What is the Trans-Pacific Partnership?

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a controversial free-trade agreement among 12 Pacific Rim countries: the U.S., Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. If implemented, the TPP would set measures aimed at lowering trade barriers, both tariff and non-tariff related, among the signatories. Some of those measures include eliminating about 18,000 import taxes, harmonizing regulations, and establishing dispute-settlement mechanisms between investors and the governments of the 12 nations. It also would engender cooperation on various issues such as labor standards, intellectual property, health and safety, and environmental protection. Besides concerns over possible adverse economic effects, the TPP has been criticized largely because negotiations have been held in secret. However, the U.S. government recently made the text of the agreement available to the American public, which can be found here: https://ustr.gov/tpp/#text.