§ 2171. Structure, functions, powers, and personnel

14,609 words·~66 min read·/usc/title-19/section-2171

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(a)Establishment within Executive Office of the President There is established within the Executive Office of the President the Office of the United States Trade Representative (hereinafter in this section referred to as the “Office”).

(b)United States Trade Representative; Deputy United States Trade Representatives

(1)The Office shall be headed by the United States Trade Representative who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. As an exercise of the rulemaking power of the Senate, any nomination of the United States Trade Representative submitted to the Senate for confirmation, and referred to a committee, shall be referred to the Committee on Finance. The United States Trade Representative shall hold office at the pleasure of the President, shall be entitled to receive the same allowances as a chief of mission, and shall have the rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.

(2)There shall be in the Office three Deputy United States Trade Representatives, one Chief Agricultural Negotiator, and one Chief Innovation and Intellectual Property Negotiator, who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. As an exercise of the rulemaking power of the Senate, any nomination of a Deputy United States Trade Representative, the Chief Agricultural Negotiator, or the Chief Innovation and Intellectual Property Negotiator submitted to the Senate for its advice and consent, and referred to a committee, shall be referred to the Committee on Finance. Each Deputy United States Trade Representative, the Chief Agricultural Negotiator, and the Chief Innovation and Intellectual Property Negotiator shall hold office at the pleasure of the President and shall have the rank of Ambassador.

(3)There shall be in the Office one Chief Transparency Officer. The Chief Transparency Officer shall consult with Congress on transparency policy, coordinate transparency in trade negotiations, engage and assist the public, and advise the United States Trade Representative on transparency policy.

(4)A person who has directly represented, aided, or advised a foreign entity (as defined by section 207(f)(3) of title 18) in any trade negotiation, or trade dispute, with the United States may not be appointed as United States Trade Representative or as a Deputy United States Trade Representative.

(A)When the President submits to the Senate for its advice and consent a nomination of an individual for appointment as a Deputy United States Trade Representative under paragraph (2), the President shall include in that submission information on the country, regional offices, and functions of the Office of the United States Trade Representative with respect to which that individual will have responsibility.

(B)The President shall notify the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate not less than 30 days prior to making any change to the responsibilities of any Deputy United States Trade Representative included in a submission under subparagraph (A), including the reason for that change.

(c)Duties of United States Trade Representative and Deputy United States Trade Representatives

(1)The United States Trade Representative shall—

(A)have primary responsibility for developing, and for coordinating the implementation of, United States international trade policy, including commodity matters, and, to the extent they are related to international trade policy, direct investment matters;

(B)serve as the principal advisor to the President on international trade policy and shall advise the President on the impact of other policies of the United States Government on international trade;

(C)have lead responsibility for the conduct of, and shall be the chief representative of the United States for, international trade negotiations, including all negotiations on any matter considered under the auspices of the World Trade Organization, commodity and direct investment negotiations, in which the United States participates;

(D)issue and coordinate policy guidance to departments and agencies on basic issues of policy and interpretation arising in the exercise of international trade functions, including any matter considered under the auspices of the World Trade Organization, to the extent necessary to assure the coordination of international trade policy and consistent with any other law;

(E)act as the principal spokesman of the President on international trade;

(F)report directly to the President and the Congress regarding, and be responsible to the President and the Congress for the administration of, trade agreements programs;

(G)advise the President and Congress with respect to nontariff barriers to international trade, international commodity agreements, and other matters which are related to the trade agreements programs;

(H)be responsible for making reports to Congress with respect to matters referred to in subparagraphs

(C)and (F);

(I)be chairman of the interagency trade organization established under section 1872(a) of this title, and shall consult with and be advised by such organization in the performance of his functions; and

(J)in addition to those functions that are delegated to the United States Trade Representative as of August 23, 1988, be responsible for such other functions as the President may direct.

(2)It is the sense of Congress that the United States Trade Representative should—

(A)be the senior representative on any body that the President may establish for the purpose of providing to the President advice on overall economic policies in which international trade matters predominate; and

(B)be included as a participant in all economic summit and other international meetings at which international trade is a major topic.

(3)The United States Trade Representative may—

(A)delegate any of his functions, powers, and duties to such officers and employees of the Office as he may designate; and

(B)authorize such successive redelegations of such functions, powers, and duties to such officers and employees of the Office as he may deem appropriate.

(4)Each Deputy United States Trade Representative shall have as his principal function the conduct of trade negotiations under this chapter and shall have such other functions as the United States Trade Representative may direct.

