House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal, D-Mass., says that the new administration should prioritize a free trade deal with the European Union following the template of USMCA, saying President Donald Trump's abandonment of serious trade talks with Europe was a “particularly detrimental blunder.”
The statute that authorizes CBP enforcement of a prohibition on imports made through forced labor may not be enough to stem mistreatment of Chinese Muslims in the Xinjiang region, the Congressional Research Service said in a Dec. 7 report. “Many experts agree that Section 307 is an important tool, but perhaps not sufficient to bring about policy changes in China given the scale and severity of the human rights crisis, which goes beyond forced labor to include mass arbitrary detention, mass surveillance, and other abuses,” it said. A recent withhold release order on Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps cotton was a major enforcement action by CBP and the government is considering additional steps (see 2012030021).
The National Defense Authorization Act, which passed the House of Representatives with a veto-proof majority of 335-78, would end anonymity at shell companies, in an attempt to prevent money laundering. Companies, whether corporations or limited liability companies, would have to file the information with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). If the regulations are not obeyed, or if the information is false, there could be criminal penalties, not just fines.
Claims that a ban on single-use plastics is a trade restriction prohibited in the USMCA are wrong, seven Democratic senators, led by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., wrote to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Canada Trade Minister Mary Ng. The senators' Dec. 7 letter said the industry groups incorrectly argue the ban “would not be based on sound science. In fact, the science clearly shows the detrimental impact of single-use plastics. An estimated 11 million metric tons of plastic waste enters the oceans each year.”
Former House Speaker John Boehner, an Ohio Republican, and a former Democratic congressman both say that trying to return to the Trans-Pacific Partnership can't happen in the medium term. Boehner and former Rep. Joe Crowley of New York were speaking on a Meridian International Center online program Dec. 4. Boehner said that “without Trade Promotion Authority, the administration's hands will be tied” on joining the TPP. He said it would be “a pretty tall ask” to get TPA renewed in 2021. “I think there will be engagement” on trade with Asian countries other than China, he said, adding: “I think it will be pretty small.” Crowley agreed, saying that although the incoming Joe Biden administration seems inclined to multilateral trade approaches, “TPP, it's a big, big, big step. I don't see that happening in the first two years.”
The National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America is urging members to lobby their representatives for a provision that would allow companies to receive refunds for Section 301 duties paid when they learned too late that the product qualified for a tariff exclusion. If an entry had been liquidated before the exclusion was announced, CBP cannot refund the duties paid, even though the exclusions are designed to be retroactive. The group is hoping this provision can be included in the omnibus spending bill that may pass this month, it said.
The head of the House Ways and Means Committee, along with the chairman and a senior member of the Trade Subcommittee, said Dec. 3 that they “have deep concerns about CBP’s ability” to effectively enforce a withhold release order on cotton produced by the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (see 2012030021). As evidence, they cited a recent Government Accountability Office report on CBP enforcement of imports of goods made with forced labor that was not publicly released.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, led a bipartisan letter to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer arguing that he should not push for returning treatment of foreign-trade zones to the NAFTA approach, and instead, should allow goods manufactured in those zones to receive tariff benefits if they meet USMCA rules of origin. This issue has been hanging up a technical fixes bill since the summer (see 2007200021).
The Council on American-Islamic Relations issued a press release Dec. 1 asking people to call their members of Congress to argue against watering down the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (see 2011300034). The group was responding to a report in The New York Times that business interests, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Nike and Apple, are asking Congress to weaken the bill, which would prohibit imports of many products made by Uighur Muslims in China's Xinjiang province in an effort to halt the use of forced labor and other human rights abuses.
The Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act, a temporary reduction in excise taxes for smaller alcoholic beverage producers, is set to expire at the end of the year (see 2011300054) and the CBMTRA coalition is asking companies and consumers to call Congress and ask for an extension of the tax break. “This year has been incredibly difficult for craft distillers, vintners, brewers, cider makers and mead makers due to COVID-19. These businesses had to make incredibly difficult decisions like closing tasting rooms, stopping production and furloughing staff. A drastic tax hike at the stroke of midnight on December 31 will be a devastating start to the new year for these small businesses that are already struggling to keep their doors open,” the trade groups said.