The Senate passed a measure on Sept. 9 to give a leg up to veterans in the hiring process for new CBP officers. Lawmakers approved the bill through unanimous consent, a tactic that doesn’t require a roll call vote because of unanimous support. The legislation, S-1603 (here), calls for a sharpened approach to recruiting and hiring for armed service members that leave the military. Roughly 250,000 to 300,000 U.S. armed service members separate from the military annually, says the bill text. The legislation directs the departments of Homeland Security and Defense to conduct analysis on transferable qualifications between a range of military positions and CBP. The bill would fold CBP job opportunities into the Defense Department’s Transition Assistance Program, among other tactics to boost CBP hiring of veterans. DHS and Defense would also have to submit to Congress analysis of their efforts within six months of enactment. House lawmakers introduced similar legislation, HR-2835 (here) in June, a day after the Senate’s introduction. The Senate sent their approved bill onto the House Homeland Security and Armed Services committees.
The South African government still needs to establish a “rebate facility” to exempt 65,000 metric tons of U.S. bone-in poultry, the entire U.S. quota, from antidumping duties in order to implement the Paris agreement struck between the U.S. and South Africa in June, said Sens. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and Chris Coons, D-Del., in a Sept. 11 letter (here) to South African President Jacob Zuma. Those two lawmakers have led the charge over recent months to open U.S. poultry access to the South African market, and since the Paris agreement they’ve continued to press for quick South African action (see 1508080002).
The top Democrat on the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee, Charlie Rangel, D-N.Y., said on Sept. 10 the lines of communication between his office and Ways and Means Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., have all but collapsed on trade and other issues. Rangel declined to comment on any prospects for a Customs Reauthorization conference report, claiming the halted dialogue is leaving his office in the dark. “There was a time that I could answer some of those questions because I was communicating with my Republican counterpart, but now when [House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio] and [Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.] don’t have an agenda to talk about for political reasons, I’m embarrassed to tell you I haven’t the slightest clue,” said Rangel. “I have a better line of communication with the Senate than my side.” Rangel stepped down as Ways and Means chairman in 2010 amid a controversy involving corporate funding for trips to the Caribbean.
Lawmakers introduced the following trade-related bills since International Trade Today's last legislative update:
The U.S. must stay firm in its commitment to phase-out U.S. car and truck tariffs in the Trans-Pacific Partnership “in accordance with the longest staging period in the agreement,” said three senators from auto manufacturing states in a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman on Sept. 9 (here). Those phase-outs must also “be back-loaded to the maximum extent,” said the lawmakers, referring to more significant tariff drops at the end of the phase-out periods.
House Agriculture Committee members met with U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman on Sept. 9 to hammer home the importance of locking down a Trans-Pacific Partnership that boosts U.S. agricultural exports, the committee said in a release (here). Committee members prioritized rice, dairy and sugar in the talk with Froman, the release said. "I am concerned about a lack of progress on market access for dairy and rice along with last-minute calls for additional sugar imports that could undermine U.S. sugar policy," said committee Chairman Mike Conaway, R-Texas. "I remain hopeful that Ambassador Froman and his team will be able to resolve these issues and bring TPP to a successful conclusion." The U.S. has battled for many months to expand dairy and rice export opportunities to Japan and Canada through TPP (see 1504070006). On top of that, Australia is aggressively lobbying for more sugar access in the pact (see 1509090027). The need to ensure TPP benefits U.S. agricultural producers is growing in significance in light of expectations of a decline in agriculture exports in fiscal year 2015, said the release.
House Democrats will continue efforts to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank as lawmakers reconvene on Capitol Hill following the August recess, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said in a Sept. 8 statement that spells out lost business opportunities on a state-by-state basis. Both the House and Senate returned to Washington on Sept. 8, more than two months after Republican leadership allowed the expiration of the bank’s charter (see 1506250062). The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other trade and business advocates, as well as the White House, have also continued to apply pressure to renew the credit agency (see 1508250002). “House Democrats, dozens of House Republicans, and business owners across the country will continue to urge Republican leaders to stop their ideological crusade against the Export-Import Bank and bring to the Floor legislation to re-open the bank without delay,” said Hoyer in the statement (here).
U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman chose USTR General Counsel Timothy Reif as the agency’s first chief transparency officer. USTR praised the new position in a statement (here), saying it comes at a “critical time in trade policy” as the U.S. angles to close the Trans-Pacific Partnership and make progress in other trade negotiations. The agency will not appoint new general counsel, said a USTR spokesman. Lawmakers forced the agency to create that new position through a provision in the 2015 version of Trade Promotion Authority (here), which President Barack Obama signed into law in late June (see 1506290045). That provision directs the chief transparency officer to “consult with Congress on transparency policy, coordinate transparency in trade negotiations, engage and assist the public, and advise the United State Trade Representative on transparency policy.” Senate Finance Committee ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a vocal advocate for more transparency in trade, also applauded the new title (here).
The Canadian and Mexican governments could level close to $300 million in retaliatory tariffs on Arkansas produce over U.S. country-of-origin labeling and Congress should “move to act” on repeal, Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., said in his website on Sept. 2. Boozman is a high-ranking member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, which wields jurisdiction over COOL regulations. Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kansas, tried unsuccessfully to tack a repeal measure onto the Senate’s multi-year highway bill in late July before the chamber departed for recess (see 1507300029).
The Senate Finance Committee will send staffers to Japan, Malaysia and Vietnam, all of which are Trans-Pacific Partnership countries, the week of Aug. 24, a spokeswoman for Finance ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said on Aug. 19. No lawmakers will be part of the delegation, said the spokeswoman. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., led a congressional delegation to Japan, Malaysia and Singapore in February (see 1502200019). Ways and Means isn't planning to send another delegation to the TPP region over this August recess, said a staffer on that committee.