In another concerning development, the “Outlines of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement” indicates that the Trans-Pacific FTA is likely to include much of the same investment text as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)—including the provisions that give foreign investors the extraordinary right to bypass U.S. courts and sue the U.S. government in an international arbitration panel if the investor feels it hasn't been treated “fairly” or if a federal, state, or local law interferes with its expected profits.  

These same rules give U.S. firms an incentive to invest overseas (taking U.S. jobs with them), so they can bypass the judicial process in foreign countries and sue our trading partners (often developing countries) before international arbitration panels.  We can't let another trade agreement give U.S. companies more reasons to send jobs offshore—nor can we allow the profit motives of a foreign corporation to interfere with our efforts to provide clean air and water for our children and safe jobs for their parents.