Office of the United States Trade Representative November 19, 2019 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is announcing a hearing for the GSP country practice reviews of Azerbaijan, Ecuador, Georgia, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Thailand, South Africa, and Uzbekistan, and the country designation review of Laos. These reviews will focus on whether: (1) Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan are meeting the GSP eligibility criterion requiring that a GSP beneficiary country afford workers in that country internationally recognized worker rights; (2) Ecuador is meeting the GSP eligibility criterion requiring a GSP beneficiary country to act in good faith in recognizing as binding or in enforcing applicable arbitral awards; (3) Indonesia and South Africa are meeting the GSP eligibility criterion requiring adequate and effective protection of intellectual property rights; (4) Indonesia and Thailand are meeting the GSP eligibility criterion requiring a GSP beneficiary country to provide equitable and reasonable access to its markets and basic commodity resources; and (5) Laos meets all of the GSP eligibility criteria and should be newly designated as a GSP beneficiary country. This notice includes the schedule for submission of public comments and a public hearing.