Reintroduction of Section 232 Guardrails Bill in House
Two pro-trade Democrats on the House Ways and Means Committee reintroduced a bill that would restrict the president's ability to use Section 232 to impose tariffs without Congress' consent. Four other House Democrats are co-sponsoring the bill.
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If the bill were to become law -- which would require veto-proof majorities in both chambers -- proposals for tariffs or quotas through Section 232 would have to be sent to Congress, which would be required to vote within 60 days. If they did not approve, the actions would not go forward.
It also says that even if no new proposals come forward, Congress would have to approve existing actions, and if they did not within 75 days, all Section 232 tariffs from the last nine years would be rolled back.
The bill also clarifies that goods that can be restricted via Section 232 are limited to energy resource, critical infrastructure and those used in military equipment.
If any tariffs are imposed under the statute, an exclusion process must be offered, and it would be administered by the International Trade Commission.
Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., said in their press release, "Section 232 tariffs are ripe for abuse in the same way he [President Donald Trump] has imposed tariffs on our allies under the guise of a national emergency.
Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., said Trump has been abusing the law that gives him the authority to impose tariffs or quotas on imports to protect national and economic security.
"Donald Trump is drunk on power and unleashing economic chaos on the country and the world. But the powers which intoxicated him were given to Congress under the Constitution, and Congress must take the power over trade policy back to prevent economic disaster and protect America’s most important alliances," he said in the release.
The press release announcing the introduction last week noted that there are new investigations on lumber and copper, in addition to existing actions on aluminum and steel. The tariff on alumium will be hiked, from 10% to 25%, on March 12.
"National Taxpayers Union has long supported the Congressional Trade Authority Act, which we have previously included in our annual list of ‘no-brainer’ bills for Congress to pass," the release quoted Bryan Riley, director of NTU's Free Trade Initiative, as saying.
The National Foreign Trade Council and the Progressive Policy Institute also support the bill.