[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 88 (Wednesday, May 24, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H2571-H2576]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1345
DISAPPROVING THE RULE SUBMITTED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE RELATING 
    TO ``PROCEDURES COVERING SUSPENSION OF LIQUIDATION, DUTIES AND 
   ESTIMATED DUTIES IN ACCORD WITH PRESIDENTIAL PROCLAMATION 10414''

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House of May 
16, 2023, the unfinished business is the further consideration of the 
veto message of the President on the joint resolution (H.J. Res. 39) 
disapproving the rule submitted by the Department of Commerce relating 
to ``Procedures Covering Suspension of Liquidation, Duties and 
Estimated Duties in Accord With Presidential Proclamation 10414''.
  The Clerk read the title of the joint resolution.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is, Will the House, on 
reconsideration pass the joint resolution, the objections of the 
President to the contrary notwithstanding?
  (For veto message, see proceedings of the House of May 16, 2023, at 
page H2370.)
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Smith) is 
recognized for 1 hour.
  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, for purposes of debate only, I 
yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. 
Blumenauer), the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Trade of the 
Committee on Ways and Means, pending which I yield myself such time as 
I may consume.


                             General Leave

  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on the veto message of H.J. 
Res. 39.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Missouri?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of overriding 
President Biden's veto of H.J. Res. 39, a Congressional Review Act 
resolution disapproving of the rule submitted by the Department of 
Commerce relating to Procedures Covering Suspension of Liquidation, 
Duties, and Estimated Duties in accord with Presidential Proclamation 
10414.
  Mr. Speaker, 2 weeks ago, the Ways and Means Committee held a hearing 
at the Port of Staten Island in New York to listen to working Americans 
who are on the front lines of the impact of our trade policies.
  Witnesses highlighted for the committee the troubling reality that 
the Chinese Communist Party continues to engage in a wide range of 
unfair trade practices that rip off American workers, farmers, and 
businesses.
  Today's resolution highlights one of the most prolific of these 
unfair practices--massive subsidies for the CCP's favored industries.
  Today's resolution is focused on the solar industry, but make no 
mistake, the CCP's industrial policy impacts all sectors of the 
American economy.
  The United States has had tariffs in place since 2012--during the 
Obama administration--to provide a level playing field for American 
manufacturers who face unfair competition from unfairly priced and 
subsidized solar products coming out of China.
  Now, President Biden's own Commerce Department has found that Chinese 
companies are shipping products through four Southeast Asian 
countries--Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam--to avoid paying 
these same tariffs.
  China has set up a solar panel export scheme that cheats American 
workers and consumers. Instead of standing up for American 
manufacturers and workers, the White House rewarded China for 
exploiting them by issuing a proclamation that allows the CCP to 
continue to avoid paying the tariffs they owe for an additional 2 
years.
  The sad truth is the solar panel industry in China is historically 
one of the most prolific users of forced labor.
  This body stood together not too long ago to pass the Uyghur Forced 
Labor Prevention Act. We should do the same thing now when it comes to 
actually standing firm against products and industries which have a 
proven track record of using such terrible practices.
  Republicans and Democrats in this Chamber and in the Senate came 
together to block implementation of the White House proclamation on 
solar panels just a few weeks ago.
  In doing, so we also sent a message to President Xi: We will not 
allow China to abuse our trade policies and hurt American workers.
  Unfortunately, President Biden doubled down on his misguided decision 
and vetoed our efforts. America must stand up to China and stand up for 
our workers.
  Small businesses and U.S. manufacturers already have to deal with 
inflation, rising interest rates, and a worker shortage.
  The least Washington can do is level the playing field for American 
workers competing against Chinese state-subsidized companies.
  China's unfair trade practices have left behind a trail of shuttered 
factories, lost jobs, and stolen intellectual property all across 
America.
  When we voted to roll back the White House's misguided decision on 
solar panel tariffs, Congress spoke with a bipartisan voice in both 
Chambers. I hope today we can do the same.
  I urge my colleagues to once again support this effort to turn out 
the lights on China's economic exploitation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this resolution. 
President Biden struck the right balance by instituting a temporary 
freeze on solar tariffs.
  The Inflation Reduction Act has already led to the announcement of 
more than 45 gigawatts of domestic solar manufacturing capacity, and 
work has already begun.
  In 2021, there were only 7 gigawatts of domestic manufacturing 
capacity, but it takes time to build out manufacturing capacities. It 
doesn't happen overnight.
  This 2-year bridge gives the solar industry the time needed to 
reorient supply chains away from China to produce panels domestically.
  That is why the President's position is supported by leaders who do 
the work: organized labor from IBEW, LIUNA, the carpenters, and the 
operating engineers, as well as a variety of other organizations in the 
environmental community and the National Taxpayers Union.
  The solar industry itself strongly supports the administration's 
position. Kenneth Cooper, president of IBEW, characterized the 
President's action as a carefully crafted compromise that would provide 
market certainty to allow American companies to continue deploying 
solar panels.
  H.J. Res. 39 is a backward-looking resolution, he said, looking to 
reopen a settled matter rather than create a solution.

