[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 14 (Tuesday, January 29, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E95]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 EXPLANATION OF DUTY SUSPENSION PROCESS

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                           HON. RUSH D. HOLT

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 29, 2008

  Mr. HOLT. Madam Speaker, the government often negotiates agreements 
or promulgates regulations that may produce unintended consequences for 
certain individuals. In such instances, Congress will review the 
implementation of the law and try to rectify those unintended problems 
even if the general requirements should remain. For example, exemptions 
are made in transportation regulations, Government land use, and trade 
legislation. Such is the case with the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, 
which was enacted in 1989. Since then Congress has acted occasionally 
to reduce, suspend, or repeal duties on certain imports as a matter of 
economic fairness and competitiveness.
  Tariffs serve not only to raise revenue for the Government, but also 
to benefit American business and industry and holdings. Tariffs are 
notoriously complicated in their effects, and the policies are very 
difficult to get right.
  Each of the nine bills I prepared recently would either suspend or 
reduce the import duty on a specific chemical compound. Each bill and 
the chemical compound in question is publicly available and open for 
all to see and comment on. I believe such openness is an important part 
of effective Government.
  By suspending the import duty on products not made domestically in 
the United States, Congress can remove an economic barrier that might 
send production abroad--taking with it good-paying jobs--and also can 
help lower costs to consumers for the final products. These bills were 
all submitted to comply with procedures and criteria set by the House 
Ways and Means Subcommittee on Trade. None of the chemical compounds is 
manufactured in the U.S., the value of each of the requested duty 
suspensions is no more than $500,000, and their suspensions can be 
enforced by U.S. Customs officials. The products produced using the 
imported feedstocks are deemed to be desirable to produce and use in 
the U.S.
  Introduction of the bills is just the beginning of a long process of 
scrutiny by the U.S. Trade Representative, U.S. International Trade 
Commission, and the Department of Commerce. Each one will seek 
information about potential domestic production, present and future 
imports, and will research the revenue loss associated with the 
suspension. Additionally, the Subcommittee on Trade will solicit public 
comment from all interested parties. An objection at any point 
throughout this process can disqualify the product for further 
consideration. At the end of this process, the Committee on Ways and 
Means will put together a miscellaneous tariff bill that includes 
hundreds of items that have met these rigorous criteria. I expect that 
temporarily suspending the duty on the nine products I have requested 
will help our local economy by making American manufacturers more 
competitive in the global marketplace.

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