Brooklyn will suffer with the passage of TPP
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a massive trade deal like the
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), but even bigger. How could a
treaty involving twelve Pacific Rim countries impact our neighborhoods
here in Brooklyn? Plenty. As your representative in Albany, I feel it is
my job to stand up against this deal that would take power away from
Brooklynites and give it to trans-national corporations.
If you are not aware of TPP, you are not alone. It has been
negotiated by trade representatives of the 12 nations with advice from
more than 600 corporate lawyers in private. Its details remained
shrouded in mystery. The secrecy of the deal is the first sign that we
as Brooklyn residents should be suspicious. If it is so good, why keep
the negotiations so secret?
I consider this treaty a threat to our rights as consumers, workers
and most importantly, a threat to our rights as citizens. Since this
would be an international treaty, TPP would stand above U.S. laws. That
means a corporation could sue New York state if we pass a law they do
not like. If we decide that we do not want an oil pipeline under
Flatbush Avenue, an oil company could sue New York for lost profits. And
they could win.
If that oil company decided to sue New York, the case would
eventually end up in something called investor-state dispute settlement
(ISDS). The ISDS would have the power to grant corporations compensation
for laws and regulations. I have nothing against large corporations,
but I believe that elected representatives should be making laws, not
individuals bound by the interests of their shareholders.
