Policy Initiatives

Trade Negotiations and Agreements

The Chamber is the leading champion of a market-opening agenda for Latin America & the Caribbean that prioritizes the passage of pending free trade agreements while building a vision for future integration through vehicles such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The Chamber serves as secretariat for coalition efforts to secure congressional approval of pending FTAs with Colombia and Panama.

»Latin America Trade Coalition | Join our coalition

Existing Free Trade Agreements:

• North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
  Since January 1, 1994, when the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) came into force, three-way trade between the United States, Canada, and Mexico has increased exponentially.
  •  NAFTA Triumphant 20 Years: Assessing Two Decades of Gains in Trade, Growth and Jobs
  • Faces of Trade Small Business Success - NAFTA
    • CLARK Material Handling Co. – Lexington, KY
    • Ellicott Dredges, LLC – Baltimore, MD
    • Frontline Communications – Clearwater, FL
    • Marlin Steel Wire Products LLC – Baltimore, MD
    • Patton Electronics Co. – Gaithersburg, MD
    • Quality Float Works – Schaumburg, IL
    • Western Forms, Inc. – Kansas City, MO
  • Alliance to Keep U.S. Jobs | Join the Alliance
    The U.S. is in danger of losing tens of thousands of American jobs as a result of Congress’s action to violate portions of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). In response to this violation, Mexico imposed tariffs on 99 U.S. products in March 2009, which has resulted in $2.4 billion in lost trade for American companies and workers. Mexico is the U.S.’s third largest trading partner and the harm done to these industries has put hundreds of millions of dollars in markets, capital and other investments directly at risk.
• U.S.-Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA)
  DR-CAFTA went into force in 2006 to create a free trade zone between Central America and the United States.
• U.S.-Chile Free Trade Agreement
  The U.S.-Chile FTA was signed into law by President George W. Bush on September 3, 2003, and came into force on January 1, 2004.
• U.S.-Peru Free Trade Agreement
  On December 14, 2007, President George W. Bush signed the U.S.-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement. The agreement is currently being implemented and is expected to come into force in early 2009.
• U.S.-Panama Free Trade Agreement
  The U.S.-Panama Trade Promotion Agreement was signed into law by President Barack Obama on October 21, 2011. The agreement will strengthen the century-old U.S.-Panama geostrategic partnership.
• U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement
  The U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement was signed into law by President Barack Obama on October 21, 2011. The agreement is about leveling the playing field for American workers, farmers, and companies.

Trade Facilitation

Trade Facilitation Initiative
Together with partners such as the U.S. departments of Commerce and State, the Inter-American Development Bank as well as the region’s 23 American Chambers of Commerce (AmChams), the Chamber advances a hemisphere-wide strategy that focuses on building regional momentum to achieve country-specific Customs’ facilitation goals.

The Association of American Chambers of Commerce in Latin America (AACCLA) and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce have launched a new tool for advancing U.S. trade facilitation goals for the hemisphere. We have developed a diagnostic survey of customs users that will help countries identify, prioritize, and achieve new efficiencies in the area of customs administration.

The Brazil-U.S. Business Council

The Brazil-U.S. Business Council is a private sector organization focused on promoting the free flow of trade and investment between Brazil and the United States. The U.S. Section of the council represents major U.S. companies invested in Brazil. It operates under the administrative aegis of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, maintaining independent policy formulation and membership. The unifying purpose of the council is to protect, maintain, and advance trade and investment between the United States and Brazil through free trade, free markets, and free enterprise.

The Brazil Council develops its advocacy positions through dialogue with members of the Council’s Task Forces and Working Groups. The Council currently has 5 Task Forces and 6 Working Groups and one broad based coaltion, BRAZTAC, covering every major business sector. 

Intellectual Property Rights

Intellectual Property Rights
With 15 Western Hemisphere countries listed in the 2010 Special 301 Report, legal protection and enforcement of IPR continues to be a region-wide problem. The Chamber is working with like-minded partners to underscore the importance of fostering innovation.

Rule of Law

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Coalition for the Rule of Law in Global Markets seeks to address the business-specific concerns of U.S. Chamber members and affiliated American Chambers of Commerce (AmChams) related to rule of law lapses, including illegal expropriations, and other judicial, legal, or regulatory failures in markets where U.S. Chamber members operate.

Contributions of U.S. Business

The U.S. Chamber's Americas serves as a resource and a voice for U.S. businesses and their social interests, highlighting areas in which they contribute to economic and social development in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Today more than ever, the United States is making tremendous contributions to the advancement of Latin America and the Caribbean in job creation, trade partnerships, and new investments. View the latest AACCLA/U.S. Chamber Fact Sheet: The U.S. Contribution to Prosperity in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Balancing Security and Mobility

The U.S. Chamber's Americas works to support homeland security while facilitating trade at U.S. ports of entry, addressing the movement of goods (customs and port administration) as well as people (visa policy).

The U.S.-Mexico Leadership Initiative

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is building a program of work that will move true economic partnership between the United States and Mexico from policy aspiration to reality. Our goal is to make our border work; make both countries more competitive in global markets; promote the continent's energy independence while respecting our shared environment; raise living standards for our citizens; and enhance inter-governmental cooperation; all within a framework that fully respects and supports national sovereignty and interests. More

Cuba

Cuba and Unilateral Sanctions
Unilateral sanctions isolate the United States from its allies while denying U.S. companies access to markets in which third-country firms can do business easily.