facebook twitter tra email

U.S.-Canada Regulatory Cooperation Council

Prime Minister Stephen Harper and President Barack Obama created the U.S. – Canada Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) on February 4, 2011. After private sector consultations and bilateral negotiations, the RCC released the Joint Action Plan on Regulatory Cooperation on December 7, 2011. The Joint Action Plan is a practical first step to increased regulatory cooperation between the United States and Canada.

RCC: High Level Summary

In order to implement the initiatives identified in the Joint Action Plan, bilateral working groups led by senior officials from regulatory agencies will develop work plans with concrete objectives, deliverables and milestones for tangible progress within the RCC's two-year mandate.

RCC working group contact information

The RCC hosted an initial outreach event in Washington, DC on January 30-31, 2012 to allow an opportunity for interested stakeholders to learn more about the Council and to provide input to federal regulators as they finalize draft work plans.

Stakeholder outreach session summary

We welcome ongoing feedback on the Regulatory Cooperation Council process and implementation. Please direct all commentary to RCC@trade.gov.

RCC Work Plans

The U.S. – Canada Regulatory Cooperation Council Joint Action Plan was released by President Obama and Prime Minister Harper on December 7, 2011. The RCC will focus its initial efforts on initiatives outlined in the Plan. Below is a list of work plans for each initiative. These plans are in the process of being finalized as the working groups incorporate the feedback provided by stakeholders at the outreach event in Washington, DC on January 30-31, 2012. We will post the final work plans as they become available.

Agriculture and Food 1
Lead Agencies: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Food Safety Inspection Service, Agricultural Marketing Service

MEAT AND POULTRY PRODUCT EXPORT CERTIFICATION
ZONING FOR FOREIGN ANIMAL DISEASES
EQUIVALENCE OF MEAT SAFETY SYSTEMS
PERIMETER APPROACH TO PLANT PROTECTION
MEAT CUT NOMENCLATURE
FINANCIAL RISK MITIGATION FOR PRODUCE SELLERS

Agriculture and Food 2
Lead Agency: Food and Drug Administration

COMMON APPROACH TO FOOD SAFETY
MUTUAL RELIANCE ON FOOD SAFETY TESTING
VETERINARY DRUGS

Crop Protection Products
Lead Agency: Environmental Protection Agency

PRODUCT APPROVALS AND MAXIMUM RESIDUE LIMITS/TOLERANCES

Personal Care Products and Pharmaceuticals
Lead Agency: Food and Drug Administration

ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION GATEWAY
COMMON MONOGRAPHS FOR OVER-THE-COUNTER DRUGS
GOOD MANUFACTURING PRACTICES

Occupational Safety Issues
Lead Agency: Occupational Safety and Health Administration

CLASSIFICATION AND LABELING OF WORKPLACE HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS

Motor Vehicles
Lead Agency: Department of Transportation

NEW MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARDS
EXISTING MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARDS

Rail Safety, Dangerous Goods, and Intelligent Transportation Systems
Lead Agency: Department of Transportation

RAIL SAFETY STANDARDS
DANGEROUS GOODS MEANS OF CONTAINMENT
INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS (ITS)

Air Transport
Lead Agency: Department of Transportation

UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS

Marine Transport
Lead Agency: U.S. Coast Guard

MARINE TRANSPORTATION SECURITY REGULATIONS
REGULATORY OVERSIGHT REGIME ON THE GREAT LAKES & SEAWAY
LIFE SAVING APPLIANCES
CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS FOR SMALL CRAFT

Locomotive Emissions
Lead Agency: Environmental Protection Agency

LOCOMOTIVE EMISSIONS

Environment
Lead Agency: Environmental Protection Agency

EMISSION STANDARDS FOR LIGHT-DUTY VEHICLES
AIR POLLUTANTS (PARTICULATE MATTER)

Nanotechnology
Lead Agency: Office of Management and Budget

NANOTECHNOLOGY

Useful websites and links:

divider

 

The International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, manages this global trade site to provide access to ITA information on promoting trade and investment, strengthening the competitiveness of U.S. industry, and ensuring fair trade and compliance with trade laws and agreements. External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein. This site contains PDF documents. A PDF reader is available from Adobe Systems Incorporated.