The American Association of Port Authorities hailed the appropriations bill that covers transportation that passed out of an appropriations subcommittee in the House of Representatives May 23. AAPA CEO Kurt Nagle said funding for port infrastructure is at $225 million and that there's also $15 million set aside for marine highway projects, both AAPA priorities. Nagle said, “The $1 billion targeted for the BUILD [Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development] discretionary grant program also continues to be an essential multimodal development resource for U.S. port authorities and their business partners.” AAPA has identified $66 billion in port-related infrastructure needs over the next decade, projects that would better connect ports to rail and highway connections.
If the new NAFTA passes in the House, "I don't think there's any question but it's going to pass the Senate," Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said May 23. He leads the Senate Finance Committee, which is responsible for moving the trade treaty in that body. He also said he thinks it will be difficult for the ratification in the House to be done before the August recess.
A third of Ohio farmers' production is exported, and 25 percent of Ohio's manufacturing jobs are supported by exports, said Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, who was U.S. Trade Representative during the George W. Bush administration. Portman, who gave a speech on the Senate floor the evening of May 22, praised the Trump administration for lifting Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada and Mexico so that the NAFTA rewrite can be passed in Congress and in Mexico and Canada.
Democrats have invited union and environmental experts, along with a former customs and rule-of-origin lawyer in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and Democratic trade staffer, to testify at a House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee hearing on enforcement in the new NAFTA. The hearing, which will be held May 22, also has a Republican witness, Devry Boughner Vorwerk, corporate vice president for global corporate affairs for Cargill, a major agriculture company.
Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., in a speech on the Senate floor May 21, said he hopes that the administration does not repeat with Huawei what it did with ZTE, "where we stood tough at the beginning, it had an effect, and then we backed off."
Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., said she'd use an executive order to halt the import of AR-15-style rifles if Congress did not act, during a campaign appearance in New Hampshire, numerous reports said. Harris is one of more than 20 Democrats running for president. There is not a Harmonized System code specifically for semi-automatic rifles with collapsible stocks, a pistol grip and the possibility of a detachable clip. The HS code that covers all rifles that aren't muzzle loading had $146 million in imports in 2018, according to a Flexport analysis of Census data.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, wants to get the new NAFTA ratified as soon as possible. He said that by holding back on sending an implementing bill for the revised deal, the White House is giving House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., an excuse to delay its consideration. Grassley said during a conference call with reporters on May 14 that the administration needs to "get Pelosi to talk about specifics and tell us exactly what she and the Democrats need to get it passed." He also said negotiations with Canada on lifting Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs seem to be advancing.
More than 150 House members wrote to Larry Kudlow, seen as one of the free-traders in the White House, asking him to tell the president it would be a bad idea to impose tariffs or quotas in the auto industry. Democrat and Ways and Means Committee member Rep. Terri Sewell led the letter. Sewell represents Alabama, which is home to Mercedes, Honda and Hyundai assembly plants. "American auto workers, parts suppliers and retailers, dealers, vehicle service providers, and millions of consumers depend on a healthy and competitive U.S. auto industry. As you know, this vital sector employs nearly four percent of our total private sector workforce and is a key engine that powers our economy," the May 8 letter said. "American auto manufacturers, parts suppliers and retailers, dealers, and vehicle service providers have not asked for and do not need protection. Tariffs on autos will raise prices for American consumers and lower demand, ultimately leading to decreased U.S. production, investment and employment." The letter was signed by Republicans and Democrats, including Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., who worked for General Motors for decades before running for Congress.
The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure approved H.R. 2440, the Full Utilization of the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund Act, by a voice vote on May 8. “I am pleased the Committee approved my bipartisan legislation to unlock billions in already collected taxes in order to better maintain our nation’s ports and harbors,” said Chairman Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., in a statement announcing the vote. Approximately $9.3 billion in fees collected from shippers has not been obligated for projects, because the level of fees collected annually is higher than what Congress appropriated for harbor improvements, the announcement said.
A vote on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement will “hopefully” be soon, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said, but stressed that the deal needs strong enforcement provisions before any progress will be made. During a Washington Post Live interview on May 8, Pelosi said an enforcement agreement is a prerequisite to any vote. “Unless you have it built into the agreement … it’s not binding on the other country. It’s us talking to ourselves,” she said. In a recent conversation with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, Pelosi said, she urged him to include enforcement in the agreement, or else the agreement is “not a serious thing.” Pelosi said the Trump administration has expressed a desire to work on enforcement and said Trump has told her “we want to get to a yes” on the deal. “So hopefully that will be soon,” she said.