[[Page H2572]]

  It is not just organized labor. Members of the environmental 
community say that this resolution could destabilize the solar supply 
chains, harm ongoing deployment, threaten high-quality solar 
construction jobs, and impede our Nation's decarbonization goals.
  The National Taxpayers Union opposes this proposal, saying that 
Congress should not, ``increase energy costs via the Congressional 
Review Act.''
  Many of us in Congress have worked for years to achieve the policy 
victories contained in the Inflation Reduction Act.
  We share the goal of pushing back against China and have supported 
legislation to do precisely that. Now is not the time to undermine our 
efforts in producing a robust supply chain in solar.
  I encourage my colleagues to consider the overwhelming evidence and 
reject this legislation when it is called for a vote today.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the 
gentlewoman from West Virginia (Mrs. Miller).
  Mrs. MILLER of West Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the 
veto override on H.J. Res. 39.
  In the past 5 months, the Republican-led House of Representatives has 
taken more action to hold China accountable for its unfair trade 
practices than the past 4 years that I have been in Congress, all while 
the Biden administration is actively working to promote Chinese 
interests.
  The Biden administration is allowing the Communist Chinese Party to 
outmaneuver us at every step, even rewarding them by vetoing bipartisan 
legislation that puts America first.
  Letting Chinese solar companies cheat directly handicaps U.S. solar 
manufacturers and puts America at a disadvantage.
  Washington Democrats and the Biden administration have been in 
lockstep with China since they entered the White House.
  It baffles me that the administration is so quick to put America last 
to help China succeed. We need a strategic decoupling from China.
  Everyone in the United States should be focused on countering Chinese 
influence by bringing jobs back to America and implementing solid trade 
agreements with our allies.
  It is imperative that we override this veto.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I respectfully disagree with the 
gentlewoman from West Virginia. This would not help American industry.
  I include in the Record statements from nine American stakeholders in 
the industry who relied on Commerce's regulations to make significant 
business and economic decisions.

     Re. Please Oppose Retroactive Duties and Protect American 
         Clean Energy Jobs and Investment with a ``No'' Vote on 
         the Auxin CRA (H.J. Res. 39/S.J. Res. 15)
       We are writing to respectfully ask that you oppose H.J. 
     Res. 39/S.J. Res. 15. Enactment of this resolution would 
     impose over $1 billion in retroactive duty liability, 
     increase energy costs for consumers, cost thousands of 
     American jobs, and hamstring efforts to reduce greenhouse gas 
     emissions.
       Last year, a single company filed anti-circumvention 
     petitions with the Department of Commerce (Commerce). The 
     threat of duties ranging from 50 percent-250 percent on solar 
     panels and cells from Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, and 
     Cambodia called for in the petitions abruptly froze solar 
     supply chains. A significant number of domestic solar 
     projects experienced cancellations or delays as a result.
       To address this disruption, after Commerce accepted the 
     petitions and initiated a set of investigations, President 
     Biden issued an emergency declaration that included a 
     temporary 2-year pause on potential duties arising from the 
     investigations. This pause allowed planned solar projects to 
     move forward while the investigations proceeded.
       American stakeholders subsequently relied on Commerce's 
     regulations to make significant business and economic 
     decisions. Nullifying Commerce's rulemaking as provided for 
     in H.J. Res. 39/S.J. Res. 15 woul1enalize companies, acting 
     in accordance with the law, by imposing large (up to 254 
     percent), unanticipated retroactive duty liability for these 
     stakeholders--back to April 1, 2022. Going back on this 
     federal commitment would create a chilling effect on American 
     business, setting a terrible precedent that undermines 
     America's competitiveness in the global marketplace.
       Passing H.J. Res 39/S.J. Res 15 would also stall or cancel 
     planned solar projects, eliminate 30,000 jobs, including 
     4,000 manufacturing jobs, and $4.2 billion of investment in 
     domestic solar projects. 4GW of planned solar projects 
     representing roughly 14 percent of the industry's anticipated 
     deployment in 2023 would be cancelled. This in turn would 
     increase CO2 emissions by 24 million metric tons.
       American businesses need certainty and a bridge to domestic 
     manufacturing. Right now, only about one-third of U.S. demand 
     for solar panels (including both crystalline silicon and thin 
     film photovoltaic panels) can be met with domestic 
     production, and domestic manufacturers are sold out for the 
     next 2-3 years. It is our preference to source solar panels 
     domestically, and we are heartened by the rapid expansion of 
     domestic solar manufacturing that is currently occurring. 
     However, ramping up this production capacity across the solar 
     supply chain will take time, and the temporary 2-year duty 
     pause provides a necessary bridge to the point where domestic 
     production capacity is more capable of meeting demand.
       For these reasons, and to avoid needless disruption in the 
     solar marketplace, we respectfully ask that you oppose H.J. 
     Res. 39/S.J. Res. 15. Thank you in advance for your 
     consideration.
           Sincerely,
       Solar Energy Industries Association
       American Clean Power
       American Council on Renewable Energy
       Edison Electric Institute
       E2
       Silicon Valley Leadership Group
       Clean Energy Buyers Association
       Advanced Energy United
       Coalition for Community Solar Access.

