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Please find below a letter signed by 56 Members of Congress to Ambassador Portman urging that the service negotiations be given equal treatment as agriculture. CSI suggested to the chief co-signers that they write this letter and we helped them coordinate the gathering of signatures. If you have any questions please contact Ekrem Sarper (sarper@uscsi.org) or John Goyer (goyer@uscsi.org).
Congressman Jim Kolbe
8TH DISTRICT ARIZONA
and
Congressman Ben Cardin
3RD DISTRICT MARYLAND
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Friday, June 24, 2005
www.house.gov/kolbe
Kolbe Contact: Cardin Contact:
Kristen Helmer ..................Susan Sullam
202-225-1446 (direct) .................. 410-433-8886
KOLBE, CARDIN URGE REDUCING RESTRICTIONS ON U.S. EXPORTS BEING SOLD AROUND THE WORLD
Washington, D.C. – Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) and Rep. Ben Cardin (D-MD), ranking member on the Trade Subcommittee of the Ways and Means Committee, today sent a letter to United States Trade Representative Robert Portman urging a higher priority be placed on removing barriers to the exports of US services in the Doha Round of negotiations in the World Trade Organization. A bipartisan group of 56 members joined Reps. Kolbe and Cardin in signing the letter to Ambassador Portman. The list of signers includes 31 Republican members and 25 Democrats. Committee assignments of the members cover over twelve jurisdictions, six members are chairmen of full committees in the House, and several members are on committees with considerable jurisdiction or interest over trade.
"Negotiations on services are charting down the wrong course, but with the current Doha Round, we have the chance to right the ship and steer towards greater liberalization of service trade," said Rep. Kolbe. "Many governments are merely paying lip-service to this critical component of the negotiations, and we need to encourage them to remove restrictions that hamper our efforts to create jobs in this important sector of our economy. The US is the most competitive services supplier in the world, but foreign barriers hinder the ability of American companies to sell services abroad. By pushing for a reduction in restrictions of trade in the services industry, we help create more American jobs, expand US trade, and grow the American economy. Our intention with this letter is to communicate to Ambassador Portman that a final trade deal needs to reflect what is in the interest of US firms and workers who export services. US interests in agriculture and manufacturing are important, but so too are those in services."
"Services represent 80% of U.S. GDP and one of the few sectors where America maintains a healthy trade surplus. Yet liberalization of trade in services has never been a priority in WTO talks. We must change this as expanded trade in services holds great promise for American workers and businesses," said Rep. Cardin, Ranking Member of the Trade Subcommittee. "It is our hope that through this strong statement from Members of Congress and with a new USTR now in place, services talks can be energized leading up to the Hong Kong Ministerial Meeting."
US services trade exports represented $338 billion in 2004, totaling more than 40% of the value of our goods exports. The text of the letter to Ambassador Portman, along with a list of signatories is below.
Ambassador Robert Portman
United States Trade Representative
Office of the United States Trade Representative
600 17th Street NW
Washington, DC 20508
Dear Ambassador Portman:
We are writing to encourage sharply increased U.S. emphasis on the liberalization of trade in services in the Doha Round of negotiations in the World Trade Organization (WTO).The Hong Kong ministerial meeting on WTO negotiations is now less than eight months away. Unfortunately, negotiations on services lack energy and momentum. Only half of the WTO's members have submitted initial offers, the deadline for which passed two years ago. Those offers that have been tabled provide for little new liberalization, and in many cases do not even reflect existing levels of openness. Many governments are simply not focused on services, and some countries are, at best, paying lip service to this critical component of the Round. The United States should not accept this circumstance; services are an integral part of the negotiations and should be accorded the same emphasis as agriculture and goods.
As you know, services represent 80 percent of U.S. GDP and 80 percent of private sector employment in our country, and services liberalization offers tremendous potential gains to both the United States and our trading partners. Nonetheless, there is a seemingly low priority placed on services in the Doha Round that is both striking and disturbing. This dynamic needs to be altered immediately to get services negotiations back on track.
U.S. service suppliers supported the effort to get agricultural negotiations back in gear because, without agriculture, there would be no comprehensive round. However, negotiations in services now need the same level of attention. The Doha Round represents the first opportunity in a decade to realize multilateral liberalization across the spectrum of services sectors; it is an opportunity we must not fail to seize.
Sincerely,
____________________________ |
_____________________________ |
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Ben Cardin, M.C. |
Jim Kolbe, M.C. |
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Signature Summary
Democrats ...........................................................................................................Republicans
Rep. Ben Cardin |
Rep. Jim Kolbe |
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Rep. Charles B. Rangel |
Rep. Roy Blunt |
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Rep. Howard L. Berman |
Rep. Nancy L. Johnson |
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Rep. Jim McDermott |
Rep. Michael G. Oxley |
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Rep. Joseph Crowley |
Rep. Dave Camp |
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Rep. Richard E. Neal |
Rep. David Dreier |
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Rep. Jim Davis (FL) |
Rep. Jim Ramstad |
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Rep. Michael R. McNulty |
Rep. Tom Davis (VA) |
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Rep. Gregory W. Meeks |
Rep. Jim Nussle |
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Rep. William J. Jefferson |
Rep. Henry J. Hyde |
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Rep. Harold E. Ford, Jr. |
Rep. Donald A. Manzullo |
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Rep. John S. Tanner |
Rep. Phil English |
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Rep. Elijah E. Cummings |
Rep. Deborah Pryce |
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Rep. Diana DeGette |
Rep. J.D. Hayworth |
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Rep. David E. Price |
Rep. Mark Steven Kirk |
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Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz |
Rep. Mark Foley |
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Rep. Ellen O. Tauscher |
Rep. Charles W. "Chip" Pickering |
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Rep. Chris Van Hollen |
Rep. Kevin Brady |
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Rep. Earl Blumenauer |
Rep. Marsha Blackburn |
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Rep. Adam Smith |
Rep. Bob Beauprez |
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Rep. Lois Capps |
Rep. Joe Knollenberg |
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Rep. Adam B. Schiff |
Rep. Ralph M. Hall |
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Rep. Jim Matheson |
Rep. Chris Cannon |
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Rep. James P. Moran |
Rep. Richard H. Baker |
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Rep. Brian Baird |
Rep. Pete Sessions |
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Rep. Michael N. Castle |
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Rep. Jerry Weller |
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Rep. James A. Leach |
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Rep. Jeff Flake |
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Rep. Spencer Bachus |
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Rep. Mark R. Kennedy |