Rep. Brady Wants to Discuss Tariff Deferral Extension With Treasury, USTR
Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, would like to join with some congressional Democrats in a conversation with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer about “flexibility or time extension on the tariff relief,” he said during a conference call with reporters May 13. Brady, the ranking member of the House Ways and Means Committee, said that although tariff savings from a deferral of regular customs duties may not “seem large for individual businesses, it can be very important for them retaining their workers and riding the crisis out.”
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Brady said he has heard from businesses that were not able to take advantage of the 90-day deferral because of how close the announcement came to the due date for monthly payments (see 2004200024). The interest-free deferral is for businesses with at least a 40% drop in revenue compared to the previous year.
“Many Democrats will agree privately the administration’s been remarkably accommodative,” he said, in response to a question from International Trade Today. He said it's not time to consider legislation for another round of tariff deferrals; instead, he'd prefer to start with a conversation with the Treasury. He said he has no reason to believe Mnuchin would ignore Congress's view on this. “They’ve been open to an awful lot of changes,” he said.