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, they say nullifying Commerce's 
rulemaking as provided for in H.J. Res. 39 would penalize companies 
acting in accordance with the law by imposing large, up to 254 percent, 
unanticipated retroactive duty liability for these stakeholders going 
back to April 1, 2022.
  Going back on this Federal commitment would create a chilling effect 
on American business, setting a terrible precedent that undermines our 
competitiveness in the marketplace.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas, (Mr. 
Doggett).
  Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Speaker, within this very week, the World 
Meteorological Association has indicated that for the first time in 
human history, we will hit a critical high temperature level by 2027.
  It reported that in just 2 recent years, there were 22,000 deaths 
from extreme weather events.
  Recognizing that we already face a grave climate crisis, the American 
people need a true winning strategy to escape the addiction to fossil 
fuels.
  More and more Americans are turning to clean energy, daring to go 
green. A growing solar industry plays an instrumental role in helping 
them in seeking lower global temperatures, in saving our planet.
  Disregarding the extreme heat, extreme Republicans only seem to get 
hot, to get warmed up, when they see the slightest opportunity to 
impede progress.
  Their answer today to those who are trying to help solve this 
problem?
  Punish American companies that are out there actually doing something 
about this problem. Punish them with a $1 billion retroactive tax that 
they will have to pay.
  I believe that there is an opportunity to continue to resolve the 
problems that we face with climate change. We responded to it last year 
with a climate incentives law. Our Republican colleagues are also 
seeking to repeal that law.
  The pause that is involved in these tariffs ends in a mere 12 months, 
and Republicans will not ultimately be successful today in blocking the 
President.
  What happens with this, as with their challenge to our climate 
incentives law, is an indication of the many obstacles that we face 
that we must overcome if we are to address the climate crisis.
  I am yielding my time now, but we must not yield in the determination 
to protect the only planet that we call home.
  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I remind my colleagues that the 
overall U.S. trade remedy system is retrospective.
  Final duties are always calculated after a product enters the United 
States upon completion of an investigation or review.
  We have hundreds of anti-dumping and countervailing duty orders in 
place to level the playing field for American producers. In all these 
cases, the final duties have been calculated at the end of the 
investigation.
  What is unusual about the solar circumvention case was the action by 
the Biden administration to encourage importation of these products 
despite the

[[Page H2573]]

fact that China is trading them unfairly.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. 
Tenney).
  Ms. TENNEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to voice my support once again for 
this critical, bipartisan legislation to undo the Biden 
administration's job-crushing solar policies.
  It is unfortunate that we find ourselves here debating this policy 
again after both the House and Senate acted in a bipartisan manner to 
reject President Biden's solar giveaway to China.
  Instead of siding with the American people and American workers, this 
administration is putting its Green New Deal agenda ahead of our 
economic prosperity.
  Even though H.J. Res. 39 would protect American workers, and despite 
its bipartisan passage in both Chambers, the President vetoed this 
critical legislation.
  Now Congress must unite to override this vote. If we succeed today, 
we will stop China, the Chinese Communist Party specifically, from 
continuing to circumvent U.S. trade laws and undermine U.S. 
manufacturers.
  If we fail to override this veto today, then Congress will hurt the 
ability of American manufacturers to compete fairly.
  I urge my Democrat colleagues: Please do not allow this to happen. 
Join us in standing up for American jobs.
  If you support American workers, then join us in overriding this 
veto. We cannot stand by as this irresponsible proclamation allows 
Chinese solar companies to flood our market with their products tariff-
free, hurting American jobs and industry.
  President Biden's proclamation also sends the message to trade cheats 
everywhere that the U.S. trade laws just don't matter. This invites 
even more cheating which, in turn, hurts American workers.
  A recent report from the Coalition for a Prosperous America reveals 
so much about the priorities hidden in the Green New Deal agenda.
  This report shows that Chinese manufacturers could earn nearly $125 
billion in U.S. renewable energy tax credits because of the so-called 
Inflation Reduction Act, aka the Green New Deal, as my colleague just 
cited its true purpose.

