New House Bill Would Allow Trade to More Easily Trigger Section 301 Action on Trade Barriers
On October 6, 2011, Congressman Mike Turner (R-OH) introduced the Trade Law Enforcement Act (H.R. 3112), which he states would utilize a Commerce Department complaint process to provide U.S. companies with a lower cost, less complex path to the USTR's initiation of a Section 301 investigation on market access barriers.
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The Congressman states that his legislation would:
- Utilize a market access complaint process that the Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) already has in place as a starting point for possible action under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.
- ITA will have 180 days to resolve interested party complaints that a foreign country is engaging in an act, policy or practice that acts as a non-tariff barrier; if ITA is unable to resolve the issue, the bill mandates that the Secretary of Commerce issue an opinion as to whether the reported NTB meets the criteria for mandatory USTR action under Section 301.
- If Commerce issues an affirmative opinion, the bill mandates that the U.S. Trade Representative initiate a Section 301 investigation. Further, the bill clarifies that subsections of the law giving USTR discretion not to start an investigation are not applicable and gives interested parties the opportunity to request a hearing.
(See ITT's Online Archives 11040532 for summary of "Super 301" bill introduced in the Senate that would require the USTR to take action against identified trade barriers after consulting with the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means Committees.)