Groups of law enforcement and advocates for opiate addicts, along with the Coalition for a Prosperous America, told the House Ways and Means Committee that while they appreciate its action to restrict de minimis for articles subject to Section 301 tariffs, they hope members develop a "comprehensive solution" to the de minimis crisis.
Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, introduced bills that would hike tariffs on green tech. One would add 25% tariffs to most favored nation tariffs for all battery components, solar energy components and wind energy components from China, with a hike of 5% a year until the rates reached 50%. The other, called Protecting American Autoworkers from China Act, would apply a 125% tax on Chinese autos -- not just electric vehicles -- over the MFN rate. That bill would apply to all cars built by Chinese-owned companies, even if they had a European or North American country of origin, "so that Chinese manufacturers cannot use other nations, such as Mexico, as a backdoor to avoid the tariffs."
An amendment that senators had hoped to attach to the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill, which would have temporarily removed the 15% tariff on imported titanium sponge (see 2405080012), didn't make it into the bill, which passed the Senate May 9.
Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., and Rep. Jonathan Jackson, D-Ill., introduced a bill, the U.S.-Africa Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership Act of 2024, that directs the U.S. to develop a strategy to promote the African Continental Free Trade Agreement's implementaiton, and to promote trade and investment in Africa for industries where the U.S. has a comparative advantage relative to other non-African countries.
Former Sen. Chris Dodd, special presidential adviser for the Americas, said that the administration welcomes the Americas Act (see 2403060033), a bill that proposes setting country-by-country de minimis levels, and instructs the administration to reconsider U.S. tariffs "with the focus on the principle of reciprocity" for most favored nation rates and to open a dialogue with Mexico and Canada on allowing Costa Rica and Uruguay to join USMCA. It also would exclude Chinese and Russian shippers from de minimis eligibility, allow Ecuador and Uruguay to use Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act tariff benefits for certain goods, "with the goal of an eventual full-scale FTA with Uruguay and Ecuador," and asks the administration to make it so goods across Western hemisphere free trade agreements could cumulate among those agreements -- so Costa Rican content could be added to Colombian and Mexican content, for instance.
Sens. Catherine Cortez-Masto, D-Nev., and Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., would like to get a removal of the tariff on titanium sponge attached to the must-pass Federal Aviation Administration authorization bill. There is a 15% tariff on titanium sponge. Timet, a Nevada company, once tried to get quotas applied to titanium sponge imports through a Section 232 action (see 2002280047) and also had a failed trade remedy case; it no longer makes titanium sponge.
Rep. Adrian Smith, R-Neb., said that despite Democratic opposition in the House Ways and Means Committee to a package of bills renewing and altering the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program, he expects there will be enough support for the bill to pass under suspension of the rules, which requires two-thirds of the House. Most bills this year have passed under suspension of the rules, rather than with a rule fashioned by the very narrow Republican majority. Smith said GSP works well to get its beneficiary countries to treat U.S. exports more favorably.
The Federal Maritime Commission has been encouraging carriers to have a better relationship and more transparency with shippers, FMC Chairman Daniel Maffei said during a hearing held by the House Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation on April 30. Maffei said that this issue stems from the lack of transparency surrounding the Red Sea-related surcharges imposed by carriers due to Houthi attacks on commercial ships (see 2401290052).
A bipartisan bill that directs the Energy Department to support development and adoption of digital identification systems for batteries and components was introduced in the House this week. The adoption would be voluntary.
Amid a four-year review of Section 301 tariffs that the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will end soon (see 2404170074), Democratic senators led by Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio called on President Joe Biden to maintain the tariffs on China. In a short May 2 letter, they said the country continues to disrupt global supply chains and distort markets across such sectors as steel, solar technology and electric vehicles.