ECONOMIC POLICY COUNCIL MINUTES: SEPTEMBER 5, 6, 9, AND 11 MEETINGS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP87T00759R000200200026-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 24, 2010
• Sequence Number: 26
• Publication Date: October 7, 1985
• Content Type: MEMO

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EXECUTIVE SECRETARIAT
ROUTING SLIP
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THE WHITE HOUSE
I A I A cHI11GT0Nl
CABINET AFFAIRS STAFFING MEMORANDUM
Date: 10/7/85 Number: ------------- Due By:
Subject: Economic Policy Council Mi-autes:
September 5/6J9, and 11 meetings
ALL CABINET MEMBERS
Vice President
State
Treasury
Defense
Justice
Interior
Agriculture
Commerce
Labor
HHS
HUD
Transportation
Energy
Chief of Staff
Education
na_
CI
U STR
GSA
EPA
NASA
OPM
VA
SBA
FYI
CEA
CEQ
OSTP
McFarlane
Svahn
Chew (For WH Staffing)
Executive Secretary for:
DPC
EPC
Attached for your information are the minutes of the
following Economic Policy Council meetings:
September 6
epLemb-~
September 11
Alfred H. Kingon ^ Don Clarey
Cabinet Secretary ^ Rick Davis
456-2823 ^ Ed Stucky
(Ground Floor, West Wing)
11
^ Q
^ ,
^ ^
^ ^
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^ ^
^ ^
^ ^
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MINUTES
ECONOMIC POLICY COUNCIL
September 6, 1985
2:00 p.m.
Roosevelt Room
Attendees: Messrs. Baker, Block, Baldrige, Brock, Yeutter,
Sprinkel, Wright, Boggs, Burnley, Kingon, McFarlane,
Oglesby, McAllister, Khedouri, Danzansky, Low,
Mulford, Smart, Smith, Stucky, and Wallis.
1. Trade Policy Strategy
Secretary Baker stated that the purpose of the meeting was to
review the House Republican trade proposals and possible
Administration trade legislation.
Ambassador Yeutter reviewed the House Republican proposals noting
that the Administration has already enacted many of them or is
including them in our trade statement. Strengthening the Foreign
Commercial Service, requiring ambassadors to provide annual
reports on their embassies' export expansion strategy, decontrol-
ling exports of technology already available overseas, and
improving cooperation on international financial issues are
either a part of the Administration's trade strategy or consis-
tent with it.
Ambassador Yeutter pointed out that the House Republicans
proposed to amend the Export Administration Act to permit the
export of Alaskan oil. Mr. Boggs noted that if Alaskan oil were
exported to Japan, our bilateral trade deficit with Japan would
be reduced by $15 billion, but our overall merchandise trade
deficit would remain the same because we would import oil from
Mexico and Venezuela to make up for the Alaskan oil that would be
going abroad. Secretary Baldrige stated that the Export Adminis-
tration Act requires the Commerce Department to study the
feasibility of exporting North Slope oil by April 1986.
Mr. Burnley stated that exporting Alaskan oil would be strongly
opposed by the maritime industry, raising both budgetary and
national security questions. Mr. Boggs also noted that sales of
oil may raise an anti-Japanese reaction in the United States.
The Council noted that the Administration is studying several of
the proposals offered by the House Republicans, including improving
the effectiveness of policies designed to assist workers dis-
placed by imports and creating a broad based bipartisan
commission on trade. The Council alsd noted that the
Administration would oppose several of the House Republican
proposals, including requiring the United States Trade
Representative to take actions against countries declining to
participate in a new round of multilateral negotiations;
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Minutes
Economic Policy Council
September 6, 1985
Page two
delegating Presidential authority under Sections 201 and 301 to
the United States Trade Representative; and changing Section 201
into an unfair trade remedy, which it is not now.
Ambassador Yeutter reviewed several legislative initiatives that
might be part of a possible Administration trade bill. These
included: seeking authority for a new round of trade negoti-
ations; extending our non-tariff barrier authority, seeking
authority to reduce tariffs, and seeking authority to offer
compensation to other countries when the U.S. increases tariffs.
Mr. Yeutter also stated that Administration legislation might
better protect intellectual property rights by protecting against
trade in articles that infringe U.S. process patents, extending
the patent term for agricultural chemicals, and eliminating
Freedom of Information Act abuses by giving affected companies
notice and an opportunity to oppose release of their business
confidential information.
Ambassador Yeutter stated that several other components of
possible legislation might be improving the antidumping and
countervailing duty laws by substituting a predictable pricing
test for non-market economies, establishing a dispute settlement
deadline on Section 301 cases, and establishing a fast track ?
procedure for Section 201 cases on perishable agricultural items.
The Council's discussion focused on the advisability of the
Administration proposing our own trade bill, likely Congressional
allies, and the possibility that the bill might be expanded to
such a degree that the President would have to veto it.
The Council also discussed the possibility of seeking a biparti-
san commission on trade. Mr. McFarlane suggested that such a
commission might help us resist protectionist legislation in the
short term as a consensus develops about the long term agenda.
He stressed that it is important that the United States and the
President be in a strong position going into the Gorbachev
summit. Several Council members expressed support for the
commission as a long term approach, but questioned whether the
commission would have a short term effect.
The Council briefly discussed how to communicate the President's
trade policy, weighing the advantages and disadvantages of a
televised speech.
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