                              {time}  1400

  That is $125 billion from U.S. taxpayers that could now be going to 
Chinese companies, all because the partisan Inflation Reduction Act 
failed to include safeguards that prioritize American manufacturing.
  I say to my colleagues on the other side of the aisle who haven't 
already joined us in this bipartisan effort, please join us. Join us in 
prioritizing American manufacturers. Join us in stopping this giveaway 
to the Chinese Communist Party. Hold the Chinese Communist Party 
accountable.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a statement from Terry 
O'Sullivan, the general president of LIUNA, the Laborers' International 
Union of North America.
  His statement is on behalf of a half million members of the Laborers' 
International Union in strong opposition to this proposal: ``This CRA 
resolution comes at a time when our Nation is looking to bolster its 
wind and solar industry, steering away from more harmful energy 
sources. Our union has never seen this much solar construction work, 
and future construction already on the books, within the renewable 
energy industry, and it is now all at risk if the CRA is passed.''

                                                       LiUNA!,

                                    Washington, DC, April 19, 2023
     Hon. Jason Smith,
     Chairman, House Committee on Ways and Means, Washington, DC.
     Hon. Richard Neal,
     Ranking Member, House Committee on Ways and Means, 
         Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Smith and Ranking Member Neal: On behalf of 
     the 500,000 members of the Laborers' International Union of 
     North America (LIUNA), I write in opposition to the 
     Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution regarding solar 
     panel manufacturing. This resolution will have a harmful and 
     disruptive impact on our members' jobs within the solar 
     industry.
       Our nation's energy industry directly employs tens of 
     thousands of LIUNA members across the country. These jobs 
     span across all sectors of energy production including, 
     natural gas, nuclear, hydro, and renewables. By way of the 
     Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), The Biden Administration has 
     brought good-paying union construction jobs into the 
     renewable industry. Because of this, our members have seen a 
     significant and rapid growth within the renewables sector, in 
     particular the solar industry. These jobs are finally good 
     jobs, with family-supporting wages and benefits.
       Repealing President Biden's moratorium, however, will bring 
     several solar construction sites to a halt, leaving our 
     members without a paycheck. We recognize that the Department 
     of Commerce's investigation found some solar panel producers 
     committing trade violations. Of course, in time, this will 
     need to be addressed.
       This CRA resolution comes at a time when our nation is 
     looking to bolster its wind and solar industry, steering away 
     from more harmful energy sources. Our union has never seen 
     this much solar construction work, and future construction 
     work already on the books, within the renewable energy 
     industry, and it is now all at risk if the CRA is passed.
       I urge you to oppose the Congressional Review Act being 
     marked up today in committee.
       With kind regards, I am,
           Sincerely yours,
                                                 Terry O'Sullivan,
                                                General President.

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Thompson).
  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for 
yielding and for his leadership in this policy area.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this legislation. As I said when 
this legislation originally came to the floor, I share my colleagues' 
goal of ensuring that our trade laws are fairly enforced, and I 
certainly share our collective goal of promoting domestic manufacturing 
and jobs.
  However, if this bill were to become law, if the President's veto 
were to be overridden, it would cost, not create, American jobs. In the 
long run, it would make it harder, not easier, for our country to 
become energy independent.
  This bill would make it impossible to deploy solar energy quickly 
enough throughout the United States. It would undercut the climate 
change investments in the Inflation Reduction Act, the biggest 
investment in fighting climate change in the history of our country.
  We all want solar products manufactured right here at home; but in 
the short run, our domestic industry can't increase production rapidly 
enough to meet demand or to meet our climate goals.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose this legislation.
  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Posey).
  Mr. POSEY. Mr. Speaker, China is cheating America. They know it. You 
know it. I know it. Everybody knows it. China is avoiding the tariffs 
both Presidents Obama and Trump agreed upon by shipping solar panels 
through other countries in Southeast Asia and simply slapping a new 
label on them.
  It is an undeniable fact, investigated and verified by the U.S. 
Department of Commerce. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the 
CCP--the Chinese Communist Party--has detained more than 1 million 
Uyghurs and other minorities in China's far western Xinjiang region.
  An astounding 1 million people detained. To put that in perspective, 
that is nearly the equivalent of every man, woman, and child in most of 
our congressional districts. Many of these people have been forced into 
labor camps and factories to produce goods for the Chinese Communist 
Party loyalists to sell around the globe.
  China produces 18 goods using forced or slave labor. Any use of slave 
labor is morally wrong. We know that, and China is by far the world's 
biggest offender.
  Among the products produced by the Uyghurs and others through forced 
labor are electronics and polysilicon, which is used to make solar 
panels. Over 50 percent of the country's production of polysilicon 
takes place in Xinjiang. Some of those solar panels are the very same 
solar panels we are talking about here today.
  According to the U.S. Department of Labor, these are some of the 
conditions that Uyghurs and others in China's western region face as 
they make solar panels: They receive little pay; they are not allowed 
to leave; they have limited or no communication with

