All but five of Florida's 27 members of the House of Representatives and both Senators are asking U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai to initiate a Section 301 investigation on Mexican exports of fruits and vegetables.
Twenty-seven House Republicans, led by Rep. Jim Banks of Indiana, asked CBP to defend its implementation of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, in light of a recent report from the Uyghur Human Rights Project (see 2209060033). They asked if any red jujube dates from Xinjiang have entered the U.S. since June 21, and if so, how many shipments have done so.
Forty-four House members, led by prominent trade skeptic Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., told the administration that they do not support the inclusion of eight of the 13 countries in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework negotiations, and that Congress and outside stakeholders should have "the opportunity to weigh in at the outset on proposals for specific negotiation objectives and, as negotiations continue, on draft text."
The House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing on “The Future of U.S.-Taiwan Trade” on Sept. 14 at 11 a.m. It will be livestreamed on the committee website.
Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Tom Cotton, R-Ark., told U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai that they do not want the World Trade Organization Appellate Body to be resurrected. The WTO no longer has binding dispute settlement, because members can appeal into the void if they do not like the results of a case in Geneva.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., recently introduced a bill that would impose a 20% tax on all revenues of an importer that imports more than 100 "semi-automatic assault weapons and large-capacity ammunition feeding devices." The bill has only one co-sponsor, Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, a Democrat who as an at-large representative from Washington, D.C., is not allowed to vote on the floor of the House. Maloney lost her primary in August, and will not return to Congress in January.
A House bill sponsored by six Hispanic members of Congress, from both parties, calls on the U.S. to strengthen its trade relationship with Ecuador, but the text, published Aug. 25, makes no mention of lowering tariffs for Ecuadoran imports or reference to a traditional free trade agreement.
A bill that would require 20% of all imported seafood to be tested and also require testing for the first 15 shipments from new seafood exporters was introduced by Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La. The Imported Seafood Safety Standards Act, introduced Aug. 19, has no co-sponsors; it is quite similar to a bill Higgins introduced in February with one Democratic co-sponsor. It is also the same as a bill Higgins introduced in 2018 (see 1806280011).
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, introduced a bill that would end user fee requirements at airports that are primary airports, not more than 30 miles from the northern or southern land border, and that have a formal legal instrument linking the airport to a land border crossing or a seaport within 30 miles -- and designate them as official ports of entry. Cruz called the bill the Border Airport Fairness Act; the text was published Aug. 19. There are no bill co-sponsors.
A day before the House is expected to pass a bill, the Inflation Reduction Act, that includes electric vehicle tax credits with strings attached for sourcing and assembly, activists and analysts are reacting to European Union's argument that the EV tax credit violates World Trade Organization rules.