27th Annual Conference of the New England Governors and the Eastern Canadian Premiers

WHEREAS, the Standing Committee on Trade and Globalization was established with a mandate to examine and make recommendations regarding issues, opportunities, and constraints related to trade and globalization relative to the New England and Eastern Canadian regions; and

          WHEREAS, the level of trade between jurisdictions is affected by the interaction of factors such as the legal and policy environment, transportation and communication infrastructure, technological environment, and trade development initiatives; and

          WHEREAS, the events of September 11th have had an irreversible effect on protocols for the movement of goods, services and people between jurisdictions; and

          WHEREAS, Resolution 26-5 of the New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers Conference held in Westbrook, Connecticut in August 2001, directed the Standing Committee on Trade and Globalization to enter into discussions regarding and to seek appropriate resources for the development of a trade and infrastructure study to examine opportunities for trade development, identification of strategic infrastructure development and coordination opportunities; and

          WHEREAS, under the leadership of the State of Maine, in partnership with the State of New York, a study of transportation infrastructure was recently conducted under the aegis of the Northeast Association State Transportation Officials (NASTO) and may be used as a first step towards meeting the direction of Resolution 26-5; and

          WHEREAS, the coordination opportunities of strategic transportation infrastructure, policies, technologies, planning, coordination opportunities have also been identified in other fora such as the Annual Conference of Atlantic Premiers, the Eastern Border Transportation Coalition, the Annual Conference of New England Governors, and the Transportation Border Working Group, as well as in many transportation studies recently conducted in the region.

          NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers reaffirm support for the work of the Standing Committee on Trade and Globalization with the objective of facilitating and expanding trade within the Northeast, recognizing that regional priorities identified in the 2001-03 work plan have changed in the aftermath of September 11th; and

          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Conference mandate the Standing Committee on Trade and Globalization to develop a framework for establishing direct communication among state and provincial trade representatives for the purpose of exchanging information to avoid potential trade disputes; and

          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Conference mandate the Standing Committee on Trade and Globalization to seek financial support from both federal governments to make international trade corridors, including border crossing, more fluid and efficient while maintaining security and safety, ensuring that Eastern Canadian-New England border issues are considered during the development and implementation of new customs clearance procedures, including the NEXUS program for low risk individuals and FAST program for commercial traffic; and

          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Conference mandate the Standing Committee on Trade and Globalization to secure full or associate membership in the I-95 Corridor Coalition for the jurisdictions with the purpose of developing ITS technologies, improving interjurisdictional coordination and promoting significant Northeastern international trade corridors including corridors significant for the region such as I-87, I-89, I-91 and I-93, and

          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Conference mandate the Standing Committee on Trade and Globalization to build on the NASTO Freight Service and Investment Study, taking into consideration, in particular, current work in the areas of border efficiency and security, regulatory harmonization of transportation, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), and trade corridor development with the objective of presenting to the 2003 Annual Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers those areas for potential cooperation amongst the jurisdictions comprising the Conference; and

          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Conference mandate the Standing Committee on Trade and Globalization to review the policies and regulations surrounding the commercial vehicles, including trucks, with the objective of presenting to the 2003 Annual Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers those areas for potential cooperation amongst jurisdictions comprising the Conference; and

           BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Conference mandate the Standing Committee on Trade and Globalization to enter into discussions with both federal governments and with other organizations as appropriate with the objective of improving air service within the region and particularly across the border by expanding the use of such concepts as preclearance of air travellers.

 

Adopted at the 27th Annual Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers, August 25-27, 2002.