Lawmakers Likely to Move on TPA Before March, Says Top GOP Senator
Republican lawmakers are considering revisions to Trade Promotion Authority to broaden its appeal across the aisle in both chambers of Congress, and a TPA bill is likely to be introduced before the beginning of March, said the third-ranking Republican in the Senate, John Thune, R-S.D., on Jan. 7. A number of observers in recent days corroborated that prediction, saying TPA proponents on Capitol Hill want to get the legislative process moving for the bill before Congress takes up budget bills in March (see 1501040001).
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Many lawmakers and industry representatives are encouraging Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, to “move on it fairly early” this Congress, said Thune. “I’d be very surprised if we haven’t moved TPA out of the committee for sure [by March] and then the question is how it gets slotted on the floor,” said Thune, who is a member of the committee. “But I think it will be a fairly high priority. It’s just one of those issues that’s got support on both sides, and the president says he’s for it.”
While the budget process is a factor, industry representatives are hoping President Barack Obama spurs action on Capitol Hill by making a forceful case for TPA in his Jan. 20 State of the Union address. Obama has voiced support for TPA on a number of occasions in recent months (see 1412120003). Lawmakers may, in fact, introduce a TPA measure by late January or early February, said Julia Hughes, president of the U.S. Fashion Industry Association. “Right now is the window where we’re hearing from a lot of folks that they want to move this quickly,” she said. “I’m expecting the president will talk about Trade Promotion Authority and push for it in the State of the Union, and then we’ll be off and running.”
The Senate will likely first take up Keystone XL approval, Iran sanctions, Affordable Care Act changes and Terrorism Risk Insurance before TPA though, Thune said. The legislation probably will closely resemble the TPA bill introduced a year ago by Hatch and two now-retired lawmakers, said Thune. “I suspect it will be a fairly straightforward bill when it comes out of the committee, and when it comes to the floor, there will be a lot of Democrats, and probably some Republicans, that want to offer amendments,” he said.
Finance ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., cautioned, however, that the Obama administration still faces significant obstacles in crafting trade policy to address emerging issues and other lawmaker concerns, he said, also on Jan. 7. Hatch said in past weeks he is reaching out to Wyden to incorporate some of his priorities. But Wyden declined to comment on that collaboration. “We don’t negotiate in public,” he said.
Some Democrats prioritize environment, labor and currency changes to the TPA bill introduced by Hatch, among others, a year ago. Thune said many proposals for revisions are “non-starters,” but there is still room for compromise. “We’d be open to reasonable amendments and changes, but a lot of stuff that they want to do are things that we just won’t probably be able to accept,” said Thune.
Meanwhile, Wyden said he will continue to “consult closely” with Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio. Brown joined 59 other senators in late 2013 to urge currency provisions in the Trans-Pacific Partnership, but U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman later said that subject has not been broached in the talks (see 14050123). Brown has also criticized some U.S. negotiating positions in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (see 13091327).
Revisions to TPA will likely come from Wyden, and he will be critical in generating support among Democrats, said an industry lobbyist. Those Wyden priorities revolve around transparency and enforcement, the lobbyist said, adding that he may want to tack on his ENFORCE Act to the legislation. That bill was included in a recent Customs Reauthorization proposal (see 14050720). In his Jan. 7 remarks, Wyden also emphasized enforcing trade laws in place, alongside brokering new trade pacts. Hatch will likely concede to Democrats and also tack Trade Adjustment Assistance renewal onto the bill, said the lobbyist.
But even Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., one of, if not the, biggest opponents of free trade in the Senate, pointed on Jan. 7 to TPA as a platform to address his concerns over both transparency in the negotiating process, and the actual contents of a TPP agreement. Sanders came under fire for pressing U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman on Jan. 5 to broaden access to TPP texts for lawmakers and staff (see 1501070024).
The Office of the USTR routinely says it provides lawmakers adequate access to the text, but Sanders countered that lawmakers can’t take their staff or consultants to view the texts, and the elected officials also can’t take any notes. That level of access is “fairly irreverent,” he said in Jan. 7 remarks. Sanders said he didn’t know if a new TPA bill would be introduced in the coming weeks, nor did he specify how he would prefer to address those concerns through TPA.
The Senate currently only has six Democrats that previously voted for TPA in 2002, the last time the legislation became law (here). Those include Sens.: Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., Tom Carper, D-Del., Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., Patty Murray, D-Wash., Bill Nelson, D-Fla., and Ron Wyden, D-Ore. The 2002 bill, which served as a vehicle for Trade Adjustment Assistance, the Andean Trade Preference Act, and other preference provisions, got 64 “yea” votes. Only four Republican senators opposed the bill that year. Wyden said the small of amount of Democratic supporters of that bill still in the Senate is a challenge for President Barack Obama and other TPA proponents.