S-0568.1  _______________________________________________

                 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 8406

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      57th Legislature     2001 Regular Session

By Senators Shin, Rasmussen, Franklin, Roach, Prentice, McAuliffe, Regala, Fraser, Jacobsen and Gardner

Read first time 01/17/2001.  Referred to Committee on Agriculture & International Trade.

Encouraging legislator trade mission participation.

    WHEREAS, Washington state trade missions play a vital and important role in the state's economic development, promoting the growth of businesses and agriculture, and resulting in job creation; and

    WHEREAS, The participation of Washington state legislators in trade missions is crucial to the success of fostering strong relations with the state's trading partners and of creating new trade opportunities for businesses in Washington state; and

    WHEREAS, The participation of Washington state legislators in trade missions enables the legislature to craft legislation which better addresses trade and fosters better understanding between the people of Washington state and the people of other nations; and

    WHEREAS, The involvement of Washington state legislators in trade missions should be governed by protocols adopted by the legislature;

    NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, By the Senate of the state of Washington, the House of Representatives concurring, That the following protocols for legislative participation in executive agency trade missions be established; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That state trade missions will be initiated and organized by the executive of the agency, which includes the Office of the Governor; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the executive agency organizing the trade mission will inform both houses of the legislature of forthcoming missions in a timely manner.  In its official notice to the legislature, the executive agency shall be responsible for providing the following information:

    (1) A statement of trade mission objectives, dates, and expected itinerary; and

    (2) A description of the type of knowledge, background, and experience held by a delegation member which might provide assistance to the trade mission; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the agency may request that one of the participating legislators serve as designated leader of the trade mission; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That at least one or more legislators from each caucus of the Senate and the House of Representatives may participate in the trade mission, depending on the size and scope of the mission.  The agency will be notified of the legislative participants in a timely manner; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That whenever possible, legislators possessing business, foreign market, language, cultural expertise, or an interest pertinent to the trade mission are encouraged to participate; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That each legislative participant is responsible for assisting the trade mission achieve its stated goals and objectives; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the designated leader of the trade mission will work closely with agency staff to develop the trade mission protocols and responsibilities and define the working relationship with agency staff; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That following completion of the trade mission, upon request, each legislative participant is encouraged to provide feedback concerning the mission and its results to the agency in a timely manner; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That nothing in this resolution precludes members of the legislature from participating in the mission.

                            --- END ---