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Submissions on Enforcement Matters
Articles 14 and 15 of the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC) provide for a process allowing members of the North American public to make an assertion that a NAAEC country is failing to effectively enforce its environmental law. This process is known as the Submissions on Enforcement Matters or SEM process, and was established to provide the North American public with timely and relevant information regarding the enforcement of domestic environmental law. The SEM process may also provide valuable information to the Parties as they act to fulfill their obligations under the Agreement. The SEM process is a unique and empowering tool that can facilitate public participation, support government transparency, and enhance understanding of environmental law and its effective enforcement in North America. As a fact-finding and non-adversarial procedure, the SEM process is not a dispute resolution mechanism nor can it result in a Party being required to take specific remedial action. Although filing a public submission does not require any special expertise, submissions should include an accurate and clear presentation of the relevant facts.

SEM Registry
Interested members of the public may follow the status of and obtain information about any Submission on Enforcement Matters (“SEM”) by consulting the Registry of Submissions maintained by the CEC Secretariat. Physical files on each SEM are maintained at the Secretariat’s headquarters in Montreal and may be consulted and reproduced upon request. Moreover, publications relevant to the SEM process such as factual records are available at the Secretariat’s headquarters in Montreal, and its office in Mexico City.