On March 21, 2018, the House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing on the President's trade policy agenda with USTR Robert Lighthizer focused on the Administration's tariffs of 25% on steel imports and 10% on aluminum, and on NAFTA renegotiations.

The March 8 presidential proclamation on the tariffs leaves open the possibility of exemptions, inviting nations to discuss "alternative ways to address the threatened impairment" of national security caused by their imports. Canada and Mexico are exempted while NAFTA renegotiations are ongoing, and Lighthizer told the Committee there is a similar circumstance with Korea because of discussions about the United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement (KORUS). He said talks are underway with the European Union, Argentina, and Australia over possible exemptions, and that he hopes the process for determining exemptions will be completed by the end of April.

With regard to NAFTA modernization, Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) asserted that Congress wants robust protections for intellectual property, increased market access for dairy farmers, and "an end to Canada and Mexico's harshly restrictive Customs barriers such as unreasonably low de minimis levels." He also said any agreement without binding dispute settlement, including Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS), won't find sufficient support in Congress; more than 100 Republican lawmakers wrote to Lighthizer yesterday calling for ISDS to be maintained in NAFTA.

In testimony, Lighthizer said given the desire to negotiate a free trade agreement with Japan and for potential FTAs in Africa and Southeast Asia, the President is asking Congress for an extension of Trade Promotion Authority until 2021.

Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI) expressed concern over President Trump's "go-it-alone" attitude on trade, saying America first does not mean America alone. He and Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-MN) expressed concerns about the effect of the Administration's steel and aluminum tariffs on industries that are consumers of those products. Rep. Dave Reichert (R-WA) expressed concern that consumers and manufacturers will face higher prices because of the tariffs. Other members, including Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA), said the tariffs had been welcomed by their constituents.

Committee members also expressed regional trade concerns, including: Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) over agriculture, particularly Canada's dairy industry; Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA) over Canada's treatment of American wine; Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) over NAFTA's benefit to the orange juice industry in eliminating tariffs, and agricultural competition from Mexico; and Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY) over dairy and wine.

Opening statements by Chairman Brady and Ranking Member Richard Neal (D-MA) are attached along with Lighthizer's testimony.

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ATTACHMENTS

Brady Statement

Lighthizer Statement

Neal Statement