[[Page H2574]]

their family members; and they must learn Mandarin and undergo an 
ideological indoctrination. That is truly barbaric, and we shouldn't 
sell out our production to help them.
  The regulation in question violates both our laws about importing 
products made with forced labor and enables these labor practices to 
continue.
  I feel sure everyone in this Chamber despises the evils of slavery 
and slave labor. In a few minutes we will have the chance to see just 
who talks the talk and who walks the walk. If we pass this resolution, 
we can help put a stop to China's cheating and slave labor.
  Make no mistake, people can still buy all the Chinese solar panels 
that they want to buy. We are not stopping them from doing that. We are 
not making solar panels unavailable. All we are saying is that they 
have to pay a tariff. Pay the fair tariff that President Obama and 
President Trump both agreed upon.
  I would be remiss in not thanking some of my colleagues on the other 
side of the aisle for cosponsoring this commonsense resolution and 
working to make it bipartisan: The gentleman from Michigan (Mr. 
Kildee), the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), the gentlewoman 
from Alabama (Ms. Sewell), and the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Khanna).
  Please walk the walk and vote in favor of this resolution to put 
American workers, American products, and the United States of America 
first.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a statement from James T. 
Callahan, general president of the International Union of Operating 
Engineers, and Douglas J. McCarron, general president of the United 
Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America.
  The statement indicates, among other things: ``Repealing President 
Biden's proclamation will result in retroactive duties and tariffs that 
would jeopardize 30,000 construction and 4,000 manufacturing jobs. . . 
. We are not prepared to stand by and let some partisan dispute 
eliminate Operating Engineers' jobs and slow the deployment of clean 
energy.''

       For immediate release: April 19, 2023.

   Carpenters and Operating Engineers Unions Oppose Legislation That 
                      Eliminates Thousands of Jobs

       Washington, DC.--The following statement was issued today 
     by James T. Callahan, General President of the International 
     Union of Operating Engineers, and Douglas J. McCarron, 
     General President of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and 
     Joiners of America, regarding their unions' opposition to 
     legislation that will eliminate thousands of American jobs:
       Last year, the Department of Commerce opened a 
     circumvention inquiry, alleging that four Southeast Asian 
     countries were circumventing tariffs and duties on solar 
     cells and modules from the People's Republic of China. The 
     inquiry generated massive uncertainty in the domestic solar 
     market by suggesting possible retroactive tariffs as high as 
     250 percent. This threat resulted in a drop of 20 percent 
     fewer solar construction and installation jobs across the 
     United States.
       President Biden took action to preserve these jobs, issuing 
     Emergency Proclamation 10414 to prevent tariffs on any solar 
     module and cell imports from the four countries until June 
     2024. House Joint Resolution 39 will repeal the President's 
     Proclamation and eliminate thousands of jobs in the American 
     solar industry.
       ``Repealing President Biden's Proclamation will result in 
     retroactive duties and tariffs that would jeopardize 30,000 
     construction and 4,000 manufacturing jobs;'' said James T. 
     Callahan, General President of the International Union of 
     Operating Engineers. ``We are not prepared to stand by and 
     let some partisan dispute eliminate Operating Engineers' jobs 
     and slow the deployment of clean energy:''
       ``President Biden's Proclamation saves Carpenters' jobs and 
     smooths the development of the domestic solar manufacturing 
     industry. Today, we're seeing the American manufacturing 
     sector respond to incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act 
     and develop homegrown solar modules,'' said Carpenters Union 
     General President Douglas J. McCarron. ``Now is not the time 
     to disrupt the solar industry and layoff thousands of union 
     workers just as we're getting a foothold in the burgeoning 
     solar business.''
       The International Union of Operating Engineers and United 
     Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners urge Congress and 
     members of the Ways and Means Committee to vote against House 
     Joint Resolution 39, which will repeal the administration's 
     Proclamation and eliminate thousands of union jobs, slow the 
     deployment of renewable energy, and generate unnecessary 
     greenhouse gases.

