International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for April 13-17 in case they were missed.
Lawmakers introduced the following trade-related bills since International Trade Today's last legislative update:
The U.S. labor movement does not oppose trade in a wide range of circumstances, but Congress should rally to defeat Trade Promotion Authority to prevent the U.S. from entering into the costly free trade agreements the Obama administration is currently negotiating, said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka in an April 21 Senate Finance Committee hearing on trade. The AFL-CIO has previously supported the U.S.-Jordan free trade agreement, the African Growth and Opportunity Act and the Generalized System of Preferences, Trumka said, in defense of his support for sound trade policy.
The recently introduced Generalized System of Preferences renewal bill would likely retroactively cover all products, except imports from Russia and Bangladesh, filed as GSP-eligible since expiration of the program on July 31, 2013 , said a number of trade experts. Based on an initial reading of the language of the legislation, the bill seems to apply GSP benefits retroactively regardless of the date of liquidation or reliquidation of an entry during the lapse, they said, while reserving total judgment because of the complexity of legislative language.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, will mark up on April 22 four trade bills that emerged from months of trade negotiations on Capitol Hill. The markup comes just a day after the trade legislation hearing on April 21. Committee members will debate and potentially amend Trade Promotion Authority, Trade Adjustment Assistance, Customs Reauthorization and a preference package that includes renewals for the Generalized System of Preferences and the African Growth and Opportunity Act.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and ranking member Sandy Levin, D-Mich., formally introduced legislation to renew the African Growth and Opportunity Act, the Generalized System of Preferences and two preference programs for Haiti on April 17. Despite expectations for a companion bill in the Senate, Finance Committee lawmakers haven’t yet followed suit (see 1504170020). The AGOA Extension and Enhancement Act of 2015, HR-1891 (here), would extend the entire AGOA program through 2025, and would also extend the program’s third-country fabric provision on an identical time scale. Apparel importers tried hard over recent months and years to include that long-term extension for the fabric provision, saying the overlapping lifespan will give more reliability to supply chains (see 14091719). The extension would also extend a regional fabric provision.
Footwear importers hope changes to the tariff schedule for athletic shoes get included in the package of trade legislation brewing on Capitol Hill, say trade association leadership. A recently requested modification to Chapter 64 of the HTS would result in substantial duty savings for importers of athletic shoes that include internal plastic membranes, such as trail runners and hiking shoes with Gore-Tex, they said. The changes require legislative action because they lack congressional authorization to affect duty rates, according to a government official. Recent movement on trade in Congress is the best opportunity in a decade for minor initiatives like tariff changes to make it into law, said Matt Priest, FDRA president.
Newly introduced Trade Promotion Authority legislation would strengthen Congress' ability to slow trade agreement implementation bills, lawmakers and congressional aides said. The heavily-anticipated legislation, introduced on April 16, will also give the American public improved access to trade negotiations and lead the way for a number of other trade measures. Aside from procedural and transparency modifications, the bill largely mirrors the TPA legislation introduced in the last Congress, as many lawmakers and trade experts predicted (see 1501300023).
Lawmakers introduced trade preference renewal legislation that will include the African Growth and Opportunity Act, the Generalized System of Preferences and two tariff preference levels for imports from Haiti as part of a wider trade push. Those renewals and other trade bills are expected to progress alongside Trade Promotion Authority, introduced April 16, said Congressional aides. Though some details are still being worked out, a customs reauthorization bill is also expected to be part of the package, said the aides.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership is poised to include the strongest environmental regulation in the history of global trade agreements, despite significant resistance from TPP partners, said U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman in a speech to the Outdoor Industry Association on April 15. The pact will crack down on illegal fishing, logging and other wildlife trafficking, and the U.S. will be able to sanction countries that fail to meet their environmental commitments, said Froman.