(5)The principal function of the Chief Agricultural Negotiator shall be to conduct trade negotiations and to enforce trade agreements relating to United States agricultural products and services. The Chief Agricultural Negotiator shall be a vigorous advocate on behalf of United States agricultural interests. The Chief Agricultural Negotiator shall perform such other functions as the United States Trade Representative may direct.

(6)The principal functions of the Chief Innovation and Intellectual Property Negotiator shall be to conduct trade negotiations and to enforce trade agreements relating to United States intellectual property and to take appropriate actions to address acts, policies, and practices of foreign governments that have a significant adverse impact on the value of United States innovation. The Chief Innovation and Intellectual Property Negotiator shall be a vigorous advocate on behalf of United States innovation and intellectual property interests. The Chief Innovation and Intellectual Property Negotiator shall perform such other functions as the United States Trade Representative may direct.

(d)Unfair trade practices; additional duties of Representative; advisory committee; definition

(1)In carrying out subsection

(c)with respect to unfair trade practices, the United States Trade Representative shall—

(A)coordinate the application of interagency resources, including resources of the Interagency Center on Trade Implementation, Monitoring, and Enforcement established under subsection (h), to specific unfair trade practice cases;

(B)identify, and refer to the appropriate Federal department or agency for consideration with respect to action, each act, policy, or practice referred to in the report required under section 2241(b) of this title, or otherwise known to the United States Trade Representative on the basis of other available information, that may be an unfair trade practice that either—

(i)is considered to be inconsistent with the provisions of any trade agreement and has a significant adverse impact on United States commerce, or

(ii)has a significant adverse impact on domestic firms or industries that are either too small or financially weak to initiate proceedings under the trade laws;

(C)identify practices having a significant adverse impact on United States commerce that the attainment of United States negotiating objectives would eliminate; and

(D)identify, on a biennial basis, those United States Government policies and practices that, if engaged in by a foreign government, might constitute unfair trade practices under United States law.

(2)For purposes of carrying out paragraph (1), the United States Trade Representative shall be assisted by an interagency unfair trade practices advisory committee composed of the Trade Representative, who shall chair the committee, and senior representatives of the following agencies, appointed by the respective heads of those agencies:

(A)The Bureau of Economics and Business Affairs of the Department of State.

(B)The United States and Foreign Commercial Services of the Department of Commerce.

(C)The International Trade Administration (other than the United States and Foreign Commercial Service) of the Department of Commerce.

(D)The Foreign Agricultural Service of the Department of Agriculture.

The United States Trade Representative may also request the advice of the United States International Trade Commission regarding the carrying out of paragraph (1).

(3)For purposes of this subsection, the term “unfair trade practice” means any act, policy, or practice that—

(A)may be a subsidy with respect to which countervailing duties may be imposed under subtitle A of title VII [19 U.S.C. 1671 et seq.];

(B)may result in the sale or likely sale of foreign merchandise with respect to which antidumping duties may be imposed under subtitle B of title VII [19 U.S.C. 1673 et seq.];

(C)may be either an unfair method of competition, or an unfair act in the importation of articles into the United States, that is unlawful under section 337 [19 U.S.C. 1337]; or

(D)may be an act, policy, or practice of a kind with respect to which action may be taken under subchapter III of this chapter.

(e)Powers of United States Trade Representative The United States Trade Representative may, for the purpose of carrying out his functions under this section—

(1)subject to the civil service and classification laws, select, appoint, employ, and fix the compensation of such officers and employees as are necessary and prescribe their authority and duties, except that not more than 20 individuals may be employed without regard to any provision of law regulating the employment or compensation at rates not to exceed the rate of pay for level IV of the Executive Schedule in section 5314 1 of title 5;

(2)employ experts and consultants in accordance with section 3109 of title 5 and compensate individuals so employed for each day (including traveltime) at rates not in excess of the maximum rate of pay for grade GS–18 as provided in section 5332 of title 5 and while such experts and consultants are so serving away from their homes or regular place of business, to pay such employees travel expenses and per diem in lieu of subsistence at rates authorized by section 5703 of title 5 for persons in Government service employed intermittently;

(3)promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry out the functions, powers and duties vested in him;

(4)utilize, with their consent, the services, personnel, and facilities of other Federal agencies;

(5)enter into and perform such contracts, leases, cooperative agreements, or other transactions as may be necessary in the conduct of the work of the Office and on such terms as the United States Trade Representative may deem appropriate, with any agency or instrumentality of the United States, or with any public or private person, firm, association, corporation, or institution;

(6)accept voluntary and uncompensated services, notwithstanding the provisions of section 1342 of title 31;

(7)adopt an official seal, which shall be judicially noticed;

(8)pay for expenses approved by him for official travel without regard to the Federal Travel Regulations or to the provisions of subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5 (relating to rates of per diem allowances in lieu of subsistence expenses);

(9)accept, hold, administer, and utilize gifts, devises, and bequests of property, both real and personal, for the purpose of aiding or facilitating the work of the Office;

(10)acquire, by purchase or exchange, not more than two passenger motor vehicles for use abroad, except that no vehicle may be acquired at a cost exceeding $9,500; and

(11)provide, where authorized by law, copies of documents to persons at cost, except that any funds so received shall be credited to, and be available for use from, the account from which expenditures relating thereto were made.

