Sec. 301. Congressional findings and purpose
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Congress finds the following: The United States joined the World Trade Organization as an original member with the goal of creating an improved global trading system and providing expanded economic opportunities for United States workers, farmers, and businesses. The dispute settlement rules of the WTO were created to enhance the likelihood that governments will observe their WTO obligations. These dispute settlement rules help ensure that the United States can reap the full benefits of its participation in the WTO.
Successful operation of the WTO dispute settlement system was critical to congressional approval of the Uruguay Round Agreements and is critical to continued support by the United States for the WTO. In particular, it is imperative that dispute settlement panels and the Appellate Body— operate with fairness and in an impartial manner; strictly observe the terms of reference and any applicable standard of review set forth in the Uruguay Round Agreements; and not add to the obligations, or diminish the rights, of WTO members under the Uruguay Round Agreements in violation of Articles 3.2 and 19.2 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding.
An increasing number of reports by dispute settlement panels and the Appellate Body have raised serious concerns within the Congress about the ability of the WTO dispute settlement system to operate in accordance with paragraph (4). In particular, several reports of dispute settlement panels and the Appellate Body have added to the obligations and diminished the rights of WTO members, particularly under the Agreement on Implementation of Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994, the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, and the Agreement on Safeguards.
In order to come into compliance with reports of dispute settlement panels and the Appellate Body that have been adopted by the Dispute Settlement Body, the Congress may need to amend or repeal statutes of the United States. In such cases, the Congress must have a high degree of confidence that the reports are in accordance with paragraph (4). The Congress needs impartial, objective, and juridical advice to determine the appropriate response to reports of dispute settlement panels and the Appellate Body.
The United States remains committed to the multilateral, rules-based trading system. It is the purpose of this Act to provide for the establishment of the Congressional Advisory Commission on WTO Dispute Settlement to provide objective and impartial advice to the Congress on the operation of the dispute settlement system of the World Trade Organization.