For more information on pursuing trade policy interests through the legislative process, please contact Nicole Bivens Collinson at (202) 730-4956 or via email.
Tariffs. The Trump Tariff Transparency Act (H.R. 6888, introduced Dec. 18 by Rep. Petterson, D-Colo.) would require the Small Business Administration to produce a quarterly report on how much tariffs imposed by President Trump are costing U.S. consumers and small businesses.
H.R. 6914 (introduced Dec. 19 by Rep. Miller, R-Ohio) would establish a program to issue general import licenses to permit a certified importer to pay reduced or waived tariffs or other duties on certain articles.
More than 20 members of Congress wrote to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem Dec. 11 to urge them to act expeditiously to prepare for “the deluge of protests likely to ensue” if the Supreme Court overturns tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. They urged that “sufficient staffing and resources be allocated for the efficient intake, processing, hearing and determination” of such protests “with the aim of providing tariff refunds on an expedited basis to all eligible petitioners.”
Forced labor. Several congressional Democrats recently wrote to Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott to “express grave concern” about reports and data suggesting that CBP’s enforcement of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act “has dropped drastically in recent months.” Specifically, they said, CBP data show that between April and August 2025 the number of shipments stopped under suspicion of violating the UFLPA averaged 224 per month, “more than a four-fold reduction” from the average of 1,062 per month during the prior five-month period. In addition, there have been no new entities added to the UFLPA Entity List since Jan. 15, 2025. The letter asked Scott to respond by Dec. 20 to a number of related questions.
USMCA. The Consistency in Foreign Investment in the USMCA Act (H.R. 6707, introduced Dec. 15 by Rep. Arrington, R-Texas) would direct the U.S. trade representative to prioritize North American alignment on foreign investment review during the next joint review conducted under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Arrington said the bill is designed to “stop foreign adversaries - particularly China - from using Mexico and Canada as backdoors to move goods” into the U.S. under the USMCA.
Carbon adjustments. S. 3523 (introduced Dec. 17 by Sen. Whitehouse, D-R.I.) and H.R. 6787 (introduced Dec. 17 by Rep. DelBene, D-Wash.) would amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to create a carbon border adjustment based on carbon intensity. A press release from DelBene’s office said that importing foreign producers or domestic manufacturers that exceed an established standard would be required to pay a charge for any emissions over that standard, starting at $60 per ton and increasing by six percent above inflation per year. The bill would cover imports and domestic manufacturing of energy-intensive industries, including fossil fuels, refined petroleum products, petrochemicals, fertilizer, hydrogen, adipic acid, cement, iron and steel, aluminum, glass, pulp and paper, and ethanol. In 2028, coverage would begin expanding to more complex downstream goods.
FTZs. The Foreign-Trade Zone Export Enhancement Act (H.R. 6792, introduced Dec. 17 by Rep. Gooden, R-Texas) would (1) create a new tariff classification ensuring duty-free export eligibility for qualifying goods produced in U.S. FTZs, (2) require CBP to implement clear, uniform regulations within 90 days of enactment, and (3) prevent arbitrary rule changes or reclassifications that could disrupt U.S. manufacturing or export operations.
China. The No Trade Preferences for Communist China Act (S. 3566, introduced Dec. 18 by Sen. Scott, R-Fla.) would withdraw normal trade relations treatment with respect to China.
Trade officials. The Senate voted Dec. 18 to confirm Julie Callahan as chief agricultural negotiator at USTR and Jeffrey Goettman as deputy USTR for Africa, the Western Hemisphere, Europe, the Middle East, environment, labor, and industrial competitiveness.
Exports. The Americas Regional Monitoring of Arms Sales Act (S. 3508, introduced Dec. 16 by Sen. Murphy, D-Conn., and H.R. 6736, introduced Dec. 16 by Rep. Castro, D-Texas) would require the transfer of regulatory control of certain munitions exports from the Department of Commerce to the Department of State. “By transferring licensing and oversight power back to the U.S. Department of State, mandating an interagency strategy to track and verify the use of exported firearms, and giving Congress more oversight of export licensing,” a press release from Murphy’s office said, this bill “would significantly reduce the flow of U.S. firearms into Latin America and the Caribbean that drives violence and political instability throughout the region.”
The Remote Access Security Act (S. 3519, introduced Dec. 17 by Sens. McCormick, R-Pa., and Wyden, D-Ore.) would extend existing export controls to the remote access of controlled U.S. technology through cloud infrastructure.
The Lowering American Energy Costs Act (S. 3545, introduced Dec. 17 by Sen. Markey, D-Mass., and H.R. 6851, introduced Dec. 18 by Rep. Espaillat, D-N.Y.) would ban most exports of natural gas produced in the U.S.
H.R. 6875 (introduced Dec. 18 by Rep. Mast, R-Fla.) would require a license for the export, reexport, or in-country transfer of certain integrated circuits.
The RESTRICT Act (H.R. 6879, introduced Dec. 18 by Rep. Meeks, D-N.Y.) would prohibit sales of the most advanced artificial intelligence chips to countries of concern and facilitate the safe and efficient transfer of chips to approved U.S. persons abroad.
AD/CVD. S. 3543 (introduced Dec. 17 by Sen. Thune, R-S.D.) would amend the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 to modify the description of interest for purposes of certain distributions of antidumping duties and countervailing duties and to authorize a special distribution of those amounts.
E-Cigarettes. H.R. 6845 (introduced Dec. 18 by Rep. Conaway, D-N.J.) would establish a federal multi-agency task force to combat the illegal importation, distribution, and sale of e-cigarettes.
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