Finance Committee member Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, bemoaned the fact that the House did not vote on a short-term extension of Trade Adjustment Assistance already passed by the Senate, and told his committee's chairman and top Republican that he would like to be part of bipartisan negotiations to get TAA moving, paired with other trade priorities. Portman, in a letter Sept. 28, also said he worries that passing TAA as part of the Democratic-only soft infrastructure package means the broader trade agenda will be neglected. "As policymakers, I believe we can take steps to support American manufacturing and avoid the root causes for TAA," he said, and argued that renewing the Miscellaneous Tariff Bill and Generalized System of Preferences benefits program, and strengthening antidumping and countervailing duty laws would help.
International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from Sept. 20-24 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
A panel of trade experts said managed trade doesn't have to be a dirty word, but that the conflation of national security and economic security is dangerous. The Washington International Trade Association decided to host a discussion on managed trade after an essay was published by Edward Alden called, "Free Trade Is Dead. Risky ‘Managed Trade’ Is Here."
Importers that used to benefit from the Generalized System of Preferences program have paid about $750 million in tariffs since the program expired at the end of last year, according to a Sept. 21 letter to the leaders of the Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee. The letter, signed by more than 300 trade groups and firms, says the lapse of the GSP benefits program hurts workers at importing companies, which are also dealing with much higher freight costs and pandemic impacts.
The top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee's Trade Subcommittee and Rep. Jackie Walorski, R-Ind., another prominent voice on trade, both proposed amendments to trade legislation that emphasize the complaints that Republicans have about the Democrats' trade policy.
International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from Aug. 23-27 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
There have been no productive discussions in the last month between Republican and Democratic trade staffers to find a compromise on renewing the Miscellaneous Tariff Bill and Generalized System of Preferences benefits program, Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, said in response to a question from International Trade Today during a telephone press conference. "Regrettably, I see further delays in that because the speaker [of the House] and all her committees are focused on jamming through these tax hikes and welfare expansion," Brady said, referring to Democrats' legislative priorities. Brady said that while the Senate's Trade Act of 2021 is the framework for a bipartisan solution to GSP and MTB renewal, "we need time on task to do that," and he doesn't know if there will be conversations working toward that.
Representatives from manufacturing interests operating in Mexico said the COVID-19 pandemic has presented an opportunity to argue for locating more production in North America, for both reliability and speed, but there are still obstacles to making the argument for nearshoring as an answer to vulnerable supply chains. The president of the National Council of the Maquiladora and Export Manufacturing Industry and the director of global trade compliance for Illinois-headquartered manufacturer Regal Beloit spoke at the Wilson Center's "Building a Competitive U.S.-Mexico Border" conference, which was held Aug. 10 and 11.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of July 26 - Aug. 1:
Rep. Kevin Brady, the top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee, continues to argue that passing the same trade preferences bill that passed the Senate as part of its China package is the best way to get the programs renewed quickly. Brady, of Texas, who spoke to reporters July 20, said that the Senate version of the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program and the Miscellaneous Tariff Bill is practical reform. In contrast, he called Trade Subcommitee Chairman Earl Blumenauer's bill ideological, and said it would lead to fewer countries qualifying for GSP. "Am I hopeful that we can bridge the gap? I am. We’ve begun discussions with Ways and Means Democrats on these issues," he said, in response to a question from International Trade Today. "They are in early stages." He said that there are members from both parties on the committee in the talks, along with Chairman Richard Neal, D-Mass.