago by industry in response to questions posed by
the Department of Commerce as part of its Standards Initiative.
The
Department of Commerce’s Standards Initiative was launched in March 2003 by
then-Secretary Donald Evans specifically to address U.S. industry concerns that
issues relating to standards and assessment of conformity to those standards in
foreign markets were among the greatest
barriers to expanding exports. U.S.
businesses want a fair and equitable standards playing field and Secretary
Evans directed the Department to assist them in achieving that balance where
standards would ideally be judged not only on their technical merits but also
on their developers’ adherence to the principles of openness, transparency,
balance or interests, due process and consensus. The Secretary’s Standards Initiative was
bolstered last year with a comprehensive report on Standards and
Competitiveness: Coordinating for Results, which contains some 50
recommendations for moving forward.
These recommendations respond in part to specific industry requests to
the Department for action in key areas.
Examples
of industry requests of the Department on standards issues include a desire for
the Department to focus on China as the primary market where the United States
should attempt to influence standards development and trade policy relating to
standards; counter the dominance
of the European Union in its aggressive promotion of European its standards throughout the world;
limit the potential for EU block voting on standards in international standards
development organizations; increase pressure on countries to implement their
World Trade Organization (WTO) or Free Trade Agreement (FTA) obligations; and
coordinating more closely interagency on standards issues.
In
close collaboration with industry, the Department is pursuing an active
multi-pronged strategy with respect to standards-related issues in China. This strategy includes continued engagement
at the policy and technical levels to deal with specific issues as they arise,
providing grant support where appropriate to U.S. standards developing
organizations to open offices in China, posting a standards attaché to the U.S.
Embassy in Beijing this summer, and sponsoring an ongoing series of both
general and sector-specific workshops involving Chinese officials and relevant
U.S. private and public sector interests. . Regarding the issue of EU
influence in standards on the international level, the Department is working
with ANSI and industry to define and address these concerns at the policy level
and also on a case-by-case basis.
The
Department’s May 2004 report also noted the importance of Department
representatives participating in the revision of the U.S. Standards Strategy,
which was first created in 2000 under the auspices of ANSI. The purpose of the strategy is to strengthen
the U.S. standards system
and to establish a framework for achieving goals related to both the
competitiveness of U.S.
industry and achieving a balanced global trading system. ANSI initiated the first effort to develop a
national standards strategy in 1998, in response to a challenge from Ray
Kammer, then Director of NIST. The
strategy was published in August 2000.
The
Strategy, currently under revision to reflect the new global environment,
provides an excellent framework for strengthening the interface between the U.S.
standards system and the international system.
The purpose of a standards strategy for the United
States is to establish a framework that can be used by
all interested parties to further advance trade issues in the global
marketplace, enhance consumer health and safety, meet stakeholder needs and, as
appropriate, advance U.S.
viewpoints in the regional and international arena. The U.S. Standards Strategy
provides both a statement of the purpose and ideals that underlie the U.S. system and a vision for the future of the U.S.
standards system in a more globally competitive economy.
The
revised U.S. Standards Strategy is being developed in an open, balanced,
transparent and participatory process.
More than 100 representatives of industry; small, medium and large
enterprise; standards developers and consortia; consumer groups; and federal
and state governments have participated in the development and review
process. The Strategy highlights key
strategic imperatives that will maximize the strengths of the U.S. system and minimize
weaknesses. NIST , and the Department as a whole, areis a
strong supporters of the work being done by the
American National Standards Institute and the U.S. Standards Strategy Committee
to pull together a diverse set of stakeholders in the future of the U.S.
standards system to update and revise the strategy.
A
sectoral approach recognizes that there is no simple prescription that can be
handed down to fit all needs. Sectors
must develop their own plans; the purpose of the U.S. Standards Strategy is to
provide guidance and coherence without constraining creativity or
effectiveness. The Strategy consists of
a set of strategic initiatives having broad applicability which will be applied
according to their relevance and importance to particular sectors. Stakeholders are encouraged to develop their
own tactical initiatives where needed and this strategy suggests some which
have widespread applicability.
The
Strategy addresses opportunities for improvement in getting the message out
about the principles and policies that both underlie the U.S. system and are key to the
development of globally relevant standards, whatever venue stakeholders choose
for their work. The DepartmentNIST
will work closely with key players in the U.S. system to implement relevant
elements of the Strategy. We will also
continue our strong partnership with ANSI to support its role of coordination
of the U.S.
system and as member body of the International Organization for Standardization
(ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission. U.S. membership in the IEC is
coordinated by the U.S. National Committee to the IEC, through ANSI.
