On the WTO GPA , under annex 2, you're right, there are 37 states that have signed on, but there are very significant carve-outs. For instance, in Idaho there's a central procurement agency, which includes basically all government procurement, including all colleges and universities. Iowa has the Department of General Services, our equivalent of Public Works, and the Department of Transportation. Maryland has pretty much every department. Massachusetts has a long list of departments. New York has all state agencies, state university systems. Nebraska has a central procurement agency. In Pennsylvania, pretty much every department is excluded.
There are also overall exemptions. For instance, under the notes to annex 2: “(5) This agreement shall not apply to restrictions attached to federal funds for mass transit and highway projects”; “(1) For those states marked by an asterisk with pre-existing restrictions, the agreement does not apply to procurement of construction grade steel”.
When you say that 37 states have signed on, would you agree that there are still very significant carve-outs within the WTO GPA that are going to continue to deny Canadian access to that government procurement? For instance, under that, we can't compete for any deals or any contracts that take federal funds for mass transit or highway projects. Have you compared the carve-outs for American states?
You noted a few carve-outs for Canadian provinces. I've looked at those. They seem pretty minor compared to these carve-outs for American states. Have you compared those in terms of value?