A bipartisan group of 60 Senators sent a letter to Secretary of the Treasury Jack Lew and U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman Sept. 23 to encourage U.S. implementation of robust currency manipulation disciplines in future free trade agreements (FTAs). The Senators endorsed the U.S. push to conclude Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations but emphasized the impact currency manipulation has on U.S. employment (see 13091014).
The recent influx of subsidized Chinese hardwood plywood products to the U.S. market is devastating the local U.S. hardwood plywood industry and other industries, three lawmakers, including Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., told the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) Sept. 19. Senator Wyden praised the ITC’s December 2012 preliminary investigation (here) that determined U.S. industry suffered from Chinese hardwood plywood imports. The Commerce Department previously determined Chinese subsidies on hardwood plywood products were illegal (here).
The House of Representative passed on Sept. 20 a stopgap funding bill (here), also known as a continuing resolution (CR), which provides government appropriations through Dec. 15. The bill, which is considered very unlikely to pass the Senate and would face a Presidential veto, would deliver funding flexibility for CBP and ICE, allowing each agency to maintain certain staff levels (see 13091129). House Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky., introduced the bill Sept. 10. The bill passed 230-189.
New lobbyist registrations on trade-related issues include:
Lawmakers must push a bicameral and bipartisan Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (MTB) in order to boost the competitiveness of U.S. textiles and other U.S. manufacturers, said National Council of Textiles Organizations (NCTO) Chairman, Bill Jasper, in a Sept. 17 letter submitted to the Senate and House leadership. Due to expiration of the previous MTB bill on Dec. 31, 2012, U.S. producers will have to pay $750 million in tariffs over the next three years, said Jasper.
The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure gave its approval for the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) during a Sept. 19 mark-up. The WRRDA, H.R. 3080 (here), would authorize the U.S. Army Crops of Engineers to develop and maintain U.S. ports, among other things.
Recent trade-related bills introduced in Congress include:
The latest Democratic strategy to push enactment of a new Farm Bill threatens to double milk prices, which the International Dairy Foods Association said would lead to decreased consumption and a decline in dairy exports. In a proposal to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson, D-Minn., of the House Agriculture Committee suggested the agency immediately enforce dairy provisions from the 1949 Agricultural Act, which would double current milk prices from $18 to roughly $38 per 100 pounds if a new Farm Bill isn't passed by the end of 2013. However, IDFA's Senior Vice President of Legislative and Economic Affairs said the association recommended delayed enforcement of the 1949 provisions and allow Congress time to complete action on a new Farm Bill by the end of the year.
Recent trade-related bills introduced in Congress include:
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) must include flexible rules of origin for apparel, TPP Apparel Coalition leaders are telling Capitol Hill lawmakers on Sept. 17. More than 50 industry executives will join on Sept. 17 and 18 coalition leaders from the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA), the National Retail Federation, Outdoor Industry Association, Retail Industry Leaders Association and U.S. Association of Importers of Textiles and Apparel on Capitol Hill to advocate the policy position, said Scott Elmore, AAFA Senior Communications Director. “We’re up on the Hill today talking about the need for flexible rules of origin in TPP as the negotiations begin to conclude,” said Elmore. “We’re talking with lawmakers that have congressional districts where distribution facilities are located. It’s all constituent driven.” U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman has said he continues to eye the end of 2013 for the conclusion of TPP negotiations, but flexible rules of origin and other market access issues remain outstanding and contentious (see 13082011).