Iverica Posted May 14, 2020 Posted May 14, 2020 This thread will contain corss-posts and/or copies of all ATARA's currently active policies or orders. ---  ATARA ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION NO. 001 Passed On/During: JUNE 15, 2018 / (1st General Assembly) Author Delegate: Mr Alexander Bendtsen, Member of the Panel, Delegate of the Commonwealth of @Andalla Notable Motions/Dissents: Motion to Reconsider (Addressed) Quorum: 8 Delegates in Attendance Votes Aye: 8 (Quorum Consensus) On 5/13/2018 at 2:31 PM, Andalla said: GENERAL COMMON TARIFF SCHEME AGREEMENT The Governments of the Commonwealth of Andalla, the United Houses of Astriedan, the Federal Republic of Girkmand, the Republic of Iverica, the Republican Union of Lusotropia, the Most Serene Republic of Mauridiviah, the United States of Prymont, the Republic of the Sunset Sea Islands and the Het Huisselant Variota, member states of the Argic-Thalassan-Alharun Regional Association (ATARA): NOTING that Clause III of the Preamble of the Charter of the Argic-Thalassan-Alharun Regional Association, done in Porto Altaria, Iverica, on the 12th of December 2017, states that in an increasingly interdependent wurld, nations must strive to cooperate and work together to achieve common economic goals; RECOGNIZING that, in numerous instances, the Charter also states the Association's desire to secure peace and prosperity through economic cooperation; UNDERSTANDING that higher or lower tariffs imposed on certain nations may cause inequality and a lack of economic diversity, thereby creating an unwanted monopoly in the exportation or importation of certain products; Furthermore, UNDERSTANDING that such a monopoly would reduce competition, an important factor needed for effective economic development; KNOWING that a common tariff scheme between member states would reduce the chances of such a monopoly endangering the market, thereby fostering competition and economic development; CONCLUDING that the adoption of a common tariff scheme between member states of the Argic-Thalassan-Alharun Regional Association would encourage economic development; HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:  ARTICLE I General Definitions  For the purposes of this Agreement, unless the context requires otherwise:  SECTION 1. ATARA shall mean the Argic-Thalassan-Alharun Regional Association.  SECTION 2. Member state/s shall mean the respective nations comprising the Argic-Thalassan-Alharun Regional Association, whether collectively or individually, as the context requires.  SECTION 3. Agreement shall mean the General Common Tariff Scheme Agreement.  SECTION 4. Agricultural products shall mean:  (a) those which fall under the definitions stated within Chapters 1 to 24 of the Harmonized Nomenclature System (HN), and other similar raw materials or unprocessed products listed under other HN sections; and  (b) raw materials or unprocessed products that have undergone little change in form from the original product. ARTICLE II General Provisions  SECTION 1. All member states shall be obligated to participate in the tariff reduction scheme.  SECTION 2. Any party may voluntarily choose to exclude specific products, i.e. on the HN 8/9-digit level, from being subject under the Agreement's terms, if said product is deemed too sensitive to be included under the Agreement's terms.  (a) Under this section, no party shall be penalized for withdrawing any product from under the terms of the Agreement.  SECTION 3. Any product shall be considered as originating from ATARA member states, if at least 45% of the product's total content originates from a certain ATARA member state. ARTICLE III Product Coverage  SECTION 1. The terms of this Agreement shall apply to all manufactured goods, including capital goods, processed agricultural goods, and those products falling outside the definition of agricultural products as stipulated herein. Agricultural products shall be exempt from the provisions of this Agreement. ARTICLE IV General Tariff Reduction Measures  SECTION 1. The reduction of existing tariff rates between member states to 25 per centum shall be completed within a span of 5 years, beginning 1 August 2018 and terminating 31 July 2023, subject to a program of reduction to be determined by each party to the Agreement.  SECTION 2. Existing tariff rates already below 25 per centum shall not be included in the reduction of tariff rates. Likewise, any products that reach a tariff rate of 25 per centum shall no longer be included in the following stage of reduction.  SECTION 3. The aforementioned terms shall not impede any party from completing the reduction of existing tariff rates to 25 per centum before 31 June 2023.  SECTION 4. Any additional fees or charges other than those connected to the taxation of imports and exports shall reflect only the approximate cost of the services rendered (e.g. Customs inspections).  