I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2067 

To improve the coordination of programs to provide trade capacity building 

assistance, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 3, 2019 

Mr. GUEST introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Foreign Affairs 

A BILL 

To improve the coordination of programs to provide trade 

capacity building assistance, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Aid for Trade Act of 

5 2019’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress makes the following findings: 

8 (1) Productive international trading relation9 ships are vital to the economic growth and national 

10 security of the United States. 


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1 (2) According to the United States Agency for 

2 International Development, 11 of America’s top 15 

3 trading partners were once recipients of United 

4 States foreign assistance, and some of the fastest 

5 growing markets are former recipients of United 

6 States foreign assistance. 

7 (3) Stable trading relationships promote secu8 rity and prosperity, and leadership by the United 

9 States in international trade fosters the expansion of 

10 open markets and can help level the playing field for 

11 United States businesses, workers, and consumers in 

12 the global marketplace. 

13 (4) Programs to provide trade capacity building 

14 assistance strengthen good governance, advance rule 

15 of law, combat corruption, promote human rights, 

16 reduce poverty, and spur economic opportunity. 

17 (5) Private-sector-led trade and investment are 

18 fundamental components of inclusive growth and de19 velopment. Programs to provide trade capacity build20 ing assistance help developing countries to reduce 

21 and eliminate nontariff trade barriers that inhibit 

22 the ability of such countries to implement trade 

23 agreements, participate in the global economy, cre24 ate jobs and economic opportunity, and reduce pov25 erty. 


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1 (6) Reducing trade transaction costs through 

2 trade capacity improvements and trade facilitation 

3 reforms will assist United States exporters and small 

4 and medium-size enterprises reach new customers in 

5 developing countries. Reducing these costs through 

6 trade facilitation reforms will assist developing coun7 try businesses to trade and invest with each other 

8 and take advantage of global supply and value 

9 chains. 

10 (7) According to the United States Trade Rep11 resentative, ‘‘the United States is one of the largest 

12 single-country providers of trade-related assistance’’ 

13 (also called trade capacity building assistance or 

14 ‘‘Aid for Trade’’). 

15 (8) At the 9th Ministerial of the World Trade 

16 Organization in Bali, Indonesia, in December 2013, 

17 the 159 members of the World Trade Organization 

18 (WTO) concluded the Trade Facilitation Agreement 

19 (TFA), the first global WTO trade agreement in 20 

20 years. WTO members amended the WTO agree21 ments to include the TFA on November 27, 2014, 

22 and opened it for acceptance by WTO members. The 

23 TFA entered into force on February 22, 2017, after 

24 ratification by two-thirds of the WTO membership. 


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1 (9) The TFA includes measures and obligations 

2 designed to streamline customs procedures, increase 

3 customs transparency, and speed the flow of goods 

4 across borders. 

5 (10) According to the Organization for Eco6 nomic Cooperation and Development (OECD), full 

7 implementation of the TFA could reduce trade costs 

8 by as much as an estimated 16.5 percent of low in9 come countries, 17 percent for lower-middle income 

10 countries, 14.6 percent for upper-middle income 

11 countries, and 11.8 percent for OECD countries. 

12 (11) The OECD has noted that trade barriers 

13 created by ineffective policies and burdensome rules 

14 and procedures can incentivize corrupt business 

15 practices, and therefore all relevant stakeholders 

16 have an interest in supporting efforts to streamline 

17 trade regulation and reduce non-tariff barriers. 

18 (12) The TFA requires developing countries to 

19 identify impediments to trade facilitation and com20 mits developed countries to assist developing coun21 tries’ efforts to come into compliance with the obli22 gations of the TFA. 

23 (13) The United States is the largest provider 

24 of trade capacity building assistance in the world, 

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1 national Development. In 2017, the United States 

2 Government obligated nearly $1,100,000,000 in 

3 trade capacity building efforts in over 130 countries, 

4 which were implemented by more than a dozen 

5 United States Government departments and agen6 cies. 

7 (14) There is no single coordinating agency for 

8 trade capacity building activities in the United 

9 States Government. Each agency has its own proc10 esses for ensuring proper and effective programming 

11 of its appropriated funds. 

