I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 548 
To establish a Congressional Trade Office. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 18, 2007 
Mr. DEFAZIO (for himself, Mr. MICHAUD, Mr. ALLEN, Ms. LEE, Ms. JACK-
SON-LEE of Texas, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. WELCH of 
Vermont, Mr. COSTELLO, Ms. SUTTON, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. HALL of New 
York, Mr. LIPINSKI, Mr. MELANCON, Mr. WU, and Mrs. TAUSCHER) in-
troduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways 
and Means 
A BILL 
To establish a Congressional Trade Office. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings: 
(1) Congress has responsibility under the Con-
stitution for international commerce. 
(2) Congressional oversight of trade policy has 
often been hampered by a lack of resources. 
(3) The United States has entered into numer-
ous trade agreements with foreign trading partners, 
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including bilateral, regional, and multilateral agree-
ments. 
(4) Foreign country performance under certain 
agreements has been less than contemplated, and in 
some cases rises to the level of noncompliance. 
(5) The credibility of, and support for, the 
United States Government’s trade policy is, to a sig-
nificant extent, a function of the belief that trade 
agreements made are trade agreements enforced. 
(6) The accession of the People’s Republic of 
China to the World Trade Organization will create 
unprecedented challenges and it is important to the 
world trading system that China comply with the 
numerous and significant commitments China makes 
as part of the accession process. Congress must play 
a key role in ensuring full and continuous moni-
toring of the People’s Republic of China’s compli-
ance with its commitments. 
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established an office in 
Congress to be known as the Congressional Trade Office 
(in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Office’’). 
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the Office are as 
follows: 
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(1) To reassert the constitutional responsibility 
of Congress with respect to international trade. 
(2) To provide Congress with additional inde-
pendent, nonpartisan, neutral trade expertise. 
(3) To assist Congress in providing more effec-
tive and active oversight of trade policy. 
(4) To assist Congress in providing to the exec-
utive branch more effective direction on trade policy. 
(5) To provide Congress with long-term, institu-
tional memory on trade issues. 
(6) To provide Congress with more analytical 
capability on trade issues. 
(7) To advise relevant committees on the im-
pact of trade negotiations, including past, ongoing, 
and future negotiations, with respect to the areas of 
jurisdiction of the respective committees. 
(c) FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the Office are as 
follows: 
(1) ASSISTANCE TO CONGRESS.—To provide the 
appropriate committees of Congress or joint commit-
tees of Congress information which will assist the 
committees in the discharge of the matters within 
their jurisdiction. 
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(2) MONITOR COMPLIANCE.—To monitor com-
pliance with major bilateral, regional, and multilat-
eral trade agreements by— 
(A) consulting with the affected industries 
and interested parties; 
(B) analyzing the success of those agree-
ments based on the effect of the agreements on 
specific industries and the economy; 
(C) recommending actions, including legis-
lative action, necessary to ensure that foreign 
countries that have made commitments through 
those agreements with the United States fully 
abide by their commitments; 
(D) annually assessing the extent to which 
those agreements comply with environmental 
goals; and 
(E) annually assessing the extent to which 
those agreements comply with labor goals. 
(3) ANALYSES.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—To perform the fol-
lowing analyses: 
(i) By not later than 60 days after the 
date the national trade policy agenda is de-
livered to Congress each year under section 
163(a) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 
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U.S.C. 2213(a)), to analyze that agenda, 
including alternative goals, strategies, and 
tactics, as appropriate. 
(ii) By not later than 60 days after 
the date the National Trade Estimate re-
port is delivered to Congress each year 
under section 181(b) of the Trade Act of 
1974 (19 U.S.C. 2241(b)), to analyze the 
major outstanding trade barriers based on 
cost to the United States economy. 
(iii) To analyze the overall trade bal-
ance of the United States and the trade 
balances of the United States with the 
major trading partners of the United 
States. 
(B) ANALYSES
REQUESTED
BY
COM-
MITTEE.—To perform analyses relating to trade 
as directed by any committee which will assist 
the committee in the discharge of the matters 
within the committee’s jurisdiction, including, 
but not limited to— 
(i) analyzing proposed trade legisla-
tion; 
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(ii) analyzing proposed trade agree-
ments, including agreements that do not 
require implementing legislation; and 
(iii) analyzing the impact of the trade 
policy and actions of the executive branch, 
including assessing the decisions not to ac-
cept unfair trade practices cases. 
