---
kind: "section"
citation: "15 U.S.C. § 4801"
title: "15"
title_heading: "Commerce and Trade"
number: "4801"
heading: "Findings and purpose"
release: "119-102"
date: "2026-07-12"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/15/4801"
units:
  - "Chapter 74 — Competitiveness Policy Council"
---

# §4801. Findings and purpose

- (a) **Findings—** The Congress finds that—
  - (1) efforts to reverse the decline of [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3) industry has been hindered by—
    - (A) a serious erosion in the institutions and policies which foster [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3) competitiveness including a lack of high quality domestic and international economic and scientific data needed to—
      - (i) reveal sectoral strengths and weaknesses;
      - (ii) identify potential new markets and future technological and economic trends; and
      - (iii) provide necessary information regarding the competitive strategies of foreign competitors;
    - (B) the lack of a coherent and consistent government competitiveness policy, including policies with respect to—
      - (i) international trade, finance, and investment,
      - (ii) research, science, and technology,
      - (iii) education, labor retraining, and adjustment,
      - (iv) macroeconomic and budgetary issues,
      - (v) antitrust and regulation, and
      - (vi) government procurement;
  - (2) the [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3) economy benefits when business, labor, government, academia, and public interest groups work together cooperatively;
  - (3) the decline of [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3) economic competitiveness endangers the ability of the [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3) to maintain the defense industrial base which is necessary to the national security of the [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3);
  - (4) the world is moving rapidly toward the creation of an integrated and interdependent economy, a world economy in which the policies of one nation have a major impact on other nations;
  - (5) integrated solutions to such issues as trade and investment research, science, and technology, education, and labor retraining and adjustments help the [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3) compete more effectively in the world economy; and
  - (6) government, business, labor, academia, and public interest groups shall cooperate to develop and coordinate long-range strategies to help assure the international competitiveness of the [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3) economy.
- (b) **Purpose—** It is the purpose of this chapter—
  - (1) to develop recommendations for long-range strategies for promoting the international competitiveness of the [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3) industries; and
  - (2) to establish the Competitiveness Policy [Council](/usc/15/4809.md?p=1) which shall—
    - (A) analyze information regarding the competitiveness of [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3) industries and business and trade policy;
    - (B) create an institutional forum where national leaders with experience and background in business, labor, government, academia, and public interest activities shall—
      - (i) identify economic problems inhibiting the competitiveness of [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3) agriculture, business, and industry;
      - (ii) develop long-term strategies to address such problem; and
    - (C) make recommendations on issues crucial to the development of coordinated competitiveness strategies;
    - (D) publish analysis in the form of periodic reports and recommendations concerning the [United States](/usc/15/4809.md?p=3) business and trade policy.

## Source credit

(Pub. L. 100–418, title V, § 5202, Aug. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 1455.)

## Notes

### Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

### Short Title

Pub. L. 100–418, title V, § 5201, Aug. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 1454, provided that: “This subtitle [subtitle C (§§ 5201–5210) of title V of Pub. L. 100–418, enacting this chapter] may be cited as the ‘Competitiveness Policy Council Act’.”