§ 2155.
(b)
Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations
(1)
The President shall establish an Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations to provide overall policy advice on matters referred to in subsection (a). The committee shall be composed of not more than 45 individuals and shall include representatives of non-Federal governments, labor, industry, agriculture, small business, service industries, retailers, nongovernmental environmental and conservation organizations, and consumer interests. The committee shall be broadly representative of the key sectors and groups of the economy, particularly with respect to those sectors and groups which are affected by trade. Members of the committee shall be recommended by the United States Trade Representative and appointed by the President for a term of 4 years or until the committee is scheduled to expire. An individual may be reappointed to committee for any number of terms. Appointments to the Committee
1
So in original. Probably should not be capitalized.
shall be made without regard to political affiliation.
(2)
The committee shall meet as needed at the call of the United States Trade Representative or at the call of two-thirds of the members of the committee. The chairman of the committee shall be elected by the committee from among its members.
(3)
The United States Trade Representative shall make available to the committee such staff, information, personnel, and administrative services and assistance as it may reasonably require to carry out its activities.
(c)
General policy, sectoral, or functional advisory committees
(1)
The President may establish individual general policy advisory committees for industry, labor, agriculture, services, investment, defense, and other interests, as appropriate, to provide general policy advice on matters referred to in subsection (a). Such committees shall, insofar as is practicable, be representative of all industry, labor, agricultural, service, investment, defense, and other interests, respectively, including small business interests, and shall be organized by the United States Trade Representative and the Secretaries of Commerce, Defense, Labor, Agriculture, the Treasury, or other executive departments, as appropriate. The members of such committees shall be appointed by the United States Trade Representative in consultation with such Secretaries.
(2)
The President shall establish such sectoral or functional advisory committees as may be appropriate. Such committees shall, insofar as is practicable, be representative of all industry, labor, agricultural, or service interests (including small business interests) in the sector or functional areas concerned. In organizing such committees, the United States Trade Representative and the Secretaries of Commerce, Labor, Agriculture, the Treasury, or other executive departments, as appropriate, shall—
(A)
consult with interested private organizations; and
(B)
take into account such factors as—
(i)
patterns of actual and potential competition between United States industry and agriculture and foreign enterprise in international trade,
(ii)
the character of the nontariff barriers and other distortions affecting such competition,
(iii)
the necessity for reasonable limits on the number of such advisory committees,
(iv)
the necessity that each committee be reasonably limited in size, and
(v)
in the case of each sectoral committee, that the product lines covered by each committee be reasonably related.
(3)
The President—
(A)
may, if necessary, establish policy advisory committees representing non-Federal governmental interests to provide policy advice—
(i)
on matters referred to in subsection (a), and
(ii)
with respect to implementation of trade agreements, and
(B)
shall include as members of committees established under subparagraph (A) representatives of non-Federal governmental interests if he finds such inclusion appropriate after consultation by the United States Trade Representative with such representatives.
(4)
Appointments to each committee established under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) shall be made without regard to political affiliation.
(d)
Policy, technical, and other advice and information
Committees established under subsection (c) shall meet at the call of the United States Trade Representative and the Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Labor, Defense, or other executive departments, as appropriate, to provide policy advice, technical advice and information, and advice on other factors relevant to the matters referred to in subsection (a).
(f)
Application of Federal Advisory Committee Act
The provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act apply—
(1)
to the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations established under subsection (b); and
(2)
to all other advisory committees which may be established under subsection (c) of this section, except that—
(A)
the meetings of advisory committees established under subsections (b) and (c) of this section shall be exempt from the requirements of subsections (a) and (b) of sections 10 and 11 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (relating to open meetings, public notice, public participation, and public availability of documents), whenever and to the extent it is determined by the President or the President’s designee that such meetings will be concerned with matters the disclosure of which would seriously compromise the development by the United States Government of trade policy, priorities, negotiating objectives, or bargaining positions with respect to matters referred to in subsection (a) of this section, and that meetings may be called of such special task forces, plenary meetings of chairmen, or other such groups made up of members of the committees established under subsections (b) and (c) of this section; and
(B)
notwithstanding subsection (a)(2) of section 14 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, any committee established under subsection (b) or (c) may, in the discretion of the President or the President’s designee, terminate not later than the expiration of the 4-year period beginning on the date of its establishment.
