The World Trade Organization: The Debate in the United States: RL30521.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) went into effect in 1995, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) which had been in existence since 1948. Under the WTO, the governments of the 136 member countries agree on a set of rules and principles for trade, negotiate periodically to reduce trade barriers, and participate in the dispute settlement procedure. Economists believe that, over the past 50 years, the more predictable environment for trade as well as the reduction in trade barriers has contributed to unprecedented economic prosperity for the majority of countries. On the other hand, trade liberalization under the WTO has resulted in economic costs to those whose jobs have been adversely affected, although they are relatively few compared to total employment in the United States. The WTO is of interest to the Congress for several reasons. First, H.J.Res. 90 (withdrawing the approval of the United States from the Agreement establishing the World Trade Organization) was introduced March 6, 2000. Second, the Congress will likely vote on permanent normal trade relations (NTR) for China in connection with China's accession to the WTO. One criticism of the WTO is that ''international bureaucrats'' at the WTO can override laws enacted in the United States, thus violating U.S. national sovereignty. WTO supporters point out that all major decisions at the WTO are made by representatives of the member countries, most of whom are democratically elected. Moreover, supporters maintain that WTO rules specifically recognize that each country will determine its own laws, regulations and standards. WTO critics would like labor standards included in the WTO, which is opposed by some U.S. supporters and most developing countries. Generally, both supporters and critics agree on the desirability of raising foreign labor standards, but disagree on the best way to achieve this goal and on the implication of lower foreign labor standards on U.S. import-competing products and U.S. jobs. In environmental and food safety issues, critics charge that the WTO's dispute settlement procedure can (and has) adversely affected environmental and health laws. Supporters counter that the dispute settlement process only requires that domestic measures be implemented in a non-trade-restrictive way and do not discriminate among trading partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]