Lawmakers recently introduced the following trade-related bills:

The House GOP tax reform legislation with border adjustment provisions could be ready by July and won't include exemptions, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas, said in a Bloomberg interview (here). “I’m not anticipating any exceptions or carve-outs. I want to be very clear there," Brady said. Brady is working closely with industry on the design and transition provisions, he said. Brady also called out companies that advocate current tax policies he says favor foreign products over U.S.-made ones. “That’s not going to work,” he said. “And if they’re going to ask to keep in place incentives to move jobs overseas, that’s not going to be successful either.” Brady’s committee is working on the final drafts of tax reform legislation along with congressional outsiders looking at the broader picture, he said. "I imagine" the bill could be ready "in the first half of this year," though there's no time table, he said.

Lawmakers recently introduced the following trade-related bill:

The House Democratic Caucus approved Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., to fill a vacancy left by former Rep. Xavier Becerra, D-Calif., on the House Ways and Means Committee, after he left Congress to serve as California’s attorney general in early January, Ways and Means ranking member Richard Neal, D-Mass., said in a statement (here).

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., named senators to the panel’s International Trade, Customs and Global Competitiveness Subcommittee, the committee announced (here). Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, will chair the subcommittee, whose GOP majority will also include Sens. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, Pat Roberts of Kansas, Johnny Isakson of Georgia, John Thune of South Dakota and Dean Heller of Nevada. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., will serve as the subcommittee's ranking member, and will lead Democratic minority Sens. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, Bill Nelson of Florida and Claire McCaskill of Missouri.

The Senate Finance Committee is drafting waiver legislation to smooth the path for the confirmation of U.S. Trade Representative nominee Robert Lighthizer’s confirmation, following questions of his legal eligibility for the post because of past foreign government representation, committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said during a brief interview Feb. 6. While at the Skadden Arps law firm, Lighthizer represented the Brazilian Ministry of Industry and Commerce (see 1701250061). The Trade Act of 1974 prevents anyone who represented other governments on trade issues with the U.S. from serving as USTR or deputy USTR.

The Congressional Research Service issued a report (here) on the difference between an import tariff and a border tax, after some media reports used the terms interchangeably to describe late January statements by the Trump administration that it was considering imposing a 20 percent tax on imports from Mexico. The report notes that, while the Constitution assigns tariff authority “exclusively in Congress,” the legislative body “over time” has delegated authority to the president to modify tariffs by proclamation under certain circumstances. Congress has not, however, delegated its taxing authority to the president as it has, to some extent, for tariffs, and a border tax would likely be part of a larger domestic tax reform effort, according to the report. “Accordingly, it appears the President could not unilaterally impose a 20% tax on imports from Mexico,” the CRS said. A Republican source recently said Jan. 26 comments by White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer about Trump administration considerations of taxing Mexican imports to pay for a U.S. wall on the Mexican border are consistent with the House GOP’s border adjustment proposal (see 1701270040).

Nine Democratic senators on Feb. 2 urged President Donald Trump to lift his federal hiring freeze, which is hurting trade enforcement efforts and is worrisome given that several agencies are implementing new enforcement tools as directed in the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015, they said in a letter to the White House (here). “Congress included a directive for more resources to be dedicated to trade enforcement as part of the Act, yet the freeze would have the effect of reducing such resources,” the senators wrote. A Jan. 23 Trump memo (here) ordered a hiring freeze applying to employees at all executive agencies, except for military personnel. Signees, who included Senate Finance Committee ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, reminded Trump that trade enforcement was a central campaign promise. “Freezing hiring for the very agencies that will be essential to fulfilling this objective runs contrary to your own campaign promises and undermines long-running bipartisan efforts to enhance trade enforcement throughout the Federal government,” the senators wrote. “While the freeze presents a host of serious challenges across the federal government, here we would like to focus your attention on its impact on trade enforcement.”

Lawmakers recently introduced the following trade-related bills:

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas, left with a positive impression following their Feb. 2 meeting on trade with President Donald Trump. Hatch in a statement (here) said Trump intends to advance a “strong trade agenda” for Americans, including ideas to “modernize” NAFTA. “Given that the trade pact is now more than two decades old, a re-examination of the agreement to ensure it remains the best possible deal for American workers and entrepreneurs in the 21st century global economy makes sense,” Hatch said. “Ultimately, major shifts in policy are decisions that should made with the consultation of Congress which, under the U.S. Constitution, has authority over tariffs." Brady called the meeting "very constructive and very thoughtful," emphasizing any updates to NAFTA should not just follow "free trade" doctrines, but also "fair trade" ideals. Brady added that attendees talked about trade collaboration between the executive and congressional branches, and he called it an "encouraging discussion." The meeting also included Senate Finance Committee ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and House Ways and Means Committee ranking member Richard Neal, D-Mass. Trump didn't specify how he would seek to change NAFTA through any renegotiation, but did signal that he wants to amend the deal, Wyden said in a statement.