[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 152 (Monday, August 8, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48202-48204]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-20039]


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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE


Trade Policy Staff Committee; 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.

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, as the case may be, under the criteria described in sections 
212(b), 212(c), and

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213(b)(5)(B) of the CBERA, as amended. This information will be used in 
the preparation of a report to the U.S. Congress on the operation of 
the program.

DATES: Public comments are due at USTR no later than 5 p.m., September 
16, 2011.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kent Shigetomi, Office of the 
Americas, Office of the United States Trade Representative, 600 17th 
Street, NW., Room 523, Washington, DC 20508. The telephone number is 
(202) 395-3412.

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, as the case may 
be, under the criteria described in sections 212(b), 212(c), and 
213(b)(5)(B) of the CBERA, as amended, and provided below. Other issues 
to be examined in this report include: The CBI's effect on the volume 
and composition of trade and investment between the United States and 
the Caribbean Basin beneficiary countries; and its effect on advancing 
U.S. trade policy goals as set forth in the CBTPA. The following 
countries are both CBERA and CBTPA beneficiary countries: Barbados, 
Belize, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Panama, Saint Lucia, and Trinidad and 
Tobago. Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, The Bahamas, British Virgin 
Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint 
Vincent and the Grenadines currently receive benefits only under CBERA. 
The Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, 
and Costa Rica ceased to be designated as beneficiary countries when 
the Dominican Republic--Central America--United States Free Trade 
Agreement (CAFTA-DR) entered into force for each country. The CAFTA-DR 
entered into force for El Salvador on March 1, 2006; for Honduras on 
April 1, 2006; for Nicaragua on April 1, 2006; for Guatemala on July 1, 
2006; for the Dominican Republic on March 1, 2007; and for Costa Rica 
on January 1, 2009.

Eligibility Criteria for CBTPA Beneficiary Countries (Section 
213(b)(5)(B) of CBERA)

    In determining whether to designate a country as a CBTPA 
beneficiary country, the President must take into account the criteria 
contained in sections 212(b) and (c) of CBERA, and other appropriate 
criteria, including 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 government procurement, 
and contributes to efforts in international fora to develop and 
implement rules on transparency in government procurement.
    Additionally, before a country can receive benefits under the 
CBTPA, the President must also determine that the country has satisfied 
the requirements of section 213(b)(4)(A)(ii) of CBERA (19 U.S.C. 
2703(b)(4)(A)(ii)) relating to the implementation of procedures and 
requirements similar in all material aspects to the relevant procedures 
and requirements contained in chapter 5 of the North American Free 
Trade Agreement.
    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 
September 16, 2011.
    In order to ensure the timely receipt and consideration of 
comments, USTR strongly encourages commenters to make on-line 
submissions, using the http://www.regulations.gov Web site. Comments 
should be submitted under the following docket: USTR-2011-0004. To find 
the docket, enter the docket number in the ``Enter Keyword or ID'' 
window at the http://www.regulations.gov home page and click 
``Search.'' The site will provide a search-results page listing all 
documents associated with this docket. Find a reference to this notice 
by selecting ``Notices''' under ``Document Type'' on the search-results 
page, and click on the link entitled ``Submit a Comment.'' (For further 
information on using the www.regulations.gov Web site, please consult 
the resources provided on the Web site by clicking on the ``Help'' 
tab.)
    The http://www.regulations.gov Web site provides the option of 
making submissions by filling in a comments field, or by attaching a 
document. USTR prefers submissions to be provided in an attached 
document. If a document is attached, it is sufficient to type ``See 
attached'' in the ``Type comment & Upload File'' field. USTR prefers 
submissions in Microsoft Word (.doc) or Adobe Acrobat (.pdf). If the 
submission is in an application other than those two, please indicate 
the name of the application in the ``Comments'' field.
    For any comments submitted electronically containing business 
confidential information, the file name of the business confidential 
version should begin with the characters ``BC''. The top of any page 
containing business confidential information must be clearly marked 
``Business Confidential''. Any person filing comments that contain 
business confidential information must also file in a separate 
submission a public version of the comments. 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 a comment contains no business confidential 
information, the file name should begin with the character ``P'', 
followed by the name of the person or entity submitting the comment.
    Please do not attach separate cover letters to electronic 
submissions; rather, include any information that might appear in a 
cover letter in the comments themselves. Similarly, to the extent 
possible please include any exhibits, annexes, or other attachments in 
the same file as the submission itself, not as separate files.

Public Inspection of Submissions

    Comments will be placed in the docket and open to public inspection 
pursuant to 15 CFR 2006.13, except

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confidential business information exempt from public inspection in 
accordance with 15 CFR 2006.15. Comments may be viewed on the http://www.regulations.gov Web site by entering docket number USTR-2011-0004 
in the search field on the home page.
    USTR strongly urges submitters to file comments through 
regulations.gov, if at all possible. Any alternative arrangements must 
be made with Laura Newport in advance of transmitting a comment. Ms. 
Newport should be contacted at (202) 395-9666. General information 
concerning USTR is available at http://www.ustr.gov.

Donald W. Eiss,
Acting Chair, Trade Policy Staff Committee.
[FR Doc. 2011-20039 Filed 8-5-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3190-W1-P