§2412 Initiation of Investigations

Summary

People or groups can ask the Trade Representative to look into a trade problem by filing a petition that explains the issue. The Trade Representative must look at any petition and decide within 45 days whether to start an investigation. If the Trade Representative decides not to act, they must tell the person who filed the petition why and publish a short notice explaining the reasons in the Federal Register. If the Trade Representative decides to investigate, they must start the investigation, publish a summary of the petition in the Federal Register, and give people a chance to speak about the issue. If the petition asked for a public hearing, the hearing must be held within 30 days of the decision (or later if the petitioner agrees); hearings can also be held at other times if requested on time. Before starting certain investigations, the Trade Representative must publish the decision and talk with the committees named in section 2155. If a country is identified under section 2242(a)(2), the Trade Representative must start an investigation within 30 days into the act, policy, or practice that caused the identification, unless that matter is already being investigated or the Trade Representative decides the investigation would hurt U.S. economic interests. If they decide not to investigate for that reason, they must send Congress a written report explaining the reasons and what U.S. economic interests would be harmed. During such investigations, the Trade Representative must consult with officials responsible for copyrights and patents. The Trade Representative can also decide whether using the actions in section 2411 would be effective for the problems listed in section 2411(d).