(4) DISPUTE SETTLEMENT DELIBERATIONS.— 
To perform the following functions with respect to 
dispute resolution: 
(A) Participate as observers on the United 
States delegation at dispute settlement panel 
meetings of the World Trade Organization. 
(B) Evaluate the results obtained by the 
United States in dispute settlement proceedings 
at the World Trade Organization, under the 
North American Free Trade Agreement, and 
under any trade agreement entered into after 
the enactment of this Act, including the effect 
of the outcome of the proceedings on specific in-
dustries and the economy. 
(5) PARTICIPATION IN TRADE NEGOTIATIONS.— 
To participate as observers in bilateral, regional, and 
multilateral trade negotiations. 
(6) OTHER FUNCTIONS OF THE OFFICE.— 
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(A) To provide Congress with quarterly re-
ports regarding the activities of the Office. 
(B) To be available for consultation with 
congressional committees on trade-related legis-
lation. 
(C) To perform such other functions relat-
ing to trade as the chairman and ranking mem-
ber of the Committee on Finance of the Senate 
and the chairman and ranking member of the 
Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 
Representatives may request. 
(d) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITIES.—In carrying out its 
functions, the Office may— 
(1) receive and review classified information 
and participate in classified briefings in the same 
manner as the staff of the Committee on Finance of 
the Senate and the Committee on Ways and Means 
of the House of Representatives; and 
(2) consult nongovernmental experts and use 
nongovernmental resources. 
(e) DIRECTOR AND STAFF.— 
(1) DIRECTOR.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—There shall be at the 
head of the Office a Director. The Director 
shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House 
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of Representatives and the President pro tem-
pore of the Senate after considering the rec-
ommendations of the chairman and ranking 
member of the Committee on Finance of the 
Senate and the chairman and ranking member 
of the Committee on Ways and Means of the 
House of Representatives. The Director shall be 
chosen without regard to political affiliation and 
solely on the basis of the Director’s expertise 
and fitness to perform the duties of the Direc-
tor. 
(B) TERM.—The term of office of the Di-
rector shall be 5 years and the Director may be 
reappointed for subsequent terms. 
(C) VACANCY.—Any individual appointed 
as Director to fill a vacancy occurring before 
the expiration of the term for which the individ-
ual’s predecessor was appointed shall be ap-
pointed only for the remainder of that term. 
(D) REMOVAL.—The Director may be re-
moved by either House of Congress by resolu-
tion. 
(E) COMPENSATION.—The Director shall 
receive compensation at the annual rate of pay 
in effect for level III of the Executive Schedule 
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under section 5314 of title 5, United States 
Code. 
(2) STAFF.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall ap-
point and fix the compensation of such per-
sonnel as may be necessary to carry out the du-
ties and functions of the Office. All personnel 
shall be appointed without regard to political 
affiliation and solely on the basis of their fit-
ness to perform their duties. The personnel of 
the Office shall consist of individuals with ex-
pertise in international trade, including exper-
tise in economics, trade law, various industrial 
sectors, and various geographical regions. 
(B) BENEFITS.—For purposes of pay 
(other than the pay of the Director) and em-
ployment, benefits, rights, and privileges, all 
personnel of the Office shall be treated as if 
they were employees of the House of Represent-
atives. 
(3) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—In carrying 
out the duties and functions of the Office, the Direc-
tor may procure the temporary (not to exceed 1 
year) or intermittent services of experts or consult-
ants or organizations thereof by contract as inde-
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pendent contractors, or, in the case of individual ex-
perts or consultants, by employment at rates of pay 
not in excess of the daily equivalent of the highest 
rate of basic pay payable under the General Sched-
ule under section 5332 of title 5, United States 
Code. 