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Davis).
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, solar energy is one form of 
electricity generation that is growing in the United States, yet we do 
not have the economy of scale in manufacturing solar systems to meet 
supply and demand for industry and consumers.
  Solar energy accounted for 3.9 percent of total electricity 
generation in 2021 compared to 0.7 percent in 2014.
  Currently, domestic solar production is sold out for the next 2 to 3 
years. In order to continue to address China's unfair trading practices 
and allow America's solar industry to grow, President Biden's 
proclamation 10414 declared an emergency with respect to U.S. 
electricity generation capacity by implementing a final rule that 
permits the importation of select cells or modules without the payment 
of antidumping and countervailing duty temporary for 24 months.
  I urge my colleagues to stand with our President, who has shown such 
great wisdom and leadership. Vote ``no'' on H.J. Res. 39.
  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, this veto override supports American workers and 
manufacturers in the solar sector, but it also helps protect American 
workers in every sector that face unfair competition from China or any 
other country.
  Our trade laws are designed to level the playing field so that 
American workers can compete and win. We have hundreds of trade remedy 
orders in place to do exactly that for many American industries.
  These laws aren't worth the paper they are written on unless they are 
enforced. Overriding this veto is an important way for Congress to show 
that we will insist on strong trade enforcement for American workers, 
farmers, and manufacturers of any product that faces unfair competition 
from China or any other country.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman 
from New York (Ms. Malliotakis).
  Ms. MALLIOTAKIS. Mr. Speaker, once again we are seeing a policy from 
President Biden and the Democrats where they say one thing, and they do 
another.
  How many times have you heard the President talk about made in 
America? How many times have you heard the Democrats talk about buy in 
America? Yet here we are seeing another policy that does just the 
opposite. It hurts American manufacturers. It hurts American jobs. It 
is giving an advantage to not just a competitor, but an adversary.
  Mr. Speaker, we support energy diversification. We support clean 
energy, but we want it to be American energy, and we want it to be done 
by American workers in manufacturing right here in the United States of 
America. We want to support our domestic solar manufacturers, not 
further discourage them from investing in manufacturing here.
  Instead, we see the Democrats put forward another policy that instead 
of supporting American labor, it supports Communist Chinese slave 
labor, and we know this is often linked to the genocide of the Uyghur 
Muslims. If you are going to use Chinese slave labor, then at least 
have them pay a fair tariff, at least have them follow the same rules. 
Don't put forward a rule that allows them to circumvent tariffs.
  As you know, last year an American solar manufacturer petitioned the 
Commerce Department to review whether Chinese producers were 
circumventing tariffs on imports from China by shipping their products 
through Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam.
  Lo and behold, in December of 2022, President Biden's own Commerce 
Department made a preliminary determination that circumvention is, 
indeed, happening through all of those countries.
  That is why we must support the American worker today. We must 
support manufacturing in America, and override this veto of a 
resolution that, quite frankly, passed with bipartisan support here and 
in the Senate, as well.
  Look, this is an opportunity for us to stand with American energy 
producers. Like I said, we support clean energy, we support 
diversification, but we want it to be made here in America using

[[Page H2575]]

American products, supporting American jobs.
  Mr. Speaker, I continue to urge my colleagues to support this joint 
resolution to override the President's veto and do the right thing. We 
are not going to allow the President to get away with this, to 
constantly say made in America--he supports American workers, he says, 
but then again, he puts forward another policy that does the exact 
opposite. It hurts American people and is supporting the Communist 
Chinese Party instead.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, the gentlewoman from Staten Island has it backwards. The 
fact is that there is a process underway to review the challenges of 
the circumvention. There will be a report within the next year, but 
what the President did was put a pause on that to allow American 
industry to reorient and to catch up because otherwise they do not have 
the capacity.

