Increased international trade can contribute to economic growth, but the way trade rules are formulated often means that the benefits of trade are distributed unevenly, ultimately undermining the middle class and aspiring middle class in both the United States and in the countries with which it trades. The imbalance of power created by trade agreements creates incentives to move American jobs overseas and puts downwards pressure on the wages of American workers as they are placed in more direct competition with poorly paid, disempowered workers from other countries. The Trade Reform, Accountability, Development, and Employment (TRADE) Act would break the failed NAFTA model by focusing trade agreements on consumers, the environment, and working people in the United States and abroad. The legislation requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to review all existing trade agreements using economic, security, human rights, social, and environmental indicators. The bill then sets forth provisions that must and must not be included in future trade pacts. These provisions include labor standards, food and product safety standards, environmental standards, and agriculture rules, along with prohibitions on privatization, offshoring, and agreements that would limit the availability of generic drugs. The TRADE Act requires the president to develop plans for renegotiated agreements based on the GAO’s reviews. Finally, the bill increases congressional oversight of negotiations on trade agreements.