Brady Gives No Assurances on MTB, GSP
The path forward for Miscellaneous Tariff Bill and Generalized System of Preferences renewals remains uncertain despite some hope that both could be part of the omnibus funding bill that has to pass before March 23. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas, said nothing concrete on whether on the bills will pass this month. "I'd like to see action on both of those, because there's such bipartisan support here in the House," he said when asked if they will be part of the omnibus.
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An MTB passed the House unanimously in January (see 1801170012). "We're continuing to encourage inclusion of those provisions," he said, but did not describe what obstacles there are to getting them in the package. "We'll just continue to make the case," he said, speaking to reporters in the Capitol on March 13. If one or the other program is not included in the omnibus bill, the timing for passage becomes even less clear. About 200 trade groups, businesses and chambers of commerce signed a letter to Congress March 9 asking that the omnibus include MTB, which was allowed to expire in 2012. The MTB lifts tariffs on imports that are not made in the U.S., or at insufficient quantities -- and there are nearly 1,700 such products, the letter said.
Brady was more upbeat about NAFTA, which he described as the most significant trade priority for the country. He said he'd like to see a pro-growth NAFTA rewrite finished this year. When asked if tying the Section 232 tariffs to NAFTA progress will make reaching agreement more difficult, Brady replied that his "understanding is that the discussions the president's had with the [Canadian] prime minister and Mexico leaders have been positive ones. And it fits in with what I saw down in Mexico City, which is there is a commitment from all parties to finish a very pro-growth, modern NAFTA."
Brady also put a positive spin on the 232 tariffs, which are not in line with the free-trade orientation of most Republican Congress members. He said 107 Republicans signed a letter that asked that steel and aluminum tariffs be narrowly applied, and that fairly traded metals would still have tariff-free access. "So clearly the president listened," he said. While some Congress members have talked about trying to pass legislation that would narrow the president's authority to act unilaterally on trade, "my focus is on narrowing those actions so they are targeting those unfairly traded products," Brady said.
He noted there are two processes being shaped -- one that will allow countries to ask for an exemption, and one that will allow metal consumers to ask for product exclusions if they cannot get certain types of steel or aluminum in the quantity or quality they need. He said he's been talking to the administration through the weekend as they work on those processes. However, The Wall Street Journal on March 14 reported that Commerce officials told congressional aides that product exclusions are going to be granted sparingly, and only if the manufacturer has a national security case to make, such as in tires.