00CS FOR HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 20(ITT)                                                                               
01 Relating to the North American Free Trade Agreement.                                                                    
02 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
03  WHEREAS great uncertainty exists regarding the effect of the proposed North                                            
04 American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) on state laws and regulations pertaining to                                       
05 recycling, labeling, and other product and process standards; and                                                       
06  WHEREAS NAFTA could effectively challenge the concept of states' rights under the                                      
07 United States Constitution by preempting state and local laws on investment, job creation,                              
08 consumer protection, the environment, community lending, bank regulation, and insurance; and                            
09  WHEREAS environmental protection laws and regulations of Alaska and other states                                       
10 could be interpreted under NAFTA as trade barriers; and                                                                 
11  WHEREAS NAFTA calls for harmonization of national and state standards, which                                           
12 could lead to mandatory reduction of product standards to the lowest common international                               
13 product standards; and                                                                                                  
14  WHEREAS NAFTA could potentially preclude preferential treatment of Alaska                                              

01 residents and Alaska products in state procurement; and                                                                 
02  WHEREAS NAFTA could limit a state's flexibility when offering special programs,                                        
03 subsidies, or investment incentives to its domestic industries, such as fish hatcheries; and                            
04  WHEREAS the most recent estimate by the International Trade Commission is that                                         
05 the United States could lose 170,000 jobs if NAFTA is approved; and                                                     
06  WHEREAS dispute resolution procedures under NAFTA are confidential and restricted                                      
07 by federal officials, and state and local participation is absent;                                                      
08  BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the President and the                                           
09 United States Congress, before making a decision on NAFTA and not during a fast-track                                   
10 approach to the decision, to develop a vision of international trade that safeguards the                                
11 constitutional and economic standing of the individual states of the United States and that is                          
12 based on a full assessment of the economic, environmental, and legal effects on states; and                             
13 be it                                                                                                                   
14  FURTHER RESOLVED by the Alaska State Legislature that states should be                                                 
15 included as full partners in dispute resolution under NAFTA and that states' interests should                           
16 be vigorously defended when disputes arise; and be it                                                                   
17  FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States                                             
18 Congress to obtain modifications to the North American Free Trade Agreement in order to                                 
19 protect the existing rights of states, where not precluded by federal law, to manage their                              
20 natural resources and environment, to encourage their economic development, and to protect                              
21 their citizens.                                                                                                         
22  COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Bill Clinton, President of the                                
23 United States; the Honorable Al Gore, Vice-President of the United States and President of                              
24 the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Robert C. Byrd, President Pro Tempore of the U.S. Senate;                                
25 the Honorable Thomas S. Foley, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives; the Honorable                              
26 Ron Brown, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce; the Honorable Bruce Babbitt,                                   
27 Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior; the Honorable Mike Espy, Secretary of the                             
28 U.S. Department of Agriculture; the Honorable Carol M. Browner, Administrator of the U.S.                               
29 Environmental Protection Agency; the Honorable Mickey Kantor, U.S. Trade Representative;                                
30 and to the Honorable Ted Stevens and the Honorable Frank Murkowski, U.S. Senators, and                                  
31 the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in                                       

01 Congress.