Request for Public Comments on the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act and the Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act: Report to Congress, 48387-48389 [2015-19744]

Agencies

• Office of the United States Trade Representative

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 155 (Wednesday, August 12, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48387-48389]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-19744]


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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE


Request for Public Comments on the Caribbean Basin Economic 
Recovery Act and the Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act: Report to 
Congress

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR).

ACTION: Notice and request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: The Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) is seeking the views 
of interested parties on the operation of the Caribbean Basin Economic 
Recovery Act (CBERA), as amended by the Caribbean Basin Trade 
Partnership Act (CBTPA) (19 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.). Section 212(f) of the 
CBERA, as amended, requires the President to submit a report to 
Congress regarding the operation of the CBERA and CBTPA (together 
commonly referred to as the Caribbean Basin Initiative, or CBI) on or 
before December 31, 2001, and every two years thereafter. The TPSC 
invites written comments concerning the operation of the CBI, including 
comments on the performance of each CBERA and CBTPA beneficiary country 
under the criteria described in sections 212(b), 212(c), and 
213(b)(5)(B) of CBERA, as amended. This information will be used in the 
preparation of the report to Congress on the operation of the program.

DATES: Public comments are due at USTR no later than 5 p.m., October 5, 
2015.

ADDRESSES: USTR strongly prefers electronic submissions made at https://www.regulations.gov, docket number USTR-2015-0008 (see ``Requirements 
for Submission'' below). If you are unable to make a submission at 
www.regulations.gov, please contact Yvonne Jamison at (202) 395-9603 to 
make other arrangements.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For procedural questions concerning 
written comments, contact Yvonne Jamison, Office of the United States 
Trade Representative, at (202) 395-9666. All other questions should be 
directed to Duncan Walker, Office of the Western Hemisphere, Office of 
the United States Trade Representative, 600 17th Street NW., Room 523, 
Washington, DC 20508. The telephone number is (202) 395-6135.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Interested parties are invited to submit 
comments on any aspect of the program's operation, including the 
performance of CBERA and CBTPA beneficiary countries under the criteria 
described in sections 212(b), 212(c), and 213(b)(5)(B) of the CBERA, as 
amended. Those criteria may be accessed at https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/USCODE-2011-title19/html/USCODE-2011-title19-chap15.htm and are 
listed below. This report will also examine the CBI's effect on the 
volume and composition of trade and investment between the United 
States and the CBI beneficiary countries and on advancing U.S. trade 
policy goals as set forth in the CBTPA. Barbados, Belize, Guyana, 
Haiti, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, and Trinidad and Tobago receive benefits 
under both CBERA and CBTPA. Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, the Bahamas, 
British Virgin Islands, Curacao, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint 
Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines currently receive 
benefits only under CBERA. A copy of the 2013 CBI report is available 
at https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/CBERA%20Report%20Final.pdf.

Reporting Requirements on the Eligibility Criteria for All CBI 
Beneficiary Countries

    Section 212(f)(1) of CBERA requires USTR to report the performance 
of each beneficiary country or CBTPA beneficiary country under the 
criteria of section 213(b)(5)(B) which includes, inter alia, the 
following:
    (1) Whether the beneficiary country has demonstrated a commitment 
to undertake its obligations under the World Trade Organization (WTO) 
on or ahead of schedule and participate in negotiations toward the 
completion of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) or another 
free trade agreement.
    (2) The extent to which the country provides protection of 
intellectual property rights consistent with or greater than the 
protection afforded under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of 
Intellectual Property Rights.
    (3) The extent to which the country provides internationally 
recognized worker rights including--
    (I) The right of association;
    (II) The right to organize and bargain collectively;
    (III) A prohibition on the use of any form of forced or compulsory 
labor;
    (IV) A minimum age for the employment of children; and
    (V) Acceptable conditions of work with respect to minimum wages, 
hours of work, and occupational safety and health.
    (4) Whether the country has implemented its commitments to 
eliminate the worst forms of child labor, as defined in Section 507(6) 
of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended.
    (5) The extent to which the country has met U.S. counter-narcotics 
certification criteria under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.
    (6) The extent to which the country has taken steps to become a 
party to and implement the Inter-American Convention Against 
Corruption.
    (7) The extent to which the country applies transparent, 
nondiscriminatory and competitive procedures in

[[Page 48388]]