  I quote a strong representative of working men and women, the general 
president of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of 
America, Douglas McCarron: ``President Biden's proclamation saves 
Carpenters' jobs and smooths the development of the domestic solar 
manufacturing industry. Today, we are seeing the American manufacturing 
sector respond to incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act and develop 
homegrown solar modules.'' According to this international union 
president, ``Now is not the time to disrupt the solar industry and lay 
off thousands of union workers just as we are getting a foothold in the 
burgeoning solar business.''
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Flint, Michigan 
(Mr. Kildee), a strong and effective voice, for whatever he advocates.
  Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this veto override 
resolution to support the Michigan and American workers and to hold 
those who violate U.S. trade laws accountable.
  Let me be clear: I am proud to have worked with President Biden and 
his administration on important new laws, new laws like the CHIPS and 
Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, which I had a hand in 
writing. These legislative victories have helped to bring back critical 
manufacturing and to create good-paying American jobs.
  However, on this particular issue, the President and I disagree.
  For far too long, bad trade deals and unfair trade practices from 
other countries have hurt American workers. I believe that we need to 
enforce our current trade laws and strengthen our ability to fight 
unfair trade practices.

                              {time}  1415

  When companies explicitly endeavor to evade, to circumvent our trade 
laws, there is no choice. We have to hold them accountable. That is why 
Congress, with strong bipartisan votes in both the House and the 
Senate, acted on our legislation.
  The Biden administration's own Commerce Department investigation 
found that companies are evading U.S. tariffs on solar imports by 
circumventing those provisions. Yet, the administration has suspended 
enforcement on this matter. That is not acceptable to the specific 
workers that I represent because, let's keep in mind, we have to be 
thinking about the entirety of the supply chain when it comes to solar 
energy production, including polysilicon production.
  By suspending tariffs on those that violate our trade laws, we are 
rewarding the worst behavior and penalizing those companies that choose 
to follow the law. Failing to act will mean that other countries will 
think they can simply take advantage of American business and the 
American worker, making us more reliant on foreign manufacturing and 
supply chains, including for our clean energy needs.
  Climate change is real. Addressing climate change is important, and 
fair trade is important. We can't be shortsighted in our efforts and 
rely on foreign companies and countries to meet our energy goals, 
especially when they have been found to be in violation of U.S. trade 
laws. It is a false choice. It is a false choice to suggest that we can 
either choose to combat climate change or protect American 
manufacturers and American workers. We can do both.
  Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to vote ``yes'' to override 
this veto and to hold those companies, those bad actors, accountable. 
This is not simple. It is difficult, but we do need to make sure----
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the 
gentleman from Michigan.
  Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to finish my 
point.
  There will always be an argument to look the other way, to get 
cheaper products by looking the other way when it comes to some of the 
worst practices in manufacturing on this planet. Of course, it is going 
to be cheaper to look the other way when workers are being exploited, 
when intellectual property is being stolen, when child labor is being 
utilized. It will always be cheaper, but it is wrong.
  We can do both. We don't have to make the sacrifice of one principle 
in the name of the other. We can't take the position that for only 24 
months, we are going to look the other way, and then we are going to go 
back to adhering to both of these principles.
  We can do both. I encourage my colleagues to join me in doing so.
  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, there are few times that I would 
have yielded time to the gentleman from Michigan, but I would have for 
that opportunity to finish.
  Mr. Speaker, as my colleagues on the other side of the aisle know 
well, the Chinese Communist Party has an egregious human rights record. 
There is a clear connection between these human rights abuses and the 
CCP's solar industry.
  Mr. Speaker, I call attention to the full and complete testimony of 
Nury Turkel, a Uyghur human rights lawyer and chair of the U.S. 
Commission on International Religious Freedom, which was held before 
the Committee on Ways and Means during a field hearing in Staten 
Island, New York, on May 9, 2023, titled: ``Trade in America: Securing 
Supply Chains and Protecting the American Worker--Staten Island. The 
testimony can be found on the Ways and Means Committee website.
  Mr. Speaker, Mr. Turkel's testimony highlights the ongoing human 
rights abuses and religious persecution being perpetrated against 
Uyghurs by the Chinese Communist Party.
  I am disappointed that President Biden vetoed this important 
resolution. This is unacceptable. We must step up to hold China 
accountable for its human rights abuses.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time to 
close.
  Mr. Speaker, there was a reference about false choices. Well, it is a 
false choice that we adhere to our interests and goals at the expense 
of throwing out of work thousands of American union workers and 
disrupting opportunities to smooth the supply chain.
  Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a statement from 10 leading 
environmental organizations that says: ``While the Commerce Department 
investigation of tariff circumvention was being conducted, the 
administration sought to provide enough lead time for domestic solar 
panel manufacturing and supply chains to rapidly expand operations to 
meet demand, bring certainty on the prices of imported panels to solar 
companies deploying clean energy, and job stability for those workers 
installing panels.''
                                                   April 17, 2023.
       Dear Member of Congress: The undersigned groups write to 
     express our opposition to the Congressional Review Act (CRA) 
     resolutions of disapproval (H.J. Res 39 and S.J. Res 15) 
     aimed at reversing President Biden's temporary suspension of 
     tariffs on certain solar cells and panels from manufacturers 
     in Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. Passage of these 
     resolutions could destabilize solar supply chains, harm 
     ongoing deployment of large scale solar projects, threaten 
     high-quality solar construction jobs, and impede our nation's 
     decarbonization goals.
       Proclamation 10414, issued by President Biden in June 2022, 
     gave the U.S. Department of Commerce authority to issue 
     regulations suspending new solar tariffs until June 2024 
     while the department proceeded with its investigation into 
     claims that facilities in the Southeastern Asian countries 
     were circumventing existing tariffs on Chinese solar 
     companies. The Commerce Department subsequently issued rules 
     implementing the

