[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 220 (Tuesday, November 17, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59339-59340]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-27561]
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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
Request for Comments Concerning Compliance With
Telecommunications Trade Agreements
AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.
ACTION: Notice of request for public comment and reply comment.
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to section 1377 of the Omnibus Trade and
Competitiveness Act of 1988 (19 U.S.C. 3106) (`Section 1377'), the
Office of the United States Trade Representative (``USTR'') is
reviewing and requests comments on: The operation, effectiveness, and
implementation of and compliance with the following agreements
regarding telecommunications products and services of the United
States: the World Trade Organization (``WTO'') General Agreement on
Trade in Services; the North American Free Trade Agreement (``NAFTA'');
U.S. free trade agreements (``FTAs'') with Australia, Bahrain, Chile,
Morocco, Oman, Peru, and Singapore; and the Dominican Republic-Central
America-United States Free Trade Agreement (``CAFTA-DR''). The USTR
will conclude the review by March 31, 2010.
DATES: Comments are due by noon on December 11, 2009 and reply comments
by noon on January 15, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Gloria Blue, Executive Secretary, Trade Policy Staff
Committee, ATTN: Section 1377 Comments, Office of the United States
Trade Representative, 1724 F Street, NW., Washington, DC 20508.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Catherine Hinckley, Office of Services
and Investment (202) 395-9539; or Amy Karpel, Office of the General
Counsel (202) 395-3150.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 1377 requires the USTR to review
annually the operation and effectiveness of all U.S. trade agreements
regarding telecommunications products and services that are in force
with respect to the United States. The purpose of the review is to
determine whether any act, policy, or practice of a country that has
entered into an FTA or other telecommunications trade agreement with
the United States is inconsistent with the terms of such agreement or
otherwise denies U.S. firms, within the context of the terms of such
agreements, mutually advantageous market opportunities for
telecommunications products and services. For the current review, the
USTR seeks comments on:
(1) Whether any WTO member is acting in a manner that is
inconsistent with its obligations under WTO agreements affecting market
opportunities for telecommunications products or services, e.g., the
WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services (``GATS''), including the
Basic Telecommunications Agreement, the Annex on Telecommunications,
and any scheduled commitments including the Reference Paper on Pro-
Competitive Regulatory Principles;
(2) Whether Canada or Mexico has failed to comply with its
telecommunications obligations under the NAFTA;
(3) Whether Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador,
Guatemala, Honduras or Nicaragua has failed to comply with its
telecommunications obligations under the CAFTA-DR;
(4) Whether Australia, Bahrain, Chile, Morocco, Oman, Peru, or
Singapore has failed to comply with its telecommunications obligations
under the respective FTA between the United States and that country
(see http://www.ustr.gov/trade-agreements/free-trade-agreements for
U.S. FTAs);
(5) Whether any country has failed to comply with its obligations
under telecommunications trade agreements with the United States other
than FTAs, e.g., Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs) for Conformity
Assessment of Telecommunications Equipment (see http://ts.nist.gov/standards/conformity/mra/mra.cfm) for a collection of trade agreements
related, inter alia, to telecommunications);
(6) Whether any act, policy, or practice of a country cited in a
previous section 1377 review remains unresolved (see http://www.ustr.gov/trade-topics/services-investment/telecom-e-commerce/section-1377-review for the most recent reviews); and
(7) Whether any measures or practices impede access to
telecommunications markets or otherwise deny telecommunications
products and services market opportunities with respect to any country
that is a WTO member or for which an FTA or telecommunications trade
agreement has entered into force between such country and the United
States. Measures or practices of interest include, for example,
prohibitions on voice over Internet protocol (VOIP) services;
requirements for access to or use of networks that limit the products
or services U.S. suppliers can offer in specific markets; the
imposition of excessively high licensing fees; discriminatory
procedures for allocation and use of spectrum or other scarce
[[Page 59340]]
resources; and the imposition of unnecessary or discriminatory
technical regulations or standards in the telecommunications product or
services sectors.
Public Comment and Reply Comment: Requirements for Submission
Comments in response to this notice must be written in English,
must identify (on the first page of the comments) the
telecommunications trade agreement(s) discussed therein, and must be
submitted electronically by 5 p.m. on December 11, 2009. Reply comments
must also be in English and must be submitted by 5 p.m. on January 15,
2010. Comments and reply comments, with the exception of business
confidential comments, must be submitted using http://www.regulations.gov, docket number USTR-2009-0038. Instructions for
submitted business confidential versions are provided below. In the
unusual case where submitters are unable to make submissions through
Regulations.gov, the submitter must contact Gloria Blue at (202) 395-
3475 to make alternate arrangements.
To submit comments using http://www.regulations.gov, enter docket
number USTR-2009-0038 on the home page and click ``Search''. The site
will provide a search-results page listing all documents associated
with this docket. Locate the reference to this notice by selecting
``Notices'' under ``Document Type'' on the search-results page, and
click on the link entitled ``Send a Comment.'' Follow the instructions
given on the screen to submit a comment. The http://www.regulations.gov
website offers the option of providing comments by filling in a ``Type
Comment'' field or by attaching a document. While both options are
acceptable, USTR prefers submissions in the form of an attachment.
Business Confidential Submissions
Persons wishing to submit business confidential information must
submit that information by fax to (202) 395-3891. Business confidential
submissions will not be accepted at http://regulations.gov. The
submitter must include in the comments a written explanation of why the
information should be protected in accordance with 15 CFR 2007.7(b). In
addition, a non-confidential version of the comments must be submitted
to http://www.regulations.gov, docket number USTR-2009-0038. The
submission must indicate, with asterisks, where confidential
information was redacted or deleted. The top and bottom of each page of
the non-confidential version must be marked either ``PUBLIC VERSION''
or ``NON-CONFIDENTIAL''.
Business confidential comments that are submitted without the
required markings or that do not have a properly marked non-
confidential version submitted to regulations.gov as set forth above
may not be accepted or may be treated as public documents.
Submitters should provide updated information on all issues they
cite in their filings; USTR will not review submissions that are copies
of earlier submissions.
Carmen Suro-Bredie,
Chair, Trade Policy Staff Committee.
[FR Doc. E9-27561 Filed 11-16-09; 8:45 am]
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