A bill to reform the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 was introduced in the U.S. Senate this week.
The legislation is designed to better align the act with its original intent as a trade remedy tool for the president and Congress to respond to threats to national security. In keeping with the original intent of the act, the proposed reforms require the Department of Defense to justify the national security basis for new tariffs under Section 232 and increase congressional oversight of this process.
“We must hold countries that violate our trade laws accountable, but we must do so in a way that protects American jobs and strengthens the U.S. economy,” Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH), one of the bill’s sponsors, said. “I have repeatedly expressed concerns about the misuse of the Section 232 statute to impose tariffs on automobiles and auto parts, and its impact on Ohio jobs and the U.S. economy as a whole. This bipartisan legislation preserves this trade tool while properly placing the national security designation at the Department of Defense and expanding the role of Congress in the process. As a former USTR, I know that misusing our trade tools not only hurts our exports and our manufacturers, but also our consumers, so I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation.”
The bipartisan bill was co-sponsored by Sens. Doug Jones (D-AL), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), and Todd Young (R-IN).
“When it comes to trade, our first priority should always be to protect American jobs and grow our own economy,” Jones said. “I agree we need to hold bad actors like China accountable for their actions, but we cannot do so at the expense of hard-working Americans who are the backbone of important industries like auto manufacturing. If a trading partner is suspected of threatening our national security, we need our top defense experts to investigate that claim and make an informed recommendation.”
U.S. Reps. Ron Kind (D-WI), Jackie Walorski (R-IN), Terri Sewell (D-AL), and Darrin LaHood (R-IL) introduced a companion bill in the House this week.
“When bad actors abuse and take advantage of our trade policies in a way that threatens our national security, the president needs to have tools available—such as tariffs under Section 232—to hold them accountable,” Ernst said. “However, the Department of Defense, not the Department of Commerce, should evaluate and verify the national security basis for these tariffs. Increasing congressional oversight will help the president make decisions that support American jobs while protecting our national security.”
In addition to requiring the Department of Defense to justify the national security basis for new tariffs and increasing Congressional oversight, the bill would bifurcate the existing Section 232 process into an investigation phase, led by the Department of Defense, and a remedy phase, led by the Department of Commerce. Splitting these responsibilities plays to the strengths of each department.
“Congress gave the president Section 232 authority to quickly respond to national security threats, not to pick political fights with our trading partners,” Feinstein said. “In California, farmers and manufacturers are being unnecessarily hurt by this multi-front trade war. It’s time for Congress to reassert its constitutional authority to regulate trade and reform Section 232 to ensure it’s used only for true national security purposes.”