Senate Finance Leaders Disagree on TAA and FTA Linkage
At a May 25, 2011 Senate Finance Committee hearing on the Panama Trade Promotion Agreement, the Administration reasserted its position that it will not submit the implementing legislation packages for the pending free trade agreements with Panama, Colombia, and Korea until it reaches an agreement with Congress on renewing Trade Adjustment Assistance legislation that is consistent with the 2009 expansion of TAA1.
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Ranking Member Calls TAA-FTA Link a “Union Payoff”
Chairman Baucus (D) continued to express his position that a long-term reauthorization of a robust TAA program must move in tandem with the pending FTAs. However, Ranking Member Hatch (R) questioned the Administration’s linkage of TAA to the pending FTAs, calling it a “payoff to the unions.”
The Administration testified that it is in the process of discussing the sequencing and timing of TAA and the three pending FTAs, and hopes to reach an agreement with Congress soon that will allow the FTAs to move forward.
Administration Urged to Address Meat/Poultry Inspection Issues with Russia
Another Committee Member raised a point about the importance of sanitary and phytosanitary issues to trade and sought assurance from the Administration that it would not finalize Russia’s World Trade Organization (WTO) accession until Russia agreed to recognize the equivalence of the U.S. meat and poultry inspection system. The Administration assured the Senator that it would address such issues with Russia.
Administration Also Wants to Work with Congress on GSP, ATPDEA, and Russia
The Administration also testified that in addition to TAA, it looks forward to working with Congress to reauthorize the expired trade preference programs (the Generalized System of Preferences and the Andean Trade Preference Act/Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act) and to grant Russia Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) as it joins the WTO.
1The expansion of TAA to service workers, etc. in 2009 lapsed on February 12, 2011, leaving in effect only the “old,” more restrictive program. Prior to its lapse, efforts to renew it failed after attempts were made to link its renewal to the extension of ATPDEA.
(See ITT’s Online Archives or 05/12/11 news, 11051218, for BP summary of Chairman Baucus’ position that TAA must be enacted in tandem with the outstanding FTAs. See ITT’s Online Archives or 05/17/11 news, 11051720, for BP summary on the Administration’s announcement that it would not submit the implementing legislation packages to Congress until it reaches an agreement with Congress to renew the expanded TAA.)