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Legislative Update: Week of November 15, 2019

Todd Ethington, Director, Government Affairs, NCTO

There are several pending legislative proposals and policies on which NCTO has been actively engaged in October and November. NCTO has consulted with members of Congress and administration officials to advance policies that will benefit the U.S. textile industry, ranging from the United States-Canada-Mexico Agreement (USMCA) to a thorough examination of de minimis shipments, which have seen a sharp increase. We could see some traction on our issues this fall and will be closely monitoring the following:

U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA): Consultations between U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and House Democrats to address concerns about the trade agreement’s provisions addressing labor, the environment, and other areas continued throughout October and into early November.  The administration has not yet submitted an implementing bill to Congress, and it is unclear when a bill is expected or whether it would receive a vote this year.

National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA): Negotiations between the House and Senate on the FY 2020 National Defense Authorization Act have broken down over differences between the chambers over topline spending numbers and funding for the administration’s border wall.  The Senate has proposed a pared down measure that would fund only necessary defense programs, but this has been essentially rejected by the House.  Negotiators are seeking a path forward with a December funding deadline and potential government shutdown looming in the coming weeks.

NCTO Letter on De Minimis: NCTO President and CEO Kim Glas sent a letter to CBP Acting Commissioner Mark Morgan highlighting the problems that U.S. de minimis policy poses for domestic manufacturers and asking for the agency’s help to better understand the scope and impact of the problem.  Currently, any direct-to-consumer shipment valued at less than $800 avoids all duties regardless of country of origin, and these shipments have increased exponentially in recent years at the expense of public health and safety, U.S. manufacturers, and American workers.

Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (MTB): In October, the U.S. International Trade Commission began accepting miscellaneous tariff bill petitions through its web portal, https://mtbps.usitc.gov/external/.  MTBs provide duty relief on manufacturing inputs not readily available from a domestic source, valued at up to $500k annually.  NCTO members are encouraged to both file petitions for inputs that will make their manufacturing processes more competitive and monitor filed petitions that would negatively impact their businesses.  The MTB portal will accept petitions through December 10.

Please contact Todd Ethington at tethington@ncto.org for further information.