97 STAT. 1060 PUBLIC LAW 98-164—NOV. 22, 1983 vigorous enforcement of existing laws and regulations" and "to develop domestic air pollution control policies and strategies, and as necessary and appropriate, seek legislative or other support to give effect to them". (6) The Government of Canada has made a formal offer to reduce eastern emissions of sulfur dioxide by 50 per centum by 1990 should the United States make a comparable commitment. (7) Both the United States and Canada have taken steps to reduce transboundary pollutants. Present United States air emission standards are the most stringent in the world. In the past decade, the United States has reduced sulfur dioxide emis- sions by 15 per centum. However, the failure of the United States to respond in a timely manner to concerns about trans- boundary air pollution would harm the historically close relations between the United States and Canada. (8) The strategies and techniques adopted to control air pollu- tion emissions should weigh heavily the employment and other economic effects on employment in the United States and Canada of the acid precipitation, electricity generation, manu- facture, distribution and installation of pollution control equip- ment, and any curtailment of emission producing industrial activity. Ob) It is therefore the sense of the Congress that the President should— (1) respond constructively to the Canadian offer on air pollu- tion emissions; (2) proceed to negotiate as expeditiously as possible a bilateral agreement with Canada providing for significant reductions in transboundary air pollution while keeping economic disloca- tions in both countries to the minimum possible; and (3) consider prompt initiation of a joint Government-sup- ported program to develop new cost-effective technologies that will facilitate reduction of sulfur dioxide emissions and other copoUutants; Report to (4) instruct the Secretary of State to report to the Congress no congress. later than December 1,19o3, on the progress toward achieving a new transboundary air pollution agreement, including a cooper- ative program on new technologies. INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS ON NATURAL GAS SEC. 1009. (a) The Congress finds that— (1) the foreign policy and economic well-being of the United States depend on mutually beneficial relationships with our trading partners throughout the world; (2) America's present economic difficulties have been caused in part by the huge increases in the price of energy, especially imported energy, during the 1970's; (3) at a time when prices for other forms of energy are stabilizing or falling, the burner-tip price of natural gas contin- ues to rise throughout the United States; (4) the high price of natural gas is a severe hardship for low- income persons, the elderly, the agricultural industry, small businesses, and other consumers without alternative fuel sources; (5) high-priced imported natural gas is a major factor contrib- uting to these price increases;
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