12 (15) A clear, whole-of-government strategy is 

13 needed to leverage and coordinate limited trade ca14 pacity funds to implement the TFA, advance pro15 ductive international trading relationships for United 

16 States businesses, workers, consumers, foreign trad17 ing partners, and promote inclusive economic growth 

18 and opportunity in developing countries. 

19 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

20 In this Act: 

21 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT22 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com23 mittees’’ means— 

24 (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 

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1 mittee on Appropriations of the House of Rep2 resentatives; and 

3 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations, 

4 the Committee on Finance, and the Committee 

5 on Appropriations of the Senate. 

6 (2) PRIVATE SECTOR.—The term ‘‘private sec7 tor’’ means for-profit United States businesses and 

8 not-for-profit entities. 

9 (3) TRADE CAPACITY BUILDING ASSISTANCE.— 

10 The term ‘‘trade capacity building assistance’’ 

11 means United States bilateral, regional, or multilat12 eral assistance, the primary purpose of which is to 

13 support the following activities for developing coun14 tries: 

15 (A) Technical assistance to assist in acced16 ing, implementing, and adhering to inter17 national trade agreements, including trade pol18 icy development, trade negotiations assistance, 

19 administrative management of trade obliga20 tions, regulatory reform related to trade agree21 ments, and trade-related education. 

22 (B) Technical assistance to improve gov23 ernance and transparency with respect to im24 ports, exports, and international investment, inVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2067.IH H2067

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1 cluding improvement of the investment climate 

2 and investor protections. 

3 (C) Technical assistance to enable micro-, 

4 small-, and medium-size enterprises to trade 

5 and access markets more efficiently. 

6 (D) Technical assistance to establish and 

7 implement internationally recognized standards. 

8 (E) Assistance to reduce nontariff barriers 

9 to trade at national borders, including technical 

10 assistance to reform and modernize customs op11 erations and procedures and to expedite the 

12 movement, release, and clearance of goods, in13 cluding goods in transit. 

14 (F) Assistance that will contribute directly 

15 and substantially to facilitating trade flows. 

16 (4) RELEVANT EXECUTIVE BRANCH AGEN17 CIES.—The term ‘‘relevant executive branch agen18 cies’’ means any Federal department or agency that 

19 the President determines to be substantially involved 

20 in programs to provide trade capacity building as21 sistance. 

22 SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 

23 It is the policy of the United States to— 


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1 (1) set strategic priorities for the efficient use 

2 of programs to provide trade capacity building as3 sistance; 

4 (2) build self-sustaining institutional capacity in 

5 developing countries for expanding international 

6 trade to accelerate inclusive, broad-based economic 

7 growth, poverty reduction, and development, con8 sistent with international obligations and commit9 ments; and 

10 (3) further the national interests of the United 

11 States by— 

12 (A) expanding prosperity through the 

13 elimination of barriers to trade and investment 

14 in developing countries; 

15 (B) assisting developing country trading 

16 partners to identify and reduce barriers to the 

17 movement of goods in international commerce 

18 and to investment; 

19 (C) assisting developing country trading 

20 partners in undertaking reforms that will en21 courage economic growth and development; and 

22 (D) supporting businesses in developing 

23 countries to engage in reform efforts to increase 

24 trade and investment, and integrate into global 

25 supply chains. 


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1 SEC. 5. COORDINATION AND SUPERVISION OF PROGRAMS 

2 TO PROVIDE TRADE CAPACITY BUILDING AS3 SISTANCE. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi5 sion of law, the Secretary of State, in consultation with 

6 the Administrator of the United States Agency for Inter7 national Development and the United States Trade Rep8 resentative, shall— 

9 (1) have primary responsibility for overseeing 

10 and carrying out programs to provide trade capacity 

11 building assistance; 

12 (2) give priority to programs to provide such 

13 assistance for any developing country that— 

14 (A) has demonstrated progress in, and a 

15 commitment to, implementing the commitments 

16 under the World Trade Organization’s Trade 

17 Facilitation Agreement, including the establish18 ment and maintenance of a national committee 

19 on trade facilitation and other relevant trade 

20 obligations and commitments, taking into ac21 counts the country’s capacity building assist22 ance needs; 

