December 2010 Archives

U.S. Chamber's International Policy Update (December 10, 2010)

International Policy Update

In this Newsletter...

House Approves Trade Omnibus, Senate Snags Remain
Brilliant Weighs in on U.S.-China Commercial Relations
Panama's President Visits Washington, Pushes FTA
Foreign Aid Reform Takes Major Step Forward
Incoming Freshman Class: Views on Trade
ChamberPost: The Week in Trade

On December 15, the Chamber sent a letter to all Members of the U.S. House of Representatives urging them to support H.R. 6517, the "Omnibus Trade Act of 2010," which would enact pending miscellaneous tariff bill (MTB) provisions, and extend the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) and the Andean Trade Preference Act (ATPA), both of which will expire December 31. It would also extend the Trade and Globalization Adjustment Assistance Act of 2009, known as Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA). Later that evening, the House passed the bill by a voice vote. The Chamber sent a similar letter to the Senate the following day.

As the Chamber's letter points out, "Tens of thousands of American workers and hundreds of American companies depend on the MTB for relief from tariffs that serve only to raise costs for U.S. manufacturers and other U.S. businesses... GSP provides duty-free treatment to selected goods imported from more than 130 developing countries. Approximately three-quarters of U.S. imports using GSP are raw materials, components, or equipment used by U.S. companies to manufacture goods in the United States for domestic consumption or for export... Similarly, ATPA has a proven record generating trade, growth, and jobs." The letter also noted the Chamber's significant concerns about Ecuador's lack of respect for the rule of law. The Chamber is following the Senate action closely and is communicating with a number of Senate offices in an effort to secure approval before the conclusion of the 111th Congress.

U.S. Chamber's International Policy Update (December 10, 2010)

International Policy Update

In this Newsletter...

Trade Items Await Action As Congress Winds Down
Trans-Pacific Partnership Negotiations Held in New Zealand
President's Export Council Meets
Brady: FTAs in First Half of 2011
Update on Administration and Hill Export Controls Efforts
Incoming Freshman Class: Views on Trade
ChamberPost: The Week in Trade

On December 15, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton unveiled the much anticipated Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR). The QDDR is a broad assessment of how U.S. foreign aid can be made more effective and accountable. Many analysts agree this is a major step towards foreign aid reform, and it will put a new focus on results and transparency. Key goals emphasized in the report include:

• Build America's civilian power, bringing together the contributions of civilians across the federal government to advance U.S. interests.
• Elevate and transform development to deliver results by focusing our investments, supporting innovation, and measuring results.
• Build a civilian capacity to prevent and respond to crisis and conflict and give our military the partner it needs and deserves.
• Change the way we do business by working smarter to save money, planning and budgeting to accomplish our priorities, and measuring the results of our investments.

In addition, the State Department and USAID launched the Foreign Assistance Dashboard. This website provides a visual presentation of and access to key foreign assistance budget and appropriation data. The goal of the Foreign Assistance Dashboard is to give a wide variety of stakeholders the ability to examine, research, and track U.S. foreign aid investments in an accessible and easy-to-understand format.

Tariffs Tie Up Christmas Tree Trade by John Murphy

The Potential of KORUS by Dave Natonski

Brazil-U.S. Business Council Elects New Board Chair at Annual Plenary Meeting by Kathleen McInerney

Several trade items are awaiting action during the ongoing lame duck session of Congress, which is expected to last into next week. The Andean Trade Preferences Act (ATPA) and the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) both expire on December 31. Separately, the expanded Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program enacted in the 2009 Recovery Act also expires on December 31. There are some outstanding issues with regards to GSP and TAA that are still being debated among Congressional leaders. Finally, there is also the possibility of moving a second Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (MTB) before the end of the year. The Chamber strongly supports a positive outcome on all of these items before the end of the session.

Separately, the membership of the Ways and Means Committee was selected this week. Rep. Dave Camp (R-MI) was chosen as the next chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee and Sander Levin (D-MI) will be the Ranking Member. The new Republican Members on the Ways and Means Committee, in alphabetical order, are: Rick Berg (ND), Diane Black (TN), Vern Buchanan (FL), Jim Gerlach (PA), Lynn Jenkins (KS), Chris Lee (NY), Erik Paulsen (MN), Tom Price (GA), Aaron Schock (IL), and Adrian Smith (NE).

On December 9, the President's Export Council (PEC) met in Washington to discuss the president's goal of doubling U.S. exports over five years via the National Export Initiative and ways to promote U.S. exports, jobs, and growth. The PEC presented the administration with five letters of recommendations in an effort to achieve these goals, including: benchmarking; intellectual property rights; Russia's WTO accession; tax reform; and services data. Once the letters have been finalized to incorporate the changes made during the deliberations and signed by the Chairman of the PEC, Boeing's Jim McNerney, they will be available online along with the official meeting transcript.

President Obama stopped by the meeting to discuss the progress made on the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, and he engaged PEC members on how to educate the American public on the role trade can play in promoting job growth across the nation. The next meeting is scheduled for March 11, 2011.

On December 9, President Obama announced to a meeting of the President's Export Council that the Administration has released several new regulations and requests for comment related to export controls reform. The Administration has also launched a website for its export controls reform efforts. The site features a new compliance tool-a consolidated version of the screening lists maintained by the Department of Commerce, the State Department and the Treasury Department. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-CA) issued a statement on December 9 lauding the administration's "progress in meeting the goals of better protecting national security while strengthening America's high technology sector and promoting job growth through increased exports." Berman also stressed that reform of the Export Administration Act should remain a priority in the 112th Congress. 

On December 10, the Department of Commerce published two notices in the Federal Register. The first notice concerns a proposed rule to add a new license exception to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), which would "allow exports, reexports and transfers (in-country) of specified items to destinations that pose little risk of unauthorized use of those items." The second notice features a request from the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) for public comments on "how the descriptions of items controlled on the Commerce Control List (CCL) of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) could be more clear and positive and "tiered" in a manner consistent with the control criteria the Administration has developed as part of the reform effort." The State Department will also reportedly be proposing a rule to revise U.S. Munitions List (USML) Category VII (pertaining to tanks and military vehicles) by applying tiered control criteria to tanks and military vehicles, as well as a rule to facilitate State's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) assessments of revisions needed for the other USML categories.

The Chamber has compiled a comprehensive summary of the trade policy views of incoming members of the 112th Congress. If you are interested in receiving a copy, please contact the Chamber's Stefanie Westerman at swesterman@uschamber.com.

The Potential of KORUS by Dave Natonski

Brazil-U.S. Business Council Elects New Board Chair at Annual Plenary Meeting by Kathleen McInerney

KORUS Applauded by Business Community and Both Sides of the Aisle by Tami Overby