(g)
Trade secrets and confidential information
(1)
Trade secrets and commercial or financial information which is privileged or confidential, and which is submitted in confidence by the private sector or non-Federal government to officers or employees of the United States in connection with trade negotiations, may be disclosed upon request to—
(A)
officers and employees of the United States designated by the United States Trade Representative;
(C)
members of any committee of the House or Senate or any joint committee of Congress who are designated as advisers under
section 2211(a)(2) of this title or designated by the chairman of such committee under
section 2211(b)(3)(B) of this title and staff members of such committee designated under
section 2211(b)(3)(B) of this title, but disclosure may be made under this subparagraph only with respect to trade secrets or commercial or financial information that is relevant to trade policy matters or negotiations that are within the legislative jurisdiction of such committee;
for use in connection with matters referred to in subsection (a).
(2)
Information other than that described in paragraph (1), and advice submitted in confidence by the private sector or non-Federal government to officers or employees of the United States, to the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations, or to any advisory committee established under subsection (c), in connection with matters referred to in subsection (a), may be disclosed upon request to—
(A)
the individuals described in paragraph (1); and
(B)
the appropriate advisory committee established under this section.
(3)
Information submitted in confidence by officers or employees of the United States to the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations, or to any advisory committee established under subsection (c), may be disclosed in accordance with rules issued by the United States Trade Representative and the Secretaries of Commerce, Labor, Defense, Agriculture, or other executive departments, as appropriate, after consultation with the relevant advisory committees established under subsection (c). Such rules shall define the categories of information which require restricted or confidential handling by such committee considering the extent to which public disclosure of such information can reasonably be expected to prejudice the development of trade policy, priorities, or United States negotiating objectives. Such rules shall, to the maximum extent feasible, permit meaningful consultations by advisory committee members with persons affected by matters referred to in subsection (a).
(h)
Advisory committee support
The United States Trade Representative, and the Secretaries of Commerce, Labor, Defense, Agriculture, the Treasury, or other executive departments, as appropriate, shall provide such staff, information, personnel, and administrative services and assistance to advisory committees established under subsection (c) as such committees may reasonably require to carry out their activities.
(i)
Consultation with advisory committees; procedures; nonacceptance of committee advice or recommendations
It shall be the responsibility of the United States Trade Representative, in conjunction with the Secretaries of Commerce, Labor, Agriculture, the Treasury, or other executive departments, as appropriate, to adopt procedures for consultation with and obtaining information and advice from the advisory committees established under subsection (c) on a continuing and timely basis. Such consultation shall include the provision of information to each advisory committee as to—
(1)
significant issues and developments; and
(2)
overall negotiating objectives and positions of the United States and other parties;
with respect to matters referred to in subsection (a). The United States Trade Representative shall not be bound by the advice or recommendations of such advisory committees, but shall inform the advisory committees of significant departures from such advice or recommendations made. In addition, in the course of consultations with the Congress under this subchapter, information on the advice and information provided by advisory committees shall be made available to congressional advisers.
(j)
Private organizations or groups
In addition to any advisory committee established under this section, the President shall provide adequate, timely and continuing opportunity for the submission on an informal basis (and, if such information is submitted under the provisions of subsection (g), on a confidential basis) by private organizations or groups, representing government, labor, industry, agriculture, small business, service industries, consumer interests, and others, of statistics, data and other trade information, as well as policy recommendations, pertinent to any matter referred to in subsection (a).
(m)
“Non-Federal government” defined
As used in this section, the term “non-Federal government” means—
(1)
any State, territory, or possession of the United States, or the District of Columbia, or any political subdivision thereof; or
(2)
any agency or instrumentality of any entity described in paragraph (1).
([Pub. L. 93–618, title I, § 135], Jan. 3, 1975, [88 Stat. 1996]; [Pub. L. 96–39, title XI, § 1103], July 26, 1979, [93 Stat. 308]; [Pub. L. 98–573, title III, § 306(c)(2)(B)], Oct. 30, 1984, [98 Stat. 3011]; [Pub. L. 99–514, title XVIII, § 1887(a)(2)], Oct. 22, 1986, [100 Stat. 2923]; [Pub. L. 100–418, title I, § 1631], Aug. 23, 1988, [102 Stat. 1264]; [Pub. L. 103–465, title I], §§ 127(f), 128, Dec. 8, 1994, [108 Stat. 4836]; [Pub. L. 107–210, div. B, title XXI, § 2110(a)(5)], Aug. 6, 2002, [116 Stat. 1020]; [Pub. L. 108–429, title II, § 2004(i)(1)], (2), Dec. 3, 2004, [118 Stat. 2594], 2595; [Pub. L. 109–280, title XIV, § 1635(f)(2)], Aug. 17, 2006, [120 Stat. 1171]; [Pub. L. 114–26, title I, § 110(a)(5)], June 29, 2015, [129 Stat. 357].)