USTR is the agency within the Executive Office of the President that sets and coordinates U.S. trade policy and negotiates trade agreements and tariffs with other countries. It leads dispute proceedings at the World Trade Organization and advises the President on trade matters, working across federal agencies. By statute its head carries the rank of Ambassador, and is customarily designated a Cabinet-rank member of the President's administration.
Created by Congress under the Trade Act of 1974 (Pub. L. 93-618; 19 U.S.C. § 2171), it acts within the authority that statute grants. Its actions are subject to judicial review and to congressional oversight and funding.
