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SJM113.....................................................by STATE AFFAIRS
NAFTA - Stating findings of the Legislature emphatically urging and
petitioning the Congress of the United States and particularly the
congressional delegation representing the State of Idaho to require that
specified conditions for the continued participation in NAFTA be enacted
and that should conditions for continued participation fail to be met, that
Congressional approval of NAFTA should cease to be effective and the
President of the United States should provide written notice of withdrawal
to the Governments of Mexico and Canada in accordance with Article 2205 of
NAFTA.
03/18 Senate intro - 1st rdg - to printing
03/19 Rpt prt - to 10th Ord
03/20 10th Ord - ADOPTED - voice vote
Floor Sponsor - Pearce
Title apvd - to House
03/21 House intro - 1st rdg - to Transp
03/25 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
03/26 2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
Rls susp - ADOPTED - voice vote
Floor Sponsor - Wood(35)
Title apvd - to Senate
03/27 To enrol - Rpt enrol - Pres signed
03/28 Sp signed
03/31 To Secretary of State
]]]] LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ]]]] Fifty-ninth Legislature Second Regular Session - 2008IN THE SENATE SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL NO. 113 BY STATE AFFAIRS COMMITTEE 1 A JOINT MEMORIAL 2 TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES IN CONGRESS 3 ASSEMBLED, AND TO THE CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION REPRESENTING THE STATE OF 4 IDAHO IN THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES. 5 We, your Memorialists, the Senate and the House of Representatives of the 6 State of Idaho assembled in the Second Regular Session of the Fifty-ninth 7 Idaho Legislature, do hereby respectfully represent that: 8 WHEREAS, we strongly object to any treaty or agreement, which threatens to 9 violate national security, private property, United States commerce, constitu- 10 tional rights and American sovereignty while emphasizing our commitment to the 11 Pacific Northwest Economic Region (PNWER) and other cooperative nations work- 12 ing for mutually beneficial goals; and 13 WHEREAS, the unique form of freedom and free enterprise system enjoyed by 14 Americans, provided for in the United States Constitution and Declaration of 15 Independence, is now being threatened by the North American Free Trade Agree- 16 ment (NAFTA) between the United States and foreign countries; and 17 WHEREAS, Article 2205 of NAFTA allows for the withdrawal of the United 18 States from the agreement and provides that "(a) A party may withdraw from 19 this Agreement six months after it provides written notice of withdrawal to 20 the other Parties. If a Party withdraws, the Agreement shall remain in force 21 for the remaining Parties"; and 22 WHEREAS, by 2002, which was the last year United States government agen- 23 cies tracked NAFTA specific job losses, over 1.5 million American jobs were 24 verified as lost due to NAFTA, with the majority from the high wage manufac- 25 turing sector; and 26 WHEREAS, NAFTA-related trade imbalances have grown from an imbalance in 27 2002 of $85 billion to a trade deficit of nearly $139 billion with Mexico and 28 Canada in 2007 pursuant to foreign trade statistics of the U.S. Census Bureau; 29 and 30 WHEREAS, NAFTA has reduced the value of the dollar, harmed the U.S. econ- 31 omy, local communities and American families, undermined the free enterprise 32 system in the United States, and resulted in a lack of parity regarding laws 33 and regulations related to the environment and labor, as well as other laws 34 and regulations placing America at a disadvantage; and 35 WHEREAS, the volume of imports from Mexico and Canada has soared since 36 NAFTA, straining security checks at the U.S. border and threatening the eco- 37 nomic and physical security of the United States with the potential loss of 38 control of its borders; and 39 WHEREAS, future unrestricted foreign trucking allowed by NAFTA into the 40 United States has the potential of posing a safety hazard to the American peo- 41 ple due to inadequate maintenance and inspection, lack of background checks 42 for violations in Mexico, lack of drug and alcohol testing, lack of enforce- 43 ment of size and weight requirements and lack of national security procedures 44 which undermine the very charge given to the U.S. Department of Homeland Secu- 2 1 rity to defend our borders against threats; and 2 WHEREAS, NAFTA has resulted in spiraling deficits with Mexico and Canada, 3 unfair agricultural trade, job loss, wage reductions and an erosion in stan- 4 dards of living, an erosion of the United States manufacturing base, an 5 increase in health and environmental hazards, and an increase in the flow of 6 illegal drugs and controlled substances into the country due to inadequate 7 inspection practices; and 8 WHEREAS, continued participation in NAFTA should be conditioned on the 9 renegotiation of the terms of NAFTA by the President of the United States to 10 correct trade deficits, currency distortions and agricultural provisions. Con- 11 tinued participation should also be conditioned on certification to Congress 12 by the President that the Government of Mexico is elected in free and fair 13 elections, provides a fair, impartial and transparent justice system, and pro- 14 tects the rights of its citizens to organize into political parties, to have 15 free speech and free media, and to assemble and organize associations to 16 advance human rights and economic opportunities; and 17 WHEREAS, continued participation should also be conditioned on certifica- 18 tion of gains in United States jobs and living standards by the U.S. Secretary 19 of Labor, certification of increased domestic manufacturing by the U.S. Secre- 20 tary of Commerce, certification by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture that 21 there has been a reduced incidence of contaminated and adulterated food, cer- 22 tification by the U.S. Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 23 that conditions affecting public health in the United States - Mexico border 24 zone have not worsened since January 1, 1994, and certification by the Attor- 25 ney General of the United States that increased imports from NAFTA parties are 26 not resulting in an increase in crime involving illegal drugs or other con- 27 trolled substances; and 28 WHEREAS, unless the conditions for continued participation are met, con- 29 gressional approval of NAFTA should cease to be effective and the President of 30 the United States should provide written notice of withdrawal to the Govern- 31 ments of Mexico and Canada in accordance with Article 2205 of NAFTA. 32 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the members of the Second Regular Ses- 33 sion of the Fifty-ninth Idaho Legislature, the Senate and the House of Repre- 34 sentatives concurring therein, that we emphatically urge and petition the Con- 35 gress of the United States and particularly the congressional delegation rep- 36 resenting the State of Idaho to require that specified conditions for the con- 37 tinued participation in NAFTA be enacted and that, should conditions for con- 38 tinued participation fail to be met, congressional approval of NAFTA should 39 cease to be effective and the President of the United States should provide 40 written notice of withdrawal to the Governments of Mexico and Canada in accor- 41 dance with Article 2205 of NAFTA. 42 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate be, and she is 43 hereby authorized and directed to forward a copy of this Memorial to the Pres- 44 ident of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives of Con- 45 gress, and the congressional delegation representing the State of Idaho in the 46 Congress of the United States.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS18118
This legislation is to urge and petition the Congress of the United
States, and particularly the congressional delegation representing
the State of Idaho, to use all their efforts to ensure certain
conditions for continued NAFTA participation are met, and in the
event of default of such conditions then withdraw to stop
additional harm to the American economy and workforce, loss of
sovereignty and border security.
FISCAL NOTE
Job loss due to NAFTA has a negative affect on the general fund.
Contact
Name: Senator Monty Pearce
Phone: 332-1387
Senator Steve Bair
Senator Mike Jorgenson
Senator Jeff Siddoway
Senator Mel Richardson
Senator Shirley McKague
Senator Clint Stennett
Representative Ken Andrus
Representative JoAn Wood
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE SJM 113