Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., recently introduced a bill that would require the secretary of state to develop a strategy to reduce reliance on single foreign countries for critical goods and to encourage manufacturing of computer hardware, communications technology, biotechnology, semiconductors, batteries, aerospace metals and parts, polysilicon destined for solar panels and more to be done in the Western Hemisphere or the U.S. The bill said if a good critical to national or economic security is majority imported, and if 30% of those imports come from a single foreign country, the government should develop a strategy to encourage diversification. Kinzinger said the Allies Strengthening Economies And Manufacturing (Allies SEAM) Act would "bolster national security, prevent future disruptions to our economy, and provide good-paying jobs in the United States."
The Seafood Import Monitoring Program Expansion that was going to be in the bipartisan infrastructure bill did not become law, but H.R. 3075 passed out of the House Natural Resources Committee in October, and the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America is warning the majority leader that he should not schedule a vote in the chamber for the bill.
Rep. Karen Bass, the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee's subcommittee that covers Africa, announced Dec.15 that she is urging the Biden administration to change course on suspending Ethiopia from the African Growth and Opportunity Act. That suspension would take effect on Jan. 1, and is because of human rights abuses of the government during the civil conflict in that country. "Suspension of AGOA will reverse economic gains that have been hard won by the people of Ethiopia and American investors, and exacerbate the circumstances of the most vulnerable sectors of the population, including women and children. I urge the Administration to allow time for all parties in Ethiopia to take the necessary steps to end this conflict, deploy humanitarian aid to those who need it, and continue negotiations to garner peace," she said. "The abrupt timeline of January 1, 2022, will adversely impact citizens without necessarily altering the pace of progress.”
A recent Government Accountability Office report on Section 232 tariff exclusions on steel and aluminum noted that the Commerce Department has tweaked a number of procedures in its exclusion application and decision-making process, but has not updated the guidance on its website to let the public know. It recommended that the department do so.
Now that the bill that would create a rebuttable presumption that goods with Xinjiang inputs were made with forced labor has passed Congress and will likely be signed by President Biden, apparel trade groups and retail trade groups say they're ready to work with the administration on the strategy to implement the law.
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., was able to get unanimous consent for a bill that will create a rebuttable presumption that goods with Xinjiang content are made with forced labor. The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which was already approved in the House, now heads to the president's desk. After it is signed, agencies will have 180 days to develop guidance for importers on due diligence and what sort of evidence would be adequate to prove goods are not made with forced labor. The shift of the burden of proof to importers will also begin 180 days after enactment.
The ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee said Congress should take into consideration how an electric vehicle subsidy limited to American-assembled vehicles affects the trading relationships in North America, but Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, acknowledged that Republicans' views on the Build Back Better bill are irrelevant, since none of them plan to vote for it. The House version of Build Back Better gives a richer purchase incentive for U.S.-made cars from union plants, and for U.S.-origin batteries, and then limits the tax credit to U.S.-assembled cars starting in 2027.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said the INFORM Act, which requires sellers over a certain threshold to be verified by e-commerce platforms, and the SHOP SAFE Act, which would ask platforms to make reasonable efforts to screen for sellers that are likely to sell counterfeit goods, both belong in the China package. She made the comments during a press conference in the Capitol on Dec. 15. She said the Retail Industry Leaders Association and businesses across the country have asked for legislation that could tackle organized shoplifters selling stolen products online, and said the INFORM Act is a remedy for that.
No conference committee members for the Senate China package have been appointed, even though House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said a month ago the package would go to conference "immediately" with House bills (see 2111180009).
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., sought unanimous consent to pass the compromise text of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act on Dec. 15, but Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., prevented quick approval of the bill after Rubio declined to attach a child tax credit extension. Passage will likely have to wait until sometime in 2022 at the soonest because of Wyden's action.