North American Free Trade Agreement:
U.S. Experience With Environment, Labor, and Investment Dispute Settlement Cases
GAO-01-933: Published: Jul 20, 2001. Publicly Released: Aug 21, 2001.
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The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which went into effect in 1994, was intended to spur trade and investment throughout North America. Separately, the three NAFTA countries--the United States, Canada, and Mexico--negotiated and entered into two side agreements, the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation and the North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation. The side agreements allow citizens and governments to raise questions about failures to effectively enforce environmental or labor laws in any of the three countries. This can be accomplished through both a submission process and a government-to-government dispute settlement process. NAFTA also provides protections for investors, such as nondiscriminatory treatment and the right to freely transfer funds related to an investment, as well as a mechanism to settle investor-state disputes through the agreement's chapter 11. This report provides information on the institutional structure, principles, process, cases, and outcomes associated with (1) the environmental side agreement's submission process, (2) the labor side agreement's submission process, and (3) NAFTA's investor-state dispute settlement mechanism. This report includes information on fines and trade sanctions under the side agreements, as well as summary date on cases filed under both the side agreements and chapter 11.
Oct 15, 2018
Afghanistan Security:
Some Improvements Reported in Afghan Forces' Capabilities, but Actions Needed to Enhance DOD Oversight of U.S.-Purchased EquipmentGAO-19-116: Published: Oct 15, 2018. Publicly Released: Oct 15, 2018.
Sep 27, 2018
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Overseas Conflicts:
U.S. Agencies Have Coordinated Stabilization Efforts but Need to Document Their AgreementGAO-18-654: Published: Sep 27, 2018. Publicly Released: Sep 27, 2018.
Sep 20, 2018
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Humanitarian Assistance:
USAID Should Improve Information Collection and Communication to Help Mitigate Implementers’ Banking ChallengesGAO-18-669: Published: Sep 20, 2018. Publicly Released: Sep 20, 2018.
Sep 18, 2018
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Immigration:
Progress and Challenges in the Management of Immigration Courts and Alternatives to Detention ProgramGAO-18-701T: Published: Sep 18, 2018. Publicly Released: Sep 18, 2018.
Sep 6, 2018
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Reported Injuries to U.S. Personnel in Cuba:
Preliminary Observations on State's Response and Management ChallengesGAO-18-695T: Published: Sep 6, 2018. Publicly Released: Sep 6, 2018.
Sep 5, 2018
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Central American Police Training:
State and USAID Should Ensure Human Rights Content Is Included as Appropriate, and State Should Improve DataGAO-18-618: Published: Sep 5, 2018. Publicly Released: Sep 5, 2018. -
Reported Injuries to U.S. Personnel in Cuba:
State Should Revise Policies to Ensure Appropriate Internal Communication of Relevant IncidentsGAO-18-615: Published: Jul 30, 2018. Publicly Released: Sep 5, 2018.
Aug 30, 2018
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Export-Import Bank:
Status of End-Use Monitoring of Dual-Use Exports as of August 2018GAO-18-683R: Published: Aug 30, 2018. Publicly Released: Aug 30, 2018.
Aug 8, 2018
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Foreign Assistance:
U.S. Assistance for the West Bank and Gaza, Fiscal Years 2015 and 2016GAO-18-612: Published: Aug 8, 2018. Publicly Released: Aug 8, 2018.
Jul 30, 2018
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Foreign Military Sales:
Financial Oversight of the Use of Overhead Funds Needs StrengtheningGAO-18-553: Published: Jul 30, 2018. Publicly Released: Jul 30, 2018.
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