Ways and Means Committee Member Concerned WTO E-Commerce Talks Won't Result in High Standard Deal

Rep. Suzan DelBene, a House Ways and Means Committee member who also leads on trade in the New Democrats, said she's worried that the participation of “so many countries” at the World Trade Organization in e-commerce talks -- including China -- will mean that the result will not be a high-standard agreement.

DelBene, who represents a western Washington district that includes Microsoft headquarters, talked extensively about digital trade issues on June 10 during a Washington International Trade Association interview. She said she agrees that tax policy should be rethought, and no longer so focused on physical goods, but that the digital services taxes proposed so far in Europe are discriminatory. She said the negotiation at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development needs to be given time to work.

When asked what she would like to see from a Biden administration in terms of trade policy, DelBene didn't say she wants him to roll back Section 232 or Section 301 tariffs. But she said, “Make sure you engage Congress. A lot of the recent work from USTR has been kind of on their own, and we’ve been more in the dark.”

She said there was appropriate consultation with the NAFTA rewrite, but with the U.S.-Japan and U.S.-China phase one deals, there was not consultation.

“These piecemeal deals mean you don’t necessarily have all the things to the table to make sure you’re getting the best deal possible across the board,” she said. “It’s very disappointing when we aren’t able to have that input and talk about the things we’re hearing in our communities. Washington, we’re the most trade-dependent state in the country.”

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will have an opportunity to hear from Congress next week, as he will testify in virtual hearings held by both the Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee.

DelBene was asked about whether Congress would pass legislation to eliminate the 7% tariff on protective masks, and she did not answer directly, but said she “wouldn't be surprised if that would come up next week.” The USTR has eliminated some Section 301 tariffs on medical goods in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but has not changed any most favored nation (MFN) duties.