23 (B) has demonstrated consistent support 

24 for economic policies that promote the develop25 ment of private enterprise; 


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1 (C) has expressed an interest in entering 

2 into a free trade agreement with the United 

3 States; 

4 (D) is designated by the President— 

5 (i) as an eligible sub-Saharan African 

6 country under the African Growth and Op7 portunity Act (19 U.S.C. 3703); or 

8 (ii) as a beneficiary developing coun9 try under section 502 or 506A of the 

10 Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2462 or 

11 2466a); or 

12 (E) has the potential to benefit the private 

13 sector and United States economy if such as14 sistance is provided to the developing country; 

15 and 

16 (3) ensure that programs to provide trade ca17 pacity building assistance by relevant executive 

18 branch agencies are coordinate and not duplicated. 

19 (b) INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE ON TRADE CAPACITY

20 BUILDING.— 

21 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 60 days 

22 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Presi23 dent shall establish an interagency task force to im24 prove the effectiveness and efficiency of programs to 

25 provide trade capacity building assistance. 


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1 (2) CHAIRPERSON; VICE CHAIRPERSON.—The 

2 Secretary of State, or the Secretary’s designee, shall 

3 serve as chairperson of the interagency task force. 

4 The Administrator of the United States Agency for 

5 International Development, or the Administrator’s 

6 designee, and the United States Trade Representa7 tive, or the Trade Representative’s designee, and 

8 shall serve as vice chairpersons of the interagency 

9 task force. 

10 (3) MEMBERSHIP.—The President shall appoint 

11 to the interagency task force senior officials of— 

12 (A) the Department of Commerce; 

13 (B) the Department of Agriculture; 

14 (C) the Department of the Treasury; 

15 (D) the Department of Homeland Security, 

16 including at least one such senior official of 

17 U.S. Customs and Border Protection; 

18 (E) the Millennium Challenge Corporation; 

19 (F) the United States Trade and Develop20 ment Agency; and 

21 (G) other relevant executive branch agen22 cies. 

23 (4) BUDGET REVIEW AND RECOMMENDATION

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1 nation with the Director of the Office of Manage2 ment and Budget, shall— 

3 (A) review the expenditures of each of rel4 evant executive branch agency with respect to 

5 programs to provide trade capacity building as6 sistance; and 

7 (B) report and make recommendations to 

8 the President on appropriate budget allocations 

9 to each such relevant executive branch agency 

10 with respect to programs to provide trade ca11 pacity building assistance. 

12 (5) JOINT STRATEGIC PLAN.—The interagency 

13 task force, in consultation with relevant chiefs of 

14 mission and representatives of the private sector, 

15 shall develop a biennial joint strategic plan for pro16 grams to provide trade capacity building assistance 

17 that establishes detailed and clear objectives, com18 mon metrics, and specific goals for the efficient de19 livery of such assistance, including— 

20 (A) improving the effectiveness and effi21 ciency of such assistance by improving coordi22 nation among— 

23 (i) relevant executive branch agencies, 

24 including diplomatic missions of the United 

25 States; and 


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1 (ii) international trade capacity build2 ing and technical assistance donors, includ3 ing efforts to promote the best use of re4 sources and avoid duplication, to share 

5 best practices, and to pursue regional solu6 tions and common approaches, as appro7 priate; 

8 (B) improving consultation with the pri9 vate sector to incorporate its operational exper10 tise and experience with respect to the full 

11 range of trade barriers in developing countries 

12 and setting priorities and target particular bar13 riers for reform; 

14 (C) identifying and addressing structural 

15 weaknesses, systemic flaws, or other impedi16 ments to the effectiveness of such assistance 

17 across the relevant executive branch agencies 

18 with actionable recommendations to address 

19 such weaknesses, flaws, or other impediments; 

20 (D) setting priorities for such assistance to 

21 focus resources on developing countries in 

22 which such assistance can deliver the best value 

23 in identifying and eliminating barriers to trade 

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1 cluding by fostering adherence to international 

2 trade obligations; 

3 (E) developing appropriate performance 

4 measures and establishing yearly targets to 

5 monitor and assess progress toward such tar6 gets, including measures to terminate unsuc7 cessful programs; and 

8 (F) providing estimates of the resources 

9 necessary to fulfill the priorities identified by 

10 the interagency committee. 

