The Senate Finance Committee plans to vote on Rhonda Schmidtlein's nomination as a member of the International Trade Commission on Dec. 13, said Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., in a press release. The Committee held a hearing on Schmidtlein's nomination in November (see 13112112).
Senate Budget Committee Chairwman Patty Murray, D-Wash., and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., struck budget compromise with the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013, an agreement that would set overall discretionary spending for Fiscal Year 2014 at $1.012 trillion, the two lawmakers announced on Dec. 10. The legislation would pull back $63 billion sequestration-related budget cuts over two years, said a joint statement.
The three House legislative calendar days remaining in 2013 will likely be insufficient time to pass Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) legislation, said House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich, in a Dec. 10 statement. “Given the considerable bipartisan and bicameral progress that has been made on that front, I expect we will be in a position to do so early next year if we have the Administration’s active participation,” said Camp. Moreover, the U.S. and other Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) participant nations have achieved “positive” progress in closing a deal, but officials must still come to consensus on outstanding issues, said Camp. Following the conclusion of the Singapore summit, TPP ministers and heads of delegation said on Dec. 10 negotiations will resume in 2014 (see 13121017). “There are long-standing issues that need to be resolved, like access for U.S. automakers and farmers, and we should take the time to get this agreement right,” said Camp.
Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) is constitutional, does not undermine the transparency of trade negotiations and does not enable the executive branch to unilaterally write trade agreement implementation legislation, said National Foreign Trade Council President Bill Reinsch in a Dec. 10 blog post, in an effort to dispel “a lot of misinformation spreading about TPA.” The legislation is an “essential tool in negotiating and implementing” the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, Trade in Services Agreement, among other pending agreements, said Reinsch. “We need TPA to open new markets for U.S. companies and workers and ensure a rules-based system for two-way trade,” he said.
Recent trade-related bills introduced in Congress include:
Congressional passage of Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), also known as fast-track, will perpetuate a modern U.S. trade policy that is subservient to corporate interest at the expense of U.S. manufacturing jobs and global human rights, said panel speakers at a National Press Club Dec. 9 event sponsored by Economyincrisis.org. Public Citizen Global Trade Watch Director Lori Wallach and International Association of Machinists Union President Thomas Buffenbarger said lawmakers should reject TPA and pass trade authority that empowers Congress while requiring transparency in U.S. trade negotiations.
U.S. House Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., is soliciting original co-sponsors for the Personal Drug Importation Fairness Act of 2013, according to a request sent to other House members on Dec. 5. “The bill would give access to safe, reasonably priced prescription drugs by allowing for the personal importation and reimportation of prescription drugs from countries with safety standards that are at least as strong as those of the United States,” said the request. “The Personal Drug Importation Fairness Act of 2013 allows Americans to buy prescription drugs from first tier countries, which include: Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, South Africa, and member-states of the European Union.” Ellison intends to introduce the legislation next week, said an office spokeswoman.
The House passed on Dec. 5 the patent reform Innovation Act, HR-3309 (here), in broad bipartisan fashion with 325 votes in favor to 91 opposed. The bill seeks to stamp out patent trolls, said Congressman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., the legislation sponsor (here). The Obama Administration previously endorsed the bill (see 13120329).
Recent trade-related bills introduced in Congress include:
Congress should focus on rebalancing U.S. trade accounts rather than Trade Promotion Authority and the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement, said Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, on the House floor on Dec. 4. Kaptur introduced legislation, Balancing Trade Act, HR-192 (here), in January that targets balancing the trade deficit (see 13103111). The U.S. international trade deficit in goods and services registered at $40.6 billion in October, said the Census Bureau Dec. 3 in a monthly report (see 13120416). “There is simply no reason to bring up a deal under the fast track procedure which will not permit amendment on this floor -- a deal negotiated in secret by yet another presidential administration,” said Kaptur. “Let’s table the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal. Let’s table fast track and develop a brand-new trade model that benefits the United States of America and its people again so their incomes can rise.