(4) RELATIONSHIP TO EXECUTIVE BRANCH.— 
The Director may secure information, data, esti-
mates, and statistics directly from any department, 
agency, or establishment of the executive branch of 
Government and any regulatory agency or commis-
sion of the Government. All such departments, agen-
cies, establishments, and regulatory agencies and 
commissions shall furnish the Director any available 
material which the Director determines to be nec-
essary in the performance of his or her duties and 
functions (other than material the disclosure of 
which would be a violation of law). The Director 
may, upon agreement with the head of any such de-
partment, agency, establishment, or regulatory agen-
cy or commission, use its services and facilities with 
or without reimbursement; and the head of each 
such department, agency, establishment, or regu-
latory agency or commission may provide such serv-
ices and facilities to the Office. 
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(5) RELATIONSHIP
TO
OTHER
AGENCIES
OF 
CONGRESS.—In carrying out the duties and func-
tions of the Office, and for the purpose of coordi-
nating the operations of the Office with those of 
other congressional agencies in order to use most ef-
fectively the information, services, and capabilities of 
all such agencies in carrying out the responsibilities 
assigned to each, the Director may obtain informa-
tion, data, estimates, and statistics developed by the 
Government Accountability Office, the Library of 
Congress, and other offices of Congress, and (upon 
agreement with them) may utilize their services and 
facilities with or without reimbursement. The Comp-
troller General, the Librarian of Congress, and the 
head of such other offices of Congress are author-
ized to provide the Office with the information, data, 
estimates, statistics, services, and facilities referred 
to in the preceding sentence. 
SEC. 3. PUBLIC ACCESS TO DATA. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsections 
(b) and (c), the Director— 
(1) shall post on an Office website all informa-
tion, data, estimates, and statistics obtained under 
this Act; 
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(2) shall make such information, data, esti-
mates, and statistics available for public copying 
during normal business hours, subject to reasonable 
rules and regulations; and 
(3) shall to the extent practicable, at the re-
quest of any person, furnish a copy of any such in-
formation, data, estimates, or statistics upon pay-
ment by such person of the cost of making and fur-
nishing such copy. 
(b) EXCEPTIONS.— 
(1) BASIS FOR WITHHOLDING INFORMATION.— 
Information, data, estimates, and statistics may be 
withheld from disclosure under subsection (a) only 
to the extent that such information, data, estimates, 
or statistics (as the case may be)— 
(A) are specifically exempted from disclo-
sure by law; or 
(B) as determined by the Director, will dis-
close— 
(i) matters necessary to be kept secret 
in the interests of national defense or the 
confidential conduct of the foreign rela-
tions of the United States; 
(ii) information relating to trade se-
crets or financial or commercial informa-
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tion pertaining specifically to a given per-
son if the information has been obtained 
by the Government on a confidential basis, 
other than through an application by such 
person for a specific financial or other ben-
efit, and is required to be kept secret in 
order to prevent undue injury to the com-
petitive position of such person; or 
(iii) personnel or medical data or simi-
lar data the disclosure of which would con-
stitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of 
personal privacy. 
(2) NOTICE OF WITHHELD INFORMATION.—The 
Director shall provide notice to the public of each in-
stance in which information has been withheld from 
disclosure under paragraph (1), including a descrip-
tion of the information, and shall provide an oppor-
tunity for the public to petition the Director to re-
consider the determination to withhold disclosure of 
the information. 
(c) INFORMATION OBTAINED FOR COMMITTEES AND 
MEMBERS.—Subsection (a) of this section shall apply to 
any information, data, estimates, and statistics obtained 
at the request of any committee, joint committee, or Mem-
ber except to the extent that such committee, joint com-
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mittee, or Member has instructed the Director not to make 
such information, data, estimates, or statistics available 
for public copying. 
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Office 
for each fiscal year such sums as may be necessary to en-
able the Office to carry out its duties and functions. Until 
sums are first appropriated pursuant to the preceding sen-
tence, for a period not to exceed 12 months following the 
effective date of this section, the expenses of the Office 
shall be paid from the contingent fund of the Senate, in 
accordance with the provisions of the paragraph relating 
to contingent funds under the heading ‘‘UNDER LEGIS-
LATIVE’’ in the Act of October 2, 1888 (25 Stat. 546; 
2 U.S.C. 68), and upon vouchers approved by the Direc-
tor. 
Æ 
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