Rep. Adrian Smith of Nebraska, the new ranking Republican on the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee, testified to the Rules Committee that the trade section of the America Competes Act of 2022 contains items that could have a "significant negative impact on our economy," and that Republicans didn't see anything about it until last week. He noted that his amendment that would have renewed trade promotion authority, which gives Congress a say in new free trade negotiations, was ruled out of order, so it will not get a vote.

While the U.S. is either the second or No. 1 trading partner for the European Union, Canada and Japan, their ambassadors warned that some of the actions the U.S. has taken in the last five years undermine its alliances. They spoke at the end of the first day of the Washington International Trade Association annual conference.

International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.

Mandating a broad exclusion process for importers of goods subject to Section 301 tariffs, extending the period of the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program renewal, reforming the GSP competitive needs limitations, a ban on importing sodium cyanide briquettes, and changes to the Lacey Act are all among hundreds of amendments to the America Competes Act that have been submitted to the Rules Committee, which has the responsibility for shaping the bill that will get a vote on the House floor (see 2201310033).

The 15% tariff on most solar panels and the 15% tariff on imported solar cells past a 2.5 gigawatt threshold are slated to expire Feb. 6, and, according to Reuters, the White House is considering accepting some of the International Trade Commission's recommendations on extending the solar panel and cell safeguard, and rejecting others. The ITC recommended reducing the current 15% rate by just .25% in 2022, and by another quarter point each year, until early 2026, when the safeguard would expire.

Tariff rate quotas on European steel are really meant to be a gap-filler while the U.S. and the European Union figure out a way to offer import preference to cleaner steel, said Greta Peisch, general counsel at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. Peisch, the European Commission staffer responsible for trade relations with the U.S., the General Motors counsel on Legal Affairs and Trade and a former Trump administration trade official were speaking on a panel about the shift from tariffs to tariff rate quotas, and what the next step would look like.

A Republican staffer from the House Ways and Means Committee said that while Republicans are certainly open to having a discussion on the balance between preserving the benefit to small businesses of importing goods under the de minimis statute and the need for improvements, a conference committee on a massive China package is not the right venue for it.

Imports of palm oil and palm oil products from Sime Darby Plantation in Malaysia may be seized by CBP starting Jan. 28 under a finding that the company uses forced labor, CBP said in a notice. "Through its investigation, CBP has determined that there is sufficient information to support a Finding that Sime Darby Plantation and its subsidiaries are using forced labor on Sime Darby’s plantations in Malaysia to harvest fresh fruit bunches, which are used to extract palm oil and produce derivative products, and that such palm oil and derivative products produced by the company are likely being imported" into the U.S., the agency said. CBP's finding follows a December 2020 withhold release order aimed at the company's palm oil (see 2012300007).

The House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said he will bring the massive America COMPETES bill up for a vote soon. While it may not need to attract any Republican votes to pass there, a bipartisan compromise will be necessary in conference. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal, D-Mass., said that the Senate's U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA) was not adequate, aside from the issue that revenue measures, such as the Miscellaneous Tariff Bill, must start in the House. "This legislation is the boldest, best option we have to stand up to China’s harmful actions and support American workers, and I look forward to discussing these proposals further during our conference on the package with the Senate," he said.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will update three Section 301 tariff product exclusions in order to align the exclusions with changes made to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule on Jan. 27, USTR said in a notice posted to the agency website Jan. 25. The U.S. will implement broad changes to the HTS on Jan. 27, following amendments to the World Customs Organization's Harmonized System tariff nomenclature (see 2112230046).