ITA Standards Liaisons Office US Department of Commerce wwwtradegovstandards Introduction Commerce Standards Initiative 2 6 Years since the launch of the Commerce Standards Initiative ID: 622084
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Standards and Conformance as Non-Tariff Trade Barriers: Commerce Assistance to U.S Exporters
ITA Standards Liaison’s Office
U.S. Department of Commerce
www.trade.gov/standardsSlide2
Introduction: Commerce Standards Initiative
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6 Years since the launch of the Commerce Standards Initiative
Standards and Conformance issues continue serve as major problems to U.S. exporters and are a priority for the Commercial Service
Report Locationhttp://ts.nist.gov/Standards/upload/trade_barriers_report-2.pdfSlide3
Trade Agreements: The rules of the game
WTO Technical Barriers to Trade Agreement (TBT) and the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) are the major agreements that govern how standards and conformance are used in Members technical regulations.
U.S. Free Trade Agreements also typically contain provisions or chapters on TBT and SPS
USTR is the overall lead on these agreements
TCC contact: Bryan O’Byrne is the ITA TBT POC Bryan.OByrne@trade.govTCC contact: Christine Brown is the ITA SPS POC
Christine.Brown@trade.gov
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Codex Alimentarius
-- USDA and FDA are the lead agencies for Codex Alimentarius, the United Nations food safety standards developer
-- Codex Alimentarius is referenced in the SPS Agreement as the "relevant international organization" for developing food safety standards
-- ITA is active in interagency work on Codex, particularly on making sure that Codex standards and ISO standards on food products are complementary
-- TAC/OMA contacts: Eileen Hill (Eileen.Hill@trade.gov) and Renee Hancher (Renee.Hancher@trade.gov) are the ITA Codex POCs
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Standards in Trade
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Standards: Use driven by markets or regulators?
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Frequently Asked Questions on Standards
Q: What is considered an international standard? The country where I am located only accepts ISO or IEC as international standards.
A: The U.S. does not name specific organizations as those developing international standards. Our position is to promote broad acceptance of standards that follow WTO TBT Committee Decision, which lays out principles for international standards development that include:
Transparency
Openness
Impartiality and consensus
Effectiveness and relevance
Coherence
Development Dimension
http://www.ita.doc.gov/td/standards/Final%20Site/International%20Standards.htm
Advocacy: Ensure standards development and regulatory processes are open for U.S. interests to make technical comments.
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Frequently Asked Questions on Standards
Q: Why aren’t standards developed in the United States free?
A: Some of the standards developers in the U.S. need to charge for standards so that they can continue the work of their organizations.
A: However some of the standards bodies either provide their standards for free, like the Air-conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute or the National Fire Protection Association
A: Some also have MOU programs with the National Standards Bodies of your country, like ASTM International or Underwriters Laboratories. Advocacy: Check to see what sectors the country might be interested in, and we may be able to connect them with low cost standards, developed in the U.S.
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Frequently Asked Questions on Standards
Q: I see the EU having a lot of influence on my country’s standards or regulatory body. What does the U.S. offer?
A: The EU has a top down, centralized strategy in its approach to standards development. The U.S. has a bottom up, decentralized, market-driven approach to standardization.
A: Given these approaches, the EU has provided a greater amount of technical assistance for developing countries on issues relating to standards and conformance
A: The U.S. has improved its approach to technical assistance in the last few years, with greater support from the U.S. Trade and Development Agency and other U.S. public and private sector programs.Advocacy: If you see this trend, help us investigate with the donor agencies what U.S. assistance exists for your market.
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Hot Topics in Standards
Green Buildings
Renewable Energy Standards (Photovoltaic, Wind)
NuclearIntelligent Transportation Systems
Energy Efficiency ProductsNanotechnol0gy Smart GridCyber securityElectric VehiclesCarbon Footprint
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New Developments in 2011
USTR Report on Technical Barriers
http://www.ustr.gov/sites/default/files/TBT%20Report%20Mar%2025%20Master%20Draft%20Final%20pdf%20-%20Adobe%20Acrobat%20Pro.pdf
White House’s newly formed National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Subcommittee on Standards
http://standards.gov/standards_gov/nstcsubcommitteeonstandards.cfm
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Conformity Assessment in Trade
Conformity to a standard may be required by the marketplace (another manufacturer, retailer) or a regulatory body.
The U.S. uses a variety of conformity assessment tools, any one of the following tools may be suitable for U.S. exports depending on the level of risk of the product and the reliability and trust between the parties involved in the transaction.
Supplier’s Declaration of Conformity
InspectionAccreditationIndependent TestingThird Party Certification
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Typical Exporter Issues with Conformity Assessment
Preference for Supplier’s Declaration of Conformity over third-party testing (government or independent).
Type Approval
Lack of information of what testing is required or how to obtain a certification
Redundant testingTesting that is above what is usually requiredLimited Testing facilities (which may limit time to market)Concern for IPR/Patent protection Expense of additional testing
Questions to whether testing actually occurs
Problems with inspection bodies (expense, IPR concerns, time to inspect).
Advocacy: Conformance problems and solutions may be very specific and may involve multiple parties. Please consult with us to help tailor the solution for the exporter’s problem.
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Conformity Assessment: Conformance Marks
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Resources for Marking Questions
CE Marking
http://www.export.gov/cemark/doc_ce_mark_main.asp
Sylvia Mohr (US/EU)
Sylvia.Mohr@trade.govBob Straetz (HQ) Robert.Straetz@trade.govUL MarkingKhoi Do (Khoi.Do@mail.doc.gov
) at Underwriters Laboratories
CCC Marking
http://www.export.gov/china/exporting_to_china/importregs.asp
Jenny May (OCEA) Jenny.May@trade.gov
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Other Commercial Service Contacts on Standards
Other contacts not previously listed in my presentation:
Standards Attaches:
Mexico City: Everett Waikai – Everett.Waikai@trade.govBrussels: Bill Thorn –
William.Thorn@trade.gov
Beijing: Dale Wright –
Dale.Wright@trade.gov
Sao Paolo: Miguel Hernandez Miguel.Hernandez@trade.govSlide17
Thank you!
Ryan Kane
Office of the ITA Standards Liaison
U.S. Department of Commerce
202-482-1983Ryan.Kane@trade.gov
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