Apparel Trade Groups, Haitian Producers Pushing for Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Renewal
With a month left to go before the expiration of the Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act benefits program, some lobbyists are starting to worry that a renewal won't get done. Beth Hughes, vice president of trade and customs policy for the American Apparel and Footwear Association, said Aug. 31 that her organization has been contacting the trade staffers at the Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee since April or May, reminding them that the expiration is coming up. About a month ago, the trade staffers from both chambers were telling her that while they are aware of the deadline, they wanted to make sure that the administration supports renewal.
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So AAFA and 12 other trade organizations asked the U.S. trade representative to tell Congress as soon as possible that he does support the CBTPA. In a letter sent Aug. 28, they said there were questions over whether the trade preference program would be renewed, and said that's another stress for the industry, which has been slammed by the coronavirus lockdown and “accompanying economic crisis.”
They said there are already orders placed with Haitian factories for goods that will arrive after Sept. 30, and if duties are levied on the Haitian apparel, it will put these imports at a price disadvantage. “The CBTPA requires the use of U.S. or CBTPA-regional yarns and fabrics, which means Haiti, as the main country still participating in the CBTPA, has become an important export market for U.S. textiles,” the letter reminded him. Hughes said the groups sent the same letter to the trade staffers at the committee, and some responded that they're willing to get it done.
Chelsea Murtha, a lobbyist with Sorini and Samet who represents Haitian manufacturers, told International Trade Today last week that some clothing could still come in duty-free from Haiti through the HOPE and HELP acts' trade preferences even if CBTPA expires, but that would use up the quota quickly. And, she noted, only CBTPA requires the use of local yarns, which supports U.S. cotton growers and yarn makers.
Murtha expressed confidence that it won't expire. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, also recently said he thinks it will pass before the deadline (see 2008270043). “There’s a lot going on and Congress tends not to do things until the last minute,” Murtha said, adding that the committee staffers are telling her “they do intend to get this done before it expires.”
Hughes is more concerned. She said she was more optimistic in July, when it seemed like the two chambers might agree on a coronavirus relief package, a bill that CBTPA might have been able to hitch a ride on. “They really want to get it done. It’s just the timing -- we don’t have enough legislation days,” Hughes said.
She said it's still possible CBTPA could go on a coronavirus relief package or a continuing resolution to fund the government, which must pass by Sept. 30. But she said staffers have been closed-mouthed about what vehicle they're considering to move the bill. She said she hopes in September they'd start “giving us a little more insight into what vehicles they think are possible.”
Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Ala., a leader in trade policy in the Democratic caucus and a Ways and Means member, co-sponsored the renewal, but her office declined to make any comment on its path forward. Rep. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, the other co-sponsor, also did not issue a statement by our deadline.
Murtha said there's been some discussion that the bill could go on the House suspension calendar, which is how non-controversial bills such as post office renamings are done. She said it has no known opposition in the House. The equivalent process in the Senate is called unanimous consent, and she said that late last year, the bill was sent around the Senate through the hotline, which gauges whether any office would raise an objection to UC. She said there were no objections.
Murtha said that for apparel retailers, “there’s been so much upheaval in the supply chain because of COVID,” and Haiti is able to supply the U.S. more quickly than Asia. She said that between Section 301 tariffs and the concerns about complying with the abolition on forced labor if Xinjiang cotton is in a Chinese product, Haiti is becoming more attractive as a place to find vendors. “This is why timely renewal is particularly important,” she said. “It’s important to U.S. retailers and it’s important to Haiti in terms of keeping their economy afloat.”
“We know there’s a lot going on, but we also know it’s not a particularly heavy lift,” she added.