TRADE NEWS BULLETIN Volume 2 Number 153 Wednesday, August 25, 1993 Headlines: APPEALS JUDGES HEAR ARGUMENTS OVER EIS AND NAFTA NAFTA SHOULD BE HIGHER PRIORITY THAN HEALTH CARE, SOME SAY U.S. BUSINESSES CRITICAL OF URUGUAY ROUND FRANCE, GERMANY SEEKING GATT, BUT PROBLEMS REMAIN ________________________________________________________ NAFTA News Summary ________________________________________________________ APPEALS JUDGES HEAR ARGUMENTS OVER EIS AND NAFTA Federal appeals court judges seemed to doubt the need for an environmental impact statement (EIS) for NAFTA. In the first day of oral arguments, the judges appeared to sympathize with the Clinton administration's claim that the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is part of the executive branch and thus exempt from federal environmental law. "Did President Clinton apply an environmental impact statement when he proposed his new tax plan?" asked Judge A. Raymond Randolph at one point during the hearing. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires the government to conduct an EIS for all major government actions. The plaintiffs, Public Citizen, Greenpeace USA and Friends of the Earth, argued that as a federal agency, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative must comply with NEPA. The groups contend an impact statement is necessary to fully inform Congress and the public about NAFTA's impact on the environment and the safety of our food. "This case is really about how environmental and health impacts of trade pacts will be assessed and accounted for into the future. Preparing environmental impact statements for trade agreements is the best way to ensure that the agreements do not undermine our environmental and consumer laws," said Patti Goldman, senior litigator for Public Citizen. Source: Richard B. Schmitt, "Appeals Judges Skeptical of Claims NAFTA Requires Environmental Study," WALL STREET JOURNAL, August 25, 1993; "Round II: NAFTA Environmental Impact Statement Case," PUBLIC CITIZEN NEWS RELEASE, August 24, 1993; Keith Bradsher, "U.S. Appeals Trade-Accord Requirement," NEW YORK TIMES, August 25, 1993. ________________________________________________________ NAFTA SHOULD BE HIGHER PRIORITY THAN HEALTH CARE, SOME SAY A growing number of NAFTA supporters are encouraging President Clinton to make passage of the trade pact a top priority, even higher than health care reform. In an editorial last week, the WALL STREET JOURNAL faulted Clinton for emphasizing health care reform over NAFTA. The newspaper said Clinton should put his energy behind something that will help "bridge the chasm of credibility this administration has with the business community. The agreement would offer a much-needed respite from the mantra of taxes, regulation and threats of price controls. Business leaders need some sign that this administration, not to mention the Democratic Party, can act rationally in the presence of a serious economic issue." Source: "NAFTA Before Health," WALL STREET JOURNAL, August 18, 1993. ________________________________________________________ GATT News Summary ________________________________________________________ U.S. BUSINESSES CRITICAL OF URUGUAY ROUND Many U.S. businesses are seeking extensive changes in the current negotiating text for completing the Uruguay Round of GATT. The companies claim the proposal, known as the Dunkel draft, fails to protect U.S. laws against unfair trading practices and does little to provide its own mechanism for curtailing such practices. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce last week sent John Schmidt, the U.S. coordinator for multilateral trade negotiations, a list of "our perceptions of the shortcomings of the Dunkel draft." Among the complaints was that the text "significantly benefits the interests of respondents in anti-dumping investigations and significantly prejudices domestic petitioners." The Chamber also wants further tariff reductions in certain sectors. Source: Nancy Dunne, "US Critics Hit at Uruguay Round Draft," FINANCIAL TIMES, August 25, 1993. ________________________________________________________ FRANCE, GERMANY SEEKING GATT, BUT PROBLEMS REMAIN The foreign ministers of France and Germany expressed their desire to complete the Uruguay Round of GATT by the end of the year. "The will to find a solution is stronger than ever," said French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe after a day of informal talks in Dresden. Juppe, however, repeated his government's displeasure with an EC- U.S. farm trade agreement seen as a key to concluding GATT talks. France has suggested renegotiating the deal, also known as the Blair House accord. Anything less would certainly trigger massive protests by French farmers, some of whom are already planning to blockade Paris on September 15. German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel rejected reopening farm talks with the United States. "We are interested in seeing that the Blair House package is not opened up," Kinkel said. Juppe said French Prime Minister Edouard Balladur would present new French proposals on farm trade to German Chancellor Helmut Kohl in Bonn on Thursday. Sources: Quentin Peel, "Kinkel, Juppe in GATT Talks Pledge," FINANCIAL TIMES, August 25, 1993; "France Seeks German Support for New GATT Proposals," REUTER, August 24, 1993; William Drozdiak, "French, German Leaders Struggle to Repair Their Damaged Alliance," WASHINGTON POST, August 25, 1993. ________________________________________________________ Resources: STATE AND MUNICIPAL LEGISLATION OPPOSING NAFTA, Center for Policy Alternatives, 1875 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 710, Washington, D.C., 20009. For a free copy, call Bill Rice at (202) 387- 6030. ________________________________________________________ Editor: Kai Mander The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) 1313 Fifth Street SE, Suite #303 Minneapolis, MN 55414-1546 USA Telephone:(612)379-5980 Fax:(612)379-5982 E-Mail:kmander@igc.apc.org ________________________________________________________