The Trade Act of 1974 (, codified at ) was passed to give the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

more power in matters of trade agreements and tariffs.

Fast track authority

The Trade Act of 1974 created

fast track Fast Track, Fast track, or Fasttrack may refer to: Processes and systems * Fast track (FDA), a U.S. Food and Drug Administration expedited review program * Fast track (trade), the authority of the U.S. President to broker trade agreements with lim ...

authority for the President to negotiate trade agreements that

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

can approve or disapprove but cannot amend or

filibuster A filibuster is a political procedure in which one or more members of a legislative body prolong debate on proposed legislation so as to delay or entirely prevent a decision. It is sometimes referred to as "talking a bill to death" or "talking ...

. The Act provided the President with tariff and non-tariff trade barrier negotiating authority for the

Tokyo Round The Tokyo Round was a multi-year multilateral trade negotiation (MTN) between the 102 states which were parties to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). The negotiations resulted in reduced tariffs and established new regulations ai ...

of multilateral trade negotiations.

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was the 38th president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ford assumed the p ...

was the President at the time. The fast track authority created under the Act was set to expire in 1980, was extended for 8 years in 1979, was renewed again in 1988 until 1993 to allow for the negotiation of the

Uruguay Round The Uruguay Round was the 8th round of multilateral trade negotiations (MTN) conducted within the framework of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), spanning from 1986 to 1993 and embracing 123 countries as "contracting parties". The ...

within the framework of the

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is a legal agreement between many countries, whose overall purpose was to promote international trade by reducing or eliminating trade barriers such as tariffs or quotas. According to its p ...

(GATT), and was again extended to 16 April 1994, a day after the Uruguay Round concluded in th
Marrakesh Agreement
transforming the GATT into the

World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland that regulates and facilitates international trade. Governments use the organization to establish, revise, and enforce the rules that g ...

(WTO). It was restored in 2002 by the Trade Act of 2002. The

Obama Administration Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. Obama, a Democrat from Illinois, took office following his victory over Republican nomine ...

sought renewal for fast track authority in 2012.

Power to counteract unfair foreign trade practices

It also gave the President broad authority to counteract injurious and unfair foreign trade practices. * Section 135 of the Act provides for the establishment of the Labor Advisory Committee for Trade Negotiations and Trade Policy (LAC) whose duty is to provide advice and information to the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and the Secretary of Labor regarding the U.S.'s negotiating objectives and bargaining positions before the nation enters into trade agreements with foreign countries. LAC is to meet on any trade agreement and provide a report to the President, the Congress, and the Office of the USTR at the conclusion of negotiations. * Section 201 of the Act requires the

International Trade Commission The United States International Trade Commission (USITC or I.T.C.) is an agency of the United States federal government that advises the legislative and executive branches on matters of trade. It was created by Congress in 1916 as the U.S. Tari ...

to investigate petitions filed by domestic industries or workers claiming injury or threat of injury due to expanding imports. Investigations must be completed within 6 months. If such injury is found, restrictive measures may be implemented. Action under Section 201 is allowed under the GATT escape clause, GATT Article XIX. *

Section 301 Section 301 of the U.S. Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C.br>§ 2411 last amended March 23, 2018) authorizes the President to take all appropriate action, including tariff-based and non-tariff-based retaliation, to obtain the removal of any act, po ...

was designed to eliminate unfair foreign trade practices that adversely affect U.S. trade and investment in both goods and services. Under Section 301, the President must determine whether the alleged practices are unjustifiable, unreasonable, or discriminatory and burden or restrict U.S. commerce. If the President determines that action is necessary, the law directs that all appropriate and feasible action within the President's power should be taken to secure the elimination of the practice. A

Special 301 Report The Special 301 Report is prepared annually by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) that identifies trade barriers to United States companies and products due to the intellectual property laws, such as copyright, patents ...

is prepared annually by the Office of the USTR which must identify a list of " Priority Foreign Countries", those countries judged to have inadequate intellectual property laws; these countries may be subject to sanctions. This has been issued every year beginning in 1989 since the enactment of the

Omnibus Foreign Trade and Competitiveness Act The Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 is an act passed by the United States Congress and signed into law by President Ronald Reagan. History During the 1970s, the U.S. trade surplus slowly diminished and turned into an increasing d ...

of 1988 and the

Uruguay Round Agreements Act The Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA; ) is an Act of Congress in the United States that implemented in U.S. law the Marrakesh Agreement of 1994. The Marrakesh Agreement was part of the Uruguay Round of negotiations which transformed the General ...

(enacted in 1994).Knowledge Ecology International. "The US Special 301 Reports, 1989–2012". Accessible a

(See also

China–United States trade war An economic conflict between China and the United States has been ongoing since January 2018, when U.S. president Donald Trump began Tariffs in the first Trump administration, imposing tariffs and other trade barriers on China with the aim of fo ...

References

External links

Trade Act of 1974PDFdetails
as amended in the GPObr>Statute Compilations collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Trade Act Of 1974 1974 in American law 1974 in international relations 1974 in economic history 1975 in economic history Tariff laws in the United States January 1975 in the United States Presidency of Gerald Ford