The Coalition for a Prosperous America, a nonprofit allied with President Donald Trump's views on trade, is arguing not to extend exclusions for Section 301 tariffs because companies have had “ample time” to move their supply chains out of China. “Any bemoaning from the import lobby that relies on China should have looked to home first. There are plenty of Americans and American businesses that can fulfill their supply chain needs,” CPA Chairman Dan DiMicco and CEO Michael Stumo wrote to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.

The National Council of Textile Organizations is asking the incoming Joe Biden administration to create a stable market for domestic production of medical gloves, gowns, masks and face shields, both by requirements and supporting demand. The Berry Amendment, which covers military uniforms, should apply to federal purchases of medical protective gear purchases, CEO Kim Glas said Dec. 3 in a news release. She also said the federal government should sign long-term federal contracts for personal protective equipment, or PPE.

United Steelworkers recommended a candidate to the Joe Biden transition team for the next U.S. trade representative, and emphasized how important that USTR pick is to the union, President Tom Conway told a virtual audience for a webinar hosted by the Alliance for American Manufacturing. “We expect to see a bunch of friends we can work with,” Conway said Dec. 3. AAM is partly funded by the Steelworkers, and an AAM employee is volunteering on the USTR transition team.

President-elect Joe Biden won't remove Section 301 tariffs until he makes a full review of the phase 1 agreement and consults with Japan, South Korea and Europe “so we can develop a coherent strategy,” New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman reported Dec. 2. Biden said free-market countries need more leverage to “actually produce progress on China’s abusive practices,” such as illegal subsidies to corporations, forced tech transfers and stealing intellectual property.

Section 301 tariffs raised IBM's sourcing costs by tens of millions of dollars, and on Dec. 2 the company asked the incoming administration to “immediately” remove the tariffs on tech inputs such as mechanical parts, fans, power distribution units, power supplies, cables and printed circuit board assemblies. “A limited, early removal of the most counter-productive of the China tariffs could provide relief for U.S. manufacturing, while leaving the new Administration space to negotiate further tariff changes based on Chinese market access commitments,” said Alan Kohlscheen, IBM's import compliance executive, and Michael DiPaula-Coyle, IBM's director of international trade policy.

The Coalition for a Prosperous America published advice to the transitioning Joe Biden administration, which includes a call to continue and intensify the kind of tariff and sanctions policies used by the Trump administration, and to go further, such as by raising the bound tariffs at the World Trade Organization. The CPA also asked for countrywide withhold release orders for forced labor, a reduction of the $800 de minimis level and a change in the makeup of the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee. “The membership of COAC should equal representation by domestic businesses and labor harmed by unlawful imports, rather than being dominated by multinationals and importer interests,” they said.

President-elect Joe Biden plans to nominate Alejandro Mayorkas for secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, the Biden transition team said in a news release. Mayorkas is currently a law partner at WilmerHale and previously was appointed deputy secretary of Homeland Security by President Barack Obama. While at DHS, Mayorkas was chair of the Border Interagency Executive Committee and worked on the International Trade Data System (see 1503230018).

A recent strategic plan on intellectual property enforcement strategy and policy efforts mandated by statute calls for more executive action to strengthen CBP's hand, statutory changes to allow injunctions against online marketplaces that list counterfeit goods, and possible changes to who can ship de minimis packages. The plan is required under the Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property Act of 2008, known as PRO-IP.

U.S. Fashion Industry Association counsel David Spooner told attendees at the USFIA industry virtual conference Nov. 10 that while he thinks it's unlikely that the current administration would add new tariffs on China before leaving office in two months, it's possible that President Donald Trump could increase the tariff rate on list 4A, or put tariffs on list 4B, as a way of “venting his frustration with China.” Spooner, who is at law firm Barnes and Thornburg, said it's also possible that the administration will retaliate against European Union tariffs authorized by the World Trade Organization for past Boeing subsidies.

The only producer of electrical steel in the U.S., which employs thousands of workers in the swing states of Pennsylvania and Ohio, thanked Donald Trump for imposing a Section 232 remedy on laminations and cores that are used to make electric transformers. A press release about its statement, which came out the day before Election Day, did not say whether a tariff or quota would be imposed.