IV
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. CON. RES. 276
Strongly urging the President to file a complaint at the World Trade Organi-
zation against oil-producing countries for violating trade rules that pro-
hibit quantitative limitations on the import or export of resources or
products across borders.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 13, 2000
Mr. DEFAZIO (for himself, Mr. SANDERS, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr. HINCHEY,
and Mrs. JONES of Ohio) submitted the following concurrent resolution;
which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Strongly urging the President to file a complaint at the
World Trade Organization against oil-producing coun-
tries for violating trade rules that prohibit quantitative
limitations on the import or export of resources or prod-
ucts across borders.
Whereas no free market exists in oil production because of
collusion among oil-producing countries;
Whereas the Oil and Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
and other oil-producing countries agreed in March 1998
to a series of three coordinated cutbacks in production,
thus manipulating world oil markets resulting in de facto
price fixing;
•HCON 276 IH
Whereas as of March 2000, world oil production is
73,000,000 barrels a day, while world oil consumption is
75,000,000 barrels to day, thereby resulting in a shortfall
of 2,000,000 barrels;
Whereas this shortfall has led to the highest price per barrel
of oil in nearly a decade and substantial increases in con-
sumer prices for items such as home heating oil and gas-
oline;
Whereas rising oil prices greatly harm consumers, farmers,
small businesses, and manufacturers, increase the likeli-
hood of inflation, increase the cost of conducting inter-
state and international commerce, and pose a strong
threat to continued economic growth;
Whereas the Secretary of Energy testified on March 2, 2000,
before the Committee on International Relations of the
House of Representatives that ‘‘The volatility [in oil
prices] we’re enduring today makes clear that artificial
production quotas just don’t work. Markets should set
prices.’’;
Whereas article XI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade (GATT 1994) prohibits members of the World
Trade Organization (WTO) from setting quantitative re-
strictions on the import or export of resources or prod-
ucts across their borders; specifically the language reads
‘‘No prohibitions or restrictions other than duties, taxes
or other charges, whether made effective through quotas,
import or export licenses or other measures, shall be in-
stituted or maintained by any contracting party on the
importation of any product of the territory of any other
contracting party or on the exportation or sale for export
of any product destined for the territory of any other
contracting party.’’;
•HCON 276 IH
Whereas the precise meaning of this provision was spelled out
in a WTO Panel Report issued in 1998 entitled
‘‘Japan—Trade in Semi-conductors’’, which noted, ‘‘. . .
this wording [in article XI] was comprehensive: it applied
to all measures instituted or maintained by a contracting
party prohibiting or restricting the importation, expor-
tation or sale for export of products other than measures
that take the form of duties, taxes, or other charges . . .
This wording indicated clearly that any measure insti-
tuted or maintained by a contracting party which re-
stricted the exportation or sale for export of products was
covered by this provision, irrespective of the legal status
of the measure.’’;
Whereas oil production restrictions clearly qualify as a
‘‘quantitative restriction’’ based on the original WTO
rules and the 1998 WTO panel report, which certify that
only ‘‘duties, taxes or other charges’’ are allowable, not
pacts among countries to limit production of a product
for export;
Whereas article XX of GATT 1994, which sets out a series
of exceptions to article XI, notes that none of the excep-
tions are valid if they are ‘‘applied in a manner which
would constitute . . . a disguised restriction on inter-
national trade’’, a phrase which describes OPEC’s pro-
duction restrictions;
Whereas of the 11 OPEC countries, 6 are members of the
WTO (Kuwait, Indonesia, Nigeria, Qatar, Venezuela, and
United Arab Emirates); 2 have observer status and have
applied to join the WTO (Saudi Arabia and Algeria); and
only 3 have no relationship with the WTO (Libya, Iran,
and Iraq);