government procurement, and contributes to efforts in international 
fora to develop and implement rules on transparency in government 
procurement.
    Section 212(f)(1), also requires the USTR to report the results of 
the general review of the beneficiary countries under sections 212(b) 
and (c) of CBERA. Pursuant to Section 212(b), of the CBERA, the 
President may not designate any country a CBI beneficiary country in 
the following circumstances:
    (1) if such country is a Communist country;
    (2) if such country--
    (A) has nationalized, expropriated or otherwise seized ownership or 
control of property owned by a United States citizen or by a 
corporation, partnership, or association which is 50 per centum or more 
beneficially owned by United States citizens,
    (B) has taken steps to repudiate or nullify--
    (i) any existing contract or agreement with, or
    (ii) any patent, trademark, or other intellectual property of, a 
United States citizen or a corporation, partnership, or association 
which is 50 per centum or more beneficially owned by United States 
citizens, the effect of which is to nationalize, expropriate, or 
otherwise seize ownership or control of property so owned, or
    (C) has imposed or enforced taxes or other exactions, restrictive 
maintenance or operational conditions, or other measures with respect 
to property so owned, the effect of which is to nationalize, 
expropriate, or otherwise seize ownership or control of such property, 
unless the President determines that--
    (i) prompt, adequate, and effective compensation has been or is 
being made to such citizen, corporation, partnership, or association,
    (ii) good-faith negotiations to provide prompt, adequate, and 
effective compensation under the applicable provisions of international 
law are in progress, or such country is otherwise taking steps to 
discharge its obligations under international law with respect to such 
citizen, corporation, partnership, or association, or
    (iii) a dispute involving such citizen, corporation, partnership, 
or association, over compensation for such a seizure has been submitted 
to arbitration under the provisions of the Convention for the 
Settlement of Investment Disputes, or in another mutually agreed upon 
forum, and promptly furnishes a copy of such determination to the 
Senate and House of Representatives;
    (3) if such country fails to act in good faith in recognizing as 
binding or in enforcing arbitral awards in favor of United States 
citizens or a corporation, partnership or association which is 50 per 
centum or more beneficially owned by United States citizens, which have 
been made by arbitrators appointed for each case or by permanent 
arbitral bodies to which the parties involved have submitted their 
dispute;
    (4) if such country affords preferential treatment to the products 
of a developed country, other than the United States, which has, or is 
likely to have, a significant adverse effect on United States commerce, 
unless the President has received assurances satisfactory to him that 
such preferential treatment will be eliminated or that action will be 
taken to assure that there will be no such significant adverse effect, 
and he reports those assurances to the Congress;
    (5) if a government-owned entity in such country engages in the 
broadcast of copyrighted material, including films or television 
material, belonging to United States copyright owners without their 
express consent;
    (6) unless such country is a signatory to a treaty, convention, 
protocol, or other agreement regarding the extradition of United States 
citizens; and
    (7) if such country has not or is not taking steps to afford 
internationally recognized worker rights (as defined in section 2467(4) 
of this title) to workers in the country (including any designated zone 
in that country).
    Section 212(c) of CBERA requires the President to take into 
account, inter alia, the following factors:
    (1) Whether the beneficiary country has demonstrated a commitment 
to undertake its obligations under the World Trade Organization (WTO) 
on or ahead of schedule and participate in negotiations toward the 
completion of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) or another 
free trade agreement.
    (2) The extent to which the country provides protection of 
intellectual property rights consistent with or greater than the 
protection afforded under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of 
Intellectual Property Rights.
    (3) The extent to which the country provides internationally 
recognized worker rights including--
    (I) The right of association;
    (II) The right to organize and bargain collectively;
    (III) A prohibition on the use of any form of forced or compulsory 
labor;
    (IV) A minimum age for the employment of children; and
    (V) Acceptable conditions of work with respect to minimum wages, 
hours of work, and occupational safety and health.
    (4) Whether the country has implemented its commitments to 
eliminate the worst forms of child labor, as defined in Section 507(6) 
of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended.
    (5) The extent to which the country has met U.S. counter-narcotics 
certification criteria under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.
    (6) The extent to which the country has taken steps to become a 
party to and implement the Inter-American Convention Against 
Corruption.
    (7) The extent to which the country applies transparent, 
nondiscriminatory and competitive procedures in government procurement, 
and contributes to efforts in international fora to develop and 
implement rules on transparency in government procurement.
    Requirements for Submissions. All comments must be submitted in 
English and must identify (on the first page of the submission) the 
subject matter of the comment as the ``CBI Report to Congress.'' In 
order to be assured of consideration, comments should be submitted by 
October 5, 2015.
    In order to ensure the timely receipt and consideration of 
comments, USTR strongly encourages commenters to make on-line 
submissions via https://www.regulations.gov . To submit comments via 
this Web site, enter the docket: USTR-2015-0008 on the home page and 
click ``go.'' The site will provide a search-results page listing all 
documents associated with this docket. Find a reference to this notice 
on the search-results page, 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 the ``How to Use This Site''.)
    The Web site offers the option of providing comments by filling in 
a ``Type Comment'' field or by attaching a document using the ``Upload 
file(s)'' field. We expect that most submissions will be provided in an 
attached document. If a document is attached, it is sufficient to type 
``See attached'' in the ``Type Comment'' field.
    Submissions in Microsoft Word (.doc) or Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) are 
preferred. If an application other than those two is used, please 
identify in your submission the specific application used. For any 
comments submitted electronically containing business confidential 
information, the file name of the business confidential version should

[[Page 48389]]

begin with the characters ``BC'' and must be submitted separately from 
the public version. Any page containing business confidential 
information must be clearly marked ``BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL'' on the top 
of that page. If you file comments containing business confidential 
information you must also submit a public version of the comments under 
a separate submission. 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. If you submit 
comments that contain no business confidential information, the file 
name should begin with the name of the person or entity submitting the 
comments. Electronic submissions should not attach separate cover 
letters; rather, information that might appear in a cover letter should 
be included in the comments you submit. Similarly, to the extent 
possible, please include any exhibits, annexes, or other attachments to 
a submission in the same file as the submission itself and not as 
separate files.
    We strongly urge submitters to use electronic filing. If an on-line 
submission is impossible, alternative arrangements must be made with 
Ms. Jamison prior to delivery for the receipt of such submissions. Ms. 
Jamison may be contacted at (202) 395-9666. General information 
concerning the Office of the United States Trade Representative may be 
obtained by accessing its Web site: https://www.ustr.gov.

John Melle,
Assistant United States Trade Representative for the Western 
Hemisphere.
[FR Doc. 2015-19744 Filed 8-11-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3290-F5-P