[Federal Register: February 9, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 27)]
[Notices]
[Page 6820-6821]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr09fe06-102]
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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
Request for Comments and Notice of Public Hearing Concerning
Proposed Free Trade Agreement With Republic of Korea
AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.
ACTION: Notice of intent to initiate negotiations on a free trade
agreement with the Republic of Korea, request for comments, and notice
of public hearing.
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SUMMARY: The United States intends to initiate negotiations with the
Republic of Korea (Korea) on a free trade agreement (FTA). The
interagency Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) will convene a public
hearing and seek public comment to assist the United States Trade
Representative (USTR) in amplifying and clarifying negotiating
objectives for the proposed agreement and to provide advice on how
specific goods and services and other matters should be treated under
the proposed agreement.
DATES: Persons wishing to testify orally at the hearing must provide
written notification of their intention, as well as their testimony, by
March 3, 2006. A hearing will be held in Washington, DC, beginning on
March 14, 2006 and will continue as necessary on subsequent days.
Written comments are due by noon, March 24, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Submissions by electronic mail: FR0607@ustr.eop.gov (notice
of intent to testify and written testimony); FR0608@ustr.eop.gov
(written comments). Submissions by facsimile: Gloria Blue, Executive
Secretary, Trade Policy Staff Committee, at (202) 395-6143. The public
is strongly encouraged to submit documents electronically rather than
by facsimile. (See requirements for submissions below.)
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For procedural questions concerning
written comments or participation in the public hearing, contact Gloria
Blue, Executive Secretary, Trade Policy Staff Committee, at (202) 395-
3475. All other questions should be directed to Scott Ki, Senior
Director for Korea, at (202) 395-5070.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Background
Under section 2104 of the Bipartisan Trade Promotion Authority Act
of 2002 (TPA Act) (19 U.S.C. 3804), for agreements that will be
approved and implemented through TPA procedures, the President must
provide the Congress with at least 90 days' written notice of his
intent to enter into negotiations and identify the specific objectives
for the negotiations. Before and after the submission of this notice,
the President is to consult with appropriate Congressional committees
and the Congressional Oversight Group (COG) regarding the negotiations.
Under the Trade Act of 1974, as amended, the President must (i) afford
interested persons an opportunity to present their views regarding any
matter relevant to any proposed agreement, (ii) designate an agency or
inter-agency committee to hold a public hearing regarding any proposed
agreement, and (iii) seek the advice of the U.S. International Trade
Commission (ITC) regarding the probable economic effects on U.S.
industries and consumers of the removal of tariffs and non-tariff
barriers on imports pursuant to any proposed agreement.
On February 2, 2006, after consulting with relevant Congressional
committees and the COG, the USTR notified the Congress that the
President intends to initiate free trade agreement negotiations with
Korea and identified specific objectives for the negotiations. In
addition, the USTR has requested that the ITC provide its advice on the
probable economic effects of the free trade agreement. This notice
solicits views from the public on these negotiations and provides
information on a hearing that will be conducted pursuant to the
requirements of the Trade Act of 1974.
2. Public Comments and Testimony
To assist the Administration as it continues to develop its
negotiating objectives for the proposed agreement, the Chairman of the
TPSC invites written comments and/or oral testimony of interested
persons at a public hearing. Comments and testimony may address the
reduction or elimination of tariffs or non-tariff barriers on any
articles provided for in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United
States (HTSUS) that are products of Korea, any concession which should
be sought by the United States, or any other matter relevant to the
proposed agreement. The TPSC invites comments and testimony on all of
these matters and, in particular, seeks comments and testimony
addressed to:
(a) General and commodity-specific negotiating objectives for the
proposed agreement.
(b) Economic costs and benefits to U.S. producers and consumers of
removal of tariffs and non-tariff barriers affecting United States--
Korea trade.
(c) Treatment of specific goods (described by HTSUS numbers) under
the proposed agreement, including comments on:
(1) product-specific import or export interests or barriers,
(2) experience with particular measures that should be addressed in
the negotiations, and
(3) in the case of articles for which immediate elimination of
tariffs is not appropriate, a recommended staging schedule for such
elimination.
(d) Adequacy of existing customs measures to ensure Korean origin
of imported goods, and appropriate rules of origin for goods entering
the United States under the proposed agreement.
[[Page 6821]]
(e) Existing Korean sanitary and phytosanitary measures and
technical barriers to trade that should be addressed in the
negotiations.
