USTR Says Section 301 Exclusions Won't Automatically Be Renewed

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will not automatically renew Section 301 product exclusions, USTR Robert Lighthizer told Rep. Jackie Walorksi during the June 19 House Ways and Means Committee hearing on the administration's trade policy. But Lighthizer told a California Democrat that his office is hiring employers and contractors and borrowing "a bunch of people" from other agencies to work on the flood of product exclusion requests that's expected.

That's the USTR's goal to launch the product exclusion process for List 3 products. That list, at $200 billion, is four times bigger than the first two lists combined -- and the office has not been able to finish adjudicating those requests, either.

It's not clear whether there will be any extensions of relief at all for importers who received exclusions. According to a FAQ on the USTR website, the office "will issue guidance -- in advance of the date of the expiration of exclusions -- on whether renewals are possible." During the June 19 hearing, Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., asked Lighthizer to spare iRobot from tariffs. The company's Roomba is subject to a 25 percent tariff, and its robotic mop and lawn mower products are under consideration for List 4.

When committee members criticized USTR for putting products on List 4 that were already removed from List 1, he said List 4 targets all the remaining trade with China. The last tranche actually spares approximately $16 billion in imports, including pharmaceuticals, some chemicals that are made into prescription drugs, and rare earth minerals. Also left off were some less obvious products (see 1905150051), including "Sheath contraceptives of vulcanized rubber" and "Modeling pastes, including those put up for children's amusement."

Lighthizer told lawmakers that he will have a call with China's top negotiator in the next day and a half and that he and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will also meet in Japan with China's team before President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping meet at the G-20 summit there. He said, as he had during Senate testimony the day before, that no decision has been made about levying tariffs on List 4 products, or at what level. He said that in a few weeks, the government will have the legal authority to proceed if the president chooses to.