The groups, which relied on press reports and "credible leaked documents" since no public text is available, said it appears ACTA is seeking to expand upon certain elements from the World Trade Organization's Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property agreement (TRIPS). "The result is an agreement that is therefore unbalanced. ACTA would appear to be an expanded version of the TRIPS enforcement sections, but without the balance and safeguards that have given TRIPS such legitimacy," the letter said.

Public Knowledge, Knowledge Ecology International and other groups have raised concerns in the past about the transparency of the ACTA negotiating process. In their Monday letter, the two groups urged lawmakers to press the Obama administration to release the "actual text" of ACTA so the public can provide input. "We urge you to end this exercise in unbalanced, opaque policymaking. The ACTA negotiations should be made open, or they should be stopped," according to the letter signed by Public Knowledge President Gigi Sohn and Knowledge Ecology International Director James Love.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative did not have immediate comment on the letter. USTR has resumed negotiations on ACTA this month in South Korea. U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk and his team have indicated in the past that while they value transparency, keeping the details of the trade deal under wraps is essential. The USTR allowed some industry and advocacy groups to view documents as negotiators prepared for the latest meeting but notable watchdog groups were left out and took issue with the mandate that those privy to the text had to sign non-disclosure agreements.

Juliana, welcome to the blog!