(f) Existing barriers to trade in services between the United
States and Korea that should be addressed in the negotiations.
(g) Relevant electronic commerce issues that should be addressed in
the negotiations.
(h) Relevant trade-related intellectual property rights issues that
should be addressed in the negotiations.
(i) Relevant investment issues that should be addressed in the
negotiations.
(j) Relevant competition-related matters that should be addressed
in the negotiations.
(k) Relevant government procurement issues that should be addressed
in the negotiations.
(l) Relevant environmental issues that should be addressed in the
negotiations.
(m) Relevant labor issues that should be addressed in the
negotiations.
Comments identifying as present or potential trade barriers laws or
regulations that are not primarily trade-related should address the
economic, political, and social objectives of such laws or regulations
and the degree to which they discriminate against producers of the
other country. At a later date, the USTR, through the TPSC, will
publish notice of reviews regarding (a) the possible environmental
effects of the proposed agreement and the scope of the U.S.
environmental review of the proposed agreement, and (b) the impact of
the proposed agreement on U.S. employment and labor markets.
A hearing will be held beginning on March 14, 2006, in Rooms 1 and
2, 1724 F Street, NW., Washington, DC. If necessary, the hearing will
continue on subsequent days. Persons wishing to testify at the hearing
must provide written notification of their intention by March 3, 2006.
The notification should include: (1) The name, address, and telephone
number of the person presenting the testimony; and (2) a short (one or
two paragraph) summary of the presentation, including the subject
matter and, as applicable, the product(s) (with HTSUS numbers), service
sector(s), or other subjects (such as investment, intellectual
property, and/or government procurement) to be discussed. A copy of the
testimony must accompany the notification. Remarks at the hearing
should be limited to no more than five minutes to allow for possible
questions from the TPSC. Persons with mobility impairments who will
need special assistance in gaining access to the hearing should contact
the TPSC Executive Secretary.
Interested persons, including persons who participate in the
hearing, may submit written comments by noon, March 24, 2006. Written
comments may include rebuttal points demonstrating errors of fact or
analysis not pointed out in the hearing. All written comments must
state clearly the position taken, describe with particularity the
supporting rationale, and be in English. The first page of written
comments must specify the subject matter, including, as applicable, the
product(s) (with HTSUS numbers), service sector(s), or other subjects
(such as investment, intellectual property, and/or government
procurement).
3. Requirements for Submissions
In order to facilitate prompt processing of submissions, the Office
of the United States Trade Representative strongly urges and prefers
electronic (e-mail) submissions in response to this notice. In the
event that an e-mail submission is impossible, submissions should be
made by facsimile.
Persons making submissions by e-mail should use the following
subject line: ``United States-Republic of Korea Free Trade Agreement''
followed by (as appropriate) ``Notice of Intent to Testify,''
``Testimony,'' or ``Written Comments.'' Documents should be submitted
as either WordPerfect, MSWord, or text (.TXT) files. Supporting
documentation submitted as spreadsheets are acceptable as Quattro Pro
or Excel. If any document submitted electronically contains business
confidential information, the file name of the business confidential
version should begin with the characters ``BC-,'' and the file name of
the public version should begin with the characters ``P-.'' The ``P-''
or ``BC-'' should be followed by the name of the submitter. Persons who
make submissions by e-mail should not provide separate cover letters;
information that might appear in a cover letter should be included in
the submission itself. To the extent possible, any attachments to the
submission should be included in the same file as the submission
itself, and not as separate files.
Written comments, notice of testimony, and testimony will be placed
in a file open to public inspection pursuant to 15 CFR 2003.5, except
business confidential information exempt from public inspection in
accordance with 15 CFR 2003.6. Business confidential information
submitted in accordance with 15 CFR 2003.6 must be clearly marked
``BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL'' at the top of each page, including any cover
letter or cover page, and must be accompanied by a non-confidential
summary of the confidential information. All public documents and non-
confidential summaries shall be available for public inspection in the
USTR Reading Room. The USTR Reading Room is open to the public, by
appointment only, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Monday
through Friday. An appointment to review the file must be scheduled at
least 48 hours in advance and may be made by calling (202) 395-6186.
General information concerning the Office of the United States
Trade Representative may be obtained by accessing its Internet Web site
(http://www.ustr.gov).
Carmen Suro-Bredie,
Chairman, Trade Policy Staff Committee.
[FR Doc. E6-1770 Filed 2-8-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3190-W6-P