FACTBOX-Worker and environment safeguards among changes in new USMCA trade deal

Stronger worker and environmental protections top the changes to a new version of the North American trade deal that U.S., Mexican and Canadian representatives are due to sign in Mexico on Tuesday. The pact, which is expected to underpin $1.2 trillion in annual trade, was first approved more than a year ago, but U.S. Democrats demanded revisions before agreeing to the deal, which must now be passed by lawmakers in the three countries.

The full agreement has not yet been made public, but here are some of the key changes expected: LABOR

Democrats prioritized the stronger enforcement of worker rights in Mexico, even after Mexico passed a labor reform to ensure union independence, worker freedoms, and higher wages. Mexico has agreed to increase its budget for labor enforcement. One big change is that the new deal establishes a labor-specific enforcement mechanism that provides for facility-based enforcement of labor obligations in the agreement, along with verification of compliance by independent labor experts, according to a factsheet published by the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means on Tuesday.

"Labor attaches" will be based in Mexico and will provide on-the-ground information about Mexico's labor practices, the factsheet said. ENVIRONMENT

An interagency committee will oversee environmental protections in Mexico, helped by attaches based in Mexico City who will monitor environmental laws, regulations, and practices. The deal creates a presumption that an environmental violation affects trade and investment and will require the other government to prove otherwise.

BIOLOGIC DRUGS

The deal removes provisions that required a 10-year exclusivity period for biologic drugs, which the U.S. Democrats feared would lead to higher prices for some of the priciest drugs on the market.

STEEL AND ALUMINUM

In a last-minute request, the U.S. Trade Representative called for automotive rules of origin to include steel and aluminum that is "melted and poured" in North America, closing the door to the use of semi-finished metals from China and elsewhere.

Mexico agreed to that demand on the condition that the steel rule goes into effect seven years after USMCA is implemented, and the aluminum rule 10 years later, according to Mexican newspaper El Economista.

INTERNET SERVICES

U.S. Democrats lost the bid to remove a provision that grants big internet services providers liability protections for third-party content, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said.