NIST
has a variety of roles in the U.S.
standards system. As the national
measurement institute, NIST is frequently looked to for research and
measurements that provide the technical underpinning for standards, ranging
from materials test methods to standards for building performance, and for a
range of technologies, from information and communications technologies to
nano- and bio-technologies. Under the provisions
of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act and OMB Circular A-119,
NIST is tasked with promoting the efficiency of the U.S. standards system, by
coordinating Federal agency use of nongovernment standards and participation in
the development of relevant standards, and through promoting coordination
between the public and private sectors in both the standards and conformity
assessment arenas.
NIST
is also directed by law to develop specific standards – cryptographic standards
and applications, as well as guidelines, procedures and best practices for
Federal IT security; biometric and voting system standards - and to help
industry develop enterprise integration standards.
NIST
technical programs support global recognition of U.S. standards, where relevant, as
well as harmonization of standards to avoid barriers to trade. These programs take advantage of synergies
with related Department of Commerce trade-related programs and with the private
sector, and are critical to U.S.
manufacturers’ access to export markets. Two key outcomes of these programs are
an expanded network of foreign officials knowledgeable about the U.S. system, and wider use and acceptance by
foreign governments of U.S.
products and standards that incorporate U.S. technology.
NIST’s
proposed FY06 initiative on standards in support of global trade addresses
specific needs of U.S.
businesses seeking to compete successfully in global markets. The initiative supports U.S. competitiveness by ensuring that innovative
U.S. businesses are equipped
to satisfy global as well as U.S.
measurement and standards requirements, thus enabling rapid response to changes
in technologies and early identification of new and non-traditional measurement
and standards needs. Specific activities include targeted measurement
intercomparisons with national measurement institutes in key markets,
leadership in key documentary standards development activities in new
technology areas, and expanded standards-related information relevant to key
markets
With
this year’s National Export Strategy, the U.S. government is also making
improvements on the trade promotion front.
U.S.
government agencies, led by the Secretary of Commerce under the Trade Promotion
Coordinating Committee (TPCC), are collaborating to improve the government’s
standards-related trade promotion efforts.
We are currently developing a strategy through which we can - working
with the private sector - do a better job of promoting U.S. standards interests in our most important
markets, such as China.
We
intend to partner with U.S.
industry and standards developers to more effectively promote the virtues of an
open, transparent and impartial approach to standards development and
implementation. Both U.S. standards interests and policy
objectives will be served when the governments of our most important export
markets are convinced of the strengths of this approach versus alternatives
that are less open and transparent, and more subjective.
We
recognize that the government and private sector must each leverage our scarce
resources. The TPCC strategy endeavors
to develop an ambitious partnership with U.S.
manufacturers and service providers, and the U.S.
standards community, to better promote U.S. standards interests in our
most important markets.
NIST
plays a major role in maintaining the measurement infrastructure necessary to
advance U.S.
interests in international trade, commerce and regulatory affairs. Manufacturing
and measuring are two sides of the same coin.
If you can’t measure, you can’t manufacture, at least not up to the
expectations of increasingly demanding customers. And if you can’t assure those
measurements to other companies and consumers here and abroad, you probably
will lose them to competitors.
So I am very pleased to announce today that the National
Institute of Standards and Technology is launching a comprehensive effort to
roadmap America's
measurement needs. The nation's measurement system is a vital element of our
innovation infrastructure. The goal of this very important initiative -- which
will be undertaken in close cooperation with the private sector and other
agencies -- is to ensure that the nation’s highest priority measurement needs
are identified and then met. Working with others, NIST will develop and publish a U.S.
Measurment System roadmap on a regular basis.
We will report to our customers and stakeholders on what needs to be
done by NIST – and others – to address American’s measurement needs. NIST will hold workshops in specific areas
and encourage others to also hold workshops to identify priority needs. NIST then will sponsor a summit in January
2005 to focus discussions on how to meet those needs. We need to be certain
that the U.S. measurement
system is robust so that it can sustain America’s economy and citizens at
world-class levels in the 21st century. The initiative recognizes the
growing importance of both international measurement system and its
intersection with international standards.
We
recognize the global challenges posed to U.S. competitiveness, in both the
documentary and measurement standards arenas.
Now more than ever, in an environment of increasingly scarce resources
and many competing demands, we need to create and implement mechanisms that
will enable both the public and private sectors to make informed choices about
how best to invest resources to achieve the greatest impact. Together, stakeholders in the U.S. standards system are collaborating to lay
out a comprehensive strategic approach, implemented through effective
private-public partnership, to better position the United
States and U.S. companies to compete in the
global market. Progress will require
communication, cooperation, planning, and a commitment to action. NIST is committed to the success of this
effort. Thank you for allowing me to
testify today, and I would be happy to answer any questions.