Recent trade-related bills introduced in Congress include:
Congressional lawmakers should overhaul African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the General System of Preferences (GSP) eligibility criteria to punish countries that put up trade barriers against U.S. products, said a group of U.S. domestic producers in two joint letters to Congress. Numerous beneficiary countries are implementing “blatantly protectionist” barriers that are in “flagrant violation of international obligations,” such as World Trade Organization agreements.
The Building and Renewing Infrastructure for Development and Growth in Employment Act, the BRIDGE Act, would create an independent infrastructure financing authority to provide loans for state and local infrastructure projects, said sponsor Senator Mark Kirk, R-Ill., in a press release following the legislation’s Nov. 14 introduction (here). Senators Mark Warner, D-Va., and Roy Blunt, R-Mo., co-sponsored the bill. The initial $10 billion in funds given to the financing authority could foster $300 billion in total project investment through incentivizing private sector involvement in infrastructure projects, said the release. The law aims to accomplish the following, according to Kirk:
The July expiration of the Generalization System of Preferences (GSP) program has delivered an estimated $180-200 million in additional tariffs for U.S. importers, and there is no immediate, viable option to pass renewal legislation, said Dan Anthony, director of research and government relations at the Coalition for GSP, at a Nov. 15 National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) roundtable discussion. Moreover, congressional dysfunction and budget concerns are threatening retroactivity inclusion in future legislation, causing significant consternation among Coalition for GSP importers, said Anthony.
The 2013 House version of the Farm Bill contains provisions that would prevent timely Food and Drug Administration (FDA) enforcement of Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) regulations, said a group of House lawmakers in a letter to the chief conferees in both chambers. Section 12321 of the House Farm Bill, the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act, H.R. 2642 (here), requires the FDA to publish relevant analysis in the Federal Register prior to implementation of FSMA food safety regulations, said the House lawmakers. President Barack Obama signed FSMA into law in 2011. The 2013 Farm Bill conference convened on Oct. 30 for the first time. Negotiations remain underway.
The U.S. must pass Trade Promotion Authority now, said Senator Max Baucus, D-Mont., at the Nov. 14 50th Annual Conference of the U.S. Japan Business Council in Washington D.C., acknowledging the 2013 legislative calendar window is rapidly closing. The Senate still has 29 legislative days remaining this year, but the House calendar is limited to only 12 legislative days. The U.S. will be unable to secure a Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and other administration trade agenda items without TPA, said Baucus.
Recent trade-related bills introduced in Congress include:
Secretary of Homeland Security nominee Jeh Johnson told the Senate Homeland Security Committee Nov. 13 that his "immediate priority" after confirmation would be to fill key department leadership positions that remain vacant. DHS has vacancies in about 40 percent of its top leadership positions, including the department's deputy secretary and CBP commissioner. Rafael Borras is the acting deputy secretary and Rand Beers is acting DHS secretary until the Senate confirms a permanent replacement; former DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano resigned in September (see 13091006). Committee Chairman Tom Carper, D-Del., said part of the onus is also on the Senate to confirm President Barack Obama's nominees for DHS positions. "We've got to help you get that team around you," he told Johnson. Obama has nominated Gil Kerlikowske to permanently take over as CBP commissioner (see 13080219) and nominated U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Alejandro Mayorkas as deputy DHS secretary. Kerlikowske would need approval from the Senate Finance Committee.
House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky., announced on Nov. 13 changes to Appropriations subcommittee chairmanships. The changes are as follows:
The Obama Administration's refusal to politically and economically tackle currency manipulation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) could undermine support for the agreement, said House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich. in a Nov. 13 statement. “Currency manipulation is a serious problem that can erode the benefits of our trade agreements,” said Camp. “It’s time to have a serious discussion about the pros and cons of including currency provisions in trade agreements -- and what those provisions might look like.” Ways and Means Committee ranking member Sander Levin, D-Mich., proposed a TPP action plan in July that aims to address Japanese currency manipulation (see 13072414).