INDUSTRY TRADE ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON SMALL AND MINORITY BUSINESS FOR TRADE POLICY MATTERS (ITAC-11)

ITAC-11
ITAC-11 is the only advisory committee to the U.S. Government on small and minority business exporter concerns. ITAC-11 successfully helps reflect various market access issues faced by small and minority businesses to the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), thereby keeping the work of these agencies relevant to and representative of small business. ITAC-11 is administered by the DOC ITAC Center. ITAC 11 liaison is provided by the U.S. Commercial Service office of Domestic Operations. It is one of 16 advisory committees jointly managed by the Industry Trade Advisory Center (TAC) at DOC and USTR to ensure that trade negotiators coordinate with the private sector during trade negotiations.

ITAC-11 provides advice on a broad range of trade policy issues and initiatives including trade facilitation, standards, e-commerce, trade finance, non-tariff barriers, export subsidies, rules of origin, the WTO, APEC, the OECD, and the FTAA. In addition to these, over the past year, the committee has addressed such issues as small and medium enterprises’ (SME) trade priorities for the many U.S. free trade agreement negotiations, SME participation in the WTO Ministerial, better education about SME export assistance services, American SME concerns on doing business with China, trade with Brazil and the opportunities for SME exporters, and the future of the trade advisory process.

Eligibility for ITAC-11 Membership
ITAC-11 is comprised of industry representatives from the small and minority business sectors. Committee members must: be U.S. citizens who are not full-time employees of a government entity; not be registered with the Department of Justice under the Foreign Agents Registration Act; and represent a U.S. (51% U.S.-owned) small or medium (defined as less than 500 employees) manufacturing or service firms that trade internationally and have a special interest in and knowledge of international trade issues. Representatives of industry associations and consultants, who represent small businesses that trade internationally, may also participate.

For more information on becoming a member of ITAC-11, please contact Laura Hellstern at 202-482-3222 or at laura.hellstern@N0SPAM.mail.doc.gov .  The main website for ITAC is http://www.export.gov/itac .