Expanding Consultations with Trade Stakeholders

USTR leads the interagency trade policy process and depends on input from other agencies, Congress, and the private sector to identify U.S. interests, weigh competing considerations, formulate U.S. trade policy, negotiate agreements, and represent the United States in international trade forums. Its process for obtaining this input could be improved.

• USTR must ensure that it obtains input from a representative and balanced group of stakeholders and that the information it provides to key stakeholders is timely, complete, and accessible. However, GAO has found several weaknesses in this regard.
• Although Congress must sometimes approve the trade agreements USTR negotiates, some in Congress have expressed dissatisfaction with the timing and extent of USTR's efforts to consult with them and frustration with USTR's negotiating priorities. Three controversial free trade agreements have yet to obtain congressional approval.
• Private-sector representatives have also expressed concerns about USTR's efforts to consult with them.
  Highlights of GAO-08-59 (PDF), Full Report of GAO-02-876 (PDF, 114 pages)

• Moreover, the lapse of Trade Promotion Authority means there is not agreed congressional guidance on U.S. trade agreement objectives nor a requirement that trade advisory committee reports on pending trade agreements be provided to Congress.

  Full Report of GAO-09-842T (PDF)

Notably, attaining balanced representation among key stakeholders remains a challenge for USTR's management of the trade advisory system (see figure 1). For example, the U.S. approach to issues, concerning access to medicines involves agencies with public health roles, such as Health and Human Services and the U.S. Agency for International Development,as well as agencies such as Commerce that focus on U.S. commercial interests. However, few noncommercial interests are part of the trade advisory system committees whose work is most pertinent to that issue.

Highlights of GAO-07-1198 (PDF)

Figure 1: Trade Advisory Committee System

^ Back to topWhat Needs to Be Done

• To facilitate better consultations with Congress, USTR should identify ways to provide congressional staff with better access to information and reach agreements with the committees of jurisdiction to ensure they have enough time to provide meaningful input.
• To facilitate better consultations with the private sector, USTR should work with the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, and Labor to improve the transparency and accountability of the trade advisory committees' composition and improve the timeliness of rechartering these committees.

  Highlights of GAO-08-59 (PDF)

• To help improve trade advisory committee operations, Congress may wish to consider clarifying its intent regarding how to apply the Federal Advisory Committee Act fair balance requirement to the trade advisory committee system.

  Full Report of GAO-02-876 (PDF)

• If Congress disagrees with USTR's interpretation and implementation of its guidance regarding the intersection between public health concerns and intellectual property protection, it should more clearly specify its intentions for trade policy and for obtaining public health policy input.

  Highlights of GAO-07-1198 (PDF)

USTR has made several changes to the trade advisory committee system in response to GAO’s reports that have strengthened the process. For example, USTR created a secure web site to allow all cleared advisors better access to important trade documents. In addition, USTR has made changes to the rechartering process to avoid a repeat of lapses in the ability of the committees to meet to provide input to the Executive Branch. USTR’s annual report and agency websites for the trade advisory system have clarified members’ affiliations and added some explanation of how members are chosen and the balance of interests represented. Rechartering of committees is being used to diversify membership. GAO continues to monitor whether the changes being implemented will fully address the problems.

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International Trade

International Trade

Intellectual Property

International Trade

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