(f)Use of other Federal agencies The United States Trade Representative shall, to the extent he deems it necessary for the proper administration and execution of the trade agreements programs of the United States, draw upon the resources of, and consult with, Federal agencies in connection with the performance of his functions.

(g)Authorization of appropriations

(A)There are authorized to be appropriated to the Office for the purposes of carrying out its functions the following:

(i)$32,300,000 for fiscal year 2003.

(ii)$33,108,000 for fiscal year 2004.

(B)Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated under subparagraph

(A)for any fiscal year—

(i)not to exceed $98,000 may be used for entertainment and representation expenses of the Office; and

(ii)not to exceed $1,000,000 shall remain available until expended.

(2)For the fiscal year beginning October 1, 1982, and for each fiscal year thereafter, there are authorized to be appropriated to the Office for the salaries of its officers and employees such additional sums as may be provided by law to reflect pay rate changes made in accordance with the Federal Pay Comparability Act of 1970.

(3)By not later than the date on which the President submits to Congress the budget of the United States Government for a fiscal year, the United States Trade Representative shall submit to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate the projected amount of funds for the succeeding fiscal year that will be necessary for the Office to carry out its functions.

(h)Interagency Center on Trade Implementation, Monitoring, and Enforcement

(1)Establishment of Center There is established in the Office of the United States Trade Representative an Interagency Center on Trade Implementation, Monitoring, and Enforcement (in this section referred to as the “Center”).

(2)Functions of Center The Center shall support the activities of the United States Trade Representative in—

(A)investigating potential disputes under the auspices of the World Trade Organization;

(B)investigating potential disputes pursuant to bilateral and regional trade agreements to which the United States is a party;

(C)carrying out the functions of the United States Trade Representative under this section with respect to the monitoring and enforcement of trade agreements to which the United States is a party; and

(D)monitoring measures taken by parties to implement provisions of trade agreements to which the United States is a party.

(3)Personnel

(A)Director The head of the Center shall be a Director, who shall be appointed by the United States Trade Representative.

(B)Additional employees A Federal agency may, in consultation with and with the approval of the United States Trade Representative, detail or assign one or more employees to the Center without any reimbursement from the Center to support the functions of the Center.

(Pub. L. 93–618, title I, § 141, Jan. 3, 1975, 88 Stat. 1999; Pub. L. 97–456, § 3(a)–(d)(2), Jan. 12, 1983, 96 Stat. 2504, 2505; Pub. L. 98–573, title III, § 304(d)(2)(A), title VII, § 703, Oct. 30, 1984, 98 Stat. 3004, 3043; Pub. L. 99–272, title XIII, § 13023, Apr. 7, 1986, 100 Stat. 307; Pub. L. 99–514, title XVIII, § 1887(a)(3), (4), Oct. 22, 1986, 100 Stat. 2923; Pub. L. 100–203, title IX, § 9504, Dec. 22, 1987, 101 Stat. 1330–382; Pub. L. 100–418, title I, § 1601, Aug. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 1260;

Pub. L. 101–207, § 1(a), Dec. 7, 1989, 103 Stat. 1833; Pub. L. 101–382, title I, § 103(a), Aug. 20, 1990, 104 Stat. 634; Pub. L. 103–465, title VI, § 621(a)(8), Dec. 8, 1994, 108 Stat. 4993; Pub. L. 104–65, § 21(b), Dec. 19, 1995, 109 Stat. 704; Pub. L. 104–295, § 20(f)(1), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3529; Pub. L. 106–36, title I, § 1001(a)(2), June 25, 1999, 113 Stat. 130; Pub. L. 106–200, title IV, § 406, May 18, 2000, 114 Stat. 293; Pub. L. 107–210, div. A, title III, § 361(a), (b), Aug. 6, 2002, 116 Stat. 991;

Pub. L. 108–429, title II, § 2004(a)(15), Dec. 3, 2004, 118 Stat. 2591; Pub. L. 114–26, title I, § 104(f), June 29, 2015, 129 Stat. 342; Pub. L. 114–125, title VI, §§ 604(a), (b), 609(a), title IX, § 918, Feb. 24, 2016, 130 Stat. 185, 186, 190, 280.)