SECTION 5. The provisions of each member state's tariff reduction scheme shall be made known to the general public quickly, honestly and efficiently, by means of publishing in conspicuous places in at least four (4) newspapers of general circulation within said member state, on or before the 11th of July 2018.  (a) All parties are encouraged to reduce tariffs orderly, preferably by means of assuming an annual rate of reduction, to prevent any undesirable consequences that may have been caused due to the rapid reduction of tariffs.  SECTION 6. All parties shall undergo the process of eliminating all other non-tariff barriers on an annual basis, within a period of five years following the completion of the tariff reduction schedule. ARTICLE V Most-Favored Nation Status  SECTION 1. Any advantage, exemption, favor or privilege granted by any party upon a certain product originating from or destined for other parties shall likewise be conferred, immediately and without constraint, to a like product originating in or destined for all other parties to the Agreement.  SECTION 2. The provisions stated within Section 1 of this Article shall not obligate any party to eliminate any preferences in regards to charges levied on or connected with the importation and exportation of products, provided that said preference falls within the description hereon:  (a) Preferences in force exclusively between two or more contracting parties, which shall be subject to the provisions stipulated therein;  (b) Preferences in force exclusively between any number of member states and non-member states, which shall be subject to the provisions stipulated therein. ARTICLE VI Emergency Suspensions  SECTION 1. If any product, which is eligible under the terms and policies of this Agreement, is imported in such a manner or in such quantities as to cause or threaten serious injury to sectors engaged in the production of like or directly competitive products in the importing member states, the importing member states may, for the appropriate duration of time as needed to resolve such issue, tentatively suspend the provisions stipulated herein.  SECTION 2. Pursuant to Section 1 of this Article, all parties shall agree to implement the aforementioned suspensions in an honest and orderly manner, taking into consideration the framework and goals of this Agreement as stated in the Preamble.  SECTION 3. Any actions undertaken by a Member State in relation to Article 6 of this Agreement shall be reported immediately to the ATARA Economic Council as established in Article 7 § 1 of this Agreement.  (a) The aforementioned resolutions implemented may be subject to revision and consultation by the Economic Council. ARTICLE VII Administrative Machinery  SECTION 1. Pursuant to Article 3 § 4 of the ATARA Charter, Member States shall establish a council to oversee the implementation of this Agreement, to be known as the ATARA Economic Council (hereinafter referred to as the Council).  (a) The Council shall be composed of one (1) Economic Minister from every Member State, working in conjunction with the country's National Secretariat as referred to in Article 3 § 5 of the ATARA Charter.  (b) In the event that any Member State does not have an acting ministerial-level economic official, the National Secretariat of the Member State thereof shall be obligated to nominate the most relevant senior position as representative to the Council.  (c) The Council shall be chaired by, and report directly to, the ATARA Chairperson.  (d) The Council shall submit a report to the ATARA Panel biannually detailing advances in the implementation of the terms stipulated by this Agreement.  SECTION 2. The National Secretariats of every Member State shall be obligated to notify the Council immediately of any additional tariff arrangements between two or more Member States, in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement. ARTICLE VIII Final Provisions  SECTION 1. Member States agree to duly execute the appropriate measures as required in order to accomplish the obligations as stated in Article 4 of this Agreement.  SECTION 2. This Agreement shall be effective upon signing.  SECTION 3. Any amendments to the terms of this Agreement shall take effect five (5) working days after all Member States have achieved a consensus on the amendments in question.  SECTION 4. This Agreement shall be entrusted to the Office of the ATARA Chairperson, which shall promptly grant a valid copy of this Agreement to the National Secretariats of every Member State.  SECTION 5. No exceptions shall be made to the terms and provisions set forth herein.   IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, having been duly appointed by their respective governments, hereby affix their signatures to the General Common Tariff Scheme Agreement.  Done in Porto Altaria, this 14th day of June, 2018 in a single copy in the Anglish language.   OOC: Please excuse my terrible lawmaking skills. đ OOC (2): Many thanks to the ASEAN Common Effective Preferential Tariff (CEPT) Agreement, the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA), and the GATT. I wouldn't be here without copying you.  3
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