11 (6) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the 

12 date of the enactment of this Act, and biennially 

13 thereafter until the termination of the interagency 

14 task force under subsection (d), the task force shall 

15 submit to the President and the appropriate con16 gressional committees a report that contains— 

17 (A) the joint strategic plan required under 

18 paragraph (5); and 

19 (B) as appropriate, recommendations for 

20 changes to programs to provide trade capacity 

21 building assistance, including with respect to 

22 priorities for funding of such assistance. 

23 (c) CONSISTENCY WITH OTHER TRADE OBLIGA24 TIONS.—The interagency task force shall ensure that the 

25 joint strategic plan required under subsection (b)(5) is 


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1 consistent with the international trade obligations of the 

2 United States. 

3 (d) TERMINATION.—The President may terminate 

4 the interagency task force shall after the submission of 

5 the second report required under subsection (b)(6). 

6 SEC. 6. MISSION RESPONSIBILITIES. 

7 Section 207 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 

8 U.S.C. 3927) is amended by adding at the end the fol9 lowing new subsection: 

10 ‘‘(d) TRADE CAPACITY BUILDING ASSISTANCE.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each chief of mission to a 

12 developing country shall, working with the private 

13 sector and government of such country, as appro14 priate— 

15 ‘‘(A) identify local country barriers to 

16 international trade and investment; 

17 ‘‘(B) advise the Secretary of State on the 

18 best use of trade capacity building assistance in 

19 such country; and 

20 ‘‘(C) coordinate and supervise programs to 

21 provide trade capacity building assistance by 

22 relevant executive branch agencies present in 

23 such country (except for assistance under the 

24 control of a United States area military com25 mander). 


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1 ‘‘(2) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the 

2 terms ‘trade capacity building assistance’ and ‘rel3 evant executive branch agencies’ have the meaning 

4 given such terms in section 3 of the Aid for Trade 

5 Act of 2019.’’. 

6 SEC. 7. LIMITATIONS AND CONFORMING MEASURES. 

7 (a) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—This Act, and the 

8 amendments made by this Act, shall be implemented in 

9 a manner consistent with the duties and responsibilities 

10 of the Office of the United States Trade Representative 

11 as the agency with primary responsibility for developing, 

12 and for coordinating the implementation of, United States 

13 international trade policy under section 141 of the Trade 

14 Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2171). 

15 (b) EXCEPTION, QUALIFICATION.—Section 660(b) of 

16 the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2420(b)) 

17 is amended— 

18 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

19 end; 

20 (2) by moving the margin of paragraph (7) two 

21 ems to the left; 

22 (3) in paragraph (7), as so amended, by strik23 ing the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

24 (4) by inserting after paragraph (7), as so 

25 amended, the following new paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(8) with respect to programs to provide trade 

2 capacity building assistance (as such term is defined 

3 in section 3 of the Aid for Trade Act of 2019), in4 cluding training and technical assistance, provided 

5 to customs and transportation authorities and per6 sonnel in developing countries.’’. 

7 SEC. 8. REPORT BY THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF THE 

8 UNITED STATES. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years and 4 

10 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

11 Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 

12 the appropriate committees a report on programs to pro13 vide trade capacity building assistance. 

14 (b) MATTERS TO BE INCLUDED.—The report re15 quired under subsection (a) shall include the following: 

16 (1) A review of the implementation of the joint 

17 strategic plan required under section 5(b)(5). 

18 (2) A description of interagency efforts to im19 prove coordination and effectiveness of programs to 

20 provide trade capacity building assistance, including 

21 collaboration with the private sector, sharing of best 

22 practices, the development of common performance 

23 metrics, and efforts to reduce duplication. 

24 (3) What is known about the impact of trade 

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1 tries’ efforts to implement the World Trade Organi2 zation’s Trade Facilitation Agreement and advance 

3 the policy described in section 4. 

4 (4) What is known about progress made in 

5 working with donor countries to coordinate trade ca6 pacity building donor activities to ensure the effec7 tiveness and reduce duplication of trade capacity 

8 building assistance activities. 

9 (5) Recommendations to improve programs to 

10 provide trade capacity building assistance. 

Æ 


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