available their views and advice. The 

 Trade Agreements Committee, (TAC) composed 

 of representatives of the Departments of 

 State, Commerce, Agriculture, Treasury, 

 Labor, Interior, Defense, and the United 

 States Tariff Commission, develops detailed 

 information and recommendations. The Com- 

 mittee for Reciprocity Information, composed 

 of the same membership, receives the views 

 of industry and other interested parties. 

 A third committee, the Trade Policy Com- 

 mittee (TPC) , with membership of Cabinet 

 level, was established in November 1957 to 

 review all matters before they go to the 

 President. 



No single department has full authority 

 over actions proposed or taken. Usually 

 the department with the principal responsi- 

 bility for a commodity is looked to for 

 development and presentation of the basic 

 facts. Issues are decided by majority vote. 

 Strong objectors to a majority action can 

 present a dissenting appeal to the President. 



The Department of the Interior has par- 

 ticipated in the development of trade agree- 

 ments only since 1951. At the time its 

 membership was obtained, duties on fishery 

 products in most cases had been reduced by 

 50 percent or more and, in some cases, as 

 much as 75 percent. The Department can now 

 play an important role in deciding what 

 concessions are made in trade agreements. 

 In the preparation for negotiations, or in 

 the negotiations, we can bring to bear upon 

 the decisions the viewpoint of the fishing 

 community. We are represented on this 

 interdepartmental organization by a member 

 of the staff of the Office of the Secretary. 

 The Bureau and its office which works on 

 these problems provide material assistance 

 and recommendations for actions on tariff 

 and trade matters. 



The United States Government has an- 

 nounced its intention to enter another 

 round of negotiations with other countries. 

 These tariff -negotiating conferences are 

 scheduled to start in September I960 with 

 the six members of the European Common 

 Market and ultimately with the other mem- 

 bers of the GATT. Preparations are now 

 underway in the Trade Agreements Committee 

 to select a list of items for possible 

 negotiation. Public hearings will subse- 

 quently be announced at which interested 

 parties will have opportunity to present 

 facts and views on whether duty reductions 



should be made in items on the li6t. Gov- 

 ernment committees are reviewing export 

 items for which reductions may be sought 

 in duties of other countries. 



The list selected by the TAC will go 

 to the TPC for approval, then to the 

 President. Upon approval of the President, 

 offers and requests will be made of foreign 

 governments and actual negotiations will 

 take place. When the negotiations are con- 

 cluded, the results go back to the President 

 for his approval. If accepted, the 

 President issues a proclamation modifying 

 existing duties in exchange for what he has 

 determined to be reciprocal concessions in 

 duties of other countries. The agreement 

 is then finalized in the GATT and becomes 

 a part of that Agreement. 



The present import duties on the 

 various tuna products may be considered 

 for possible modification in import duties. 

 If they are included on the public list 

 now being developed, they may be subject 

 to negotiation in the coming trade con- 

 ferences. For example, tuna canned in oil 

 is now dutiable at 35 percent ad valorem , 

 it can be reduced by the full 20 percent, 

 or to 28 percent over a period of two 

 years. Similarly, canned tuna in brine 

 could be reduced to 10 percent under quota 

 and raised 20 percent over the quota. In- 

 creases might conceivably be negotiated in 

 rates of duty but this would have to be 

 accomplished with the agreement of the 

 other negotiating countries. All these 

 possibilities are matters of speculation 

 at the moment but it is not too early to 

 consider what action, if any, should or 

 could be taken in this field. 



The trade agreements program has fre- 

 quently been called the backbone of United 

 States foreign economic policy. The 

 President's program has two major aims: 

 increased security for the United States 

 through increased economic strength of 

 our allies, and promotion of the long-term 

 economic welfare of the United States 

 through the opening of wider markets for 

 our products. In this effort, the 

 President places great stress on the mod- 

 erate, gradual, and selective approach to 

 further reductions of the barriers that 

 limit world trade. 



The Department of Interior' s role in 

 this field has been strengthened by the 



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