[[Page H2576]]

     delay, and H.J. Res 39 and S.J. Res 15 would nullify that 
     rulemaking.
       Our organizations support both a shift to cleaner and 
     fairer supply chains for clean energy, as well as the rapid 
     deployment of clean energy in order to meet the urgency of 
     the climate crisis. Thanks in part to the expansive 
     investments in clean energy manufacturing and high quality 
     job standards included in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), 
     we are now well positioned to achieve both of these goals. 
     The administration's strong implementation of the IRA's 
     domestic content provisions is a critical piece to further 
     drive manufacturing buildout in the U.S. However, passage of 
     these CRA resolutions would undermine the ability of the U.S. 
     solar industry to succeed in accelerating the shift to more 
     clean energy on the power grid.
       The President's decision to pause tariffs for two years is 
     providing U.S. businesses with much-needed certainty after 
     several months of project cancellations and delays last year 
     due to the Commerce Department's investigation, which caused 
     solar deployment to decline by 30 percent--10 gigawatts below 
     expectations.
       We have already seen more than $13 billion in domestic 
     solar manufacturing announcements since the passage of the 
     IRA. While more buildout is needed, this demonstrates that 
     domestic investment is headed in the right direction. 
     Additional panel shortages, as we saw during the Commerce 
     Department investigation, would once again debilitate U.S. 
     utility-scale solar projects and jobs. And if a CRA 
     resolution rolls back the President's two-year tariff pause, 
     then debilitating shortages and lost investment capital could 
     begin this year.
       Beyond the harm to solar deployments across the U.S., there 
     is the larger issue of the CRA being the wrong tool for 
     Congressional oversight. Congress has always had the power to 
     create, modify or eliminate rules using the regular 
     legislative process. The CRA provides a more extreme path by 
     repealing a rule in its entirety and preventing an agency 
     from issuing a new rule that is ``substantially the same,'' 
     an undefined phrase that can essentially freeze the 
     regulatory process.
       In this instance, while the Commerce Department 
     investigation of tariff circumvention was being conducted, 
     the administration sought to provide enough lead time for 
     domestic solar panel manufacturing and supply chains to 
     rapidly expand operations to meet demand, bring certainty on 
     the prices of imported panels to the solar companies 
     deploying clean energy, and job stability for those workers 
     installing panels. Passing these resolutions could prevent 
     future administrations from being able to find appropriate 
     solutions to other tariffs and trade challenges.
       For these reasons, the undersigned organizations urge you 
     to vote NO on H.J. Res 39 and S.J. Res 15. Thank you for your 
     attention to this matter and for considering our views.
           Sincerely,
       League of Conservation Voters, Natural Resources Defense 
     Council, Sierra Club, Climate Action Campaign, Environmental 
     Law and Policy Center, Clean Energy for America, Chesapeake 
     Climate Action Network, Earthjustice, Environmental Defense 
     Fund, Union of Concerned Scientists.

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, somebody listening from the sidelines 
would think that there is a great deal of disagreement between my 
honorable friend from Missouri and me. That is not the case. We share 
many of the same goals, as he knows, with legislation that I am 
proposing to try to rein in some of the egregious abuses of the 
Chinese.
  What we are disagreeing about today is to undercut a process that is 
working with the Department of Commerce for accountability. The goal 
here is for another year to be able to work the process through. I have 
no doubt that we are going to end up essentially in the same place but 
without compromising the ability of organized labor and workers to be 
able to have jobs without undercutting the opportunity for the 
businesses to be able to cope with these changed circumstances and to 
be able to develop a supply chain, which you cannot do overnight. But 
over the course of the next year or so, we can make significant 
progress. That is our goal. We don't think that we have to punish 
American companies and American workers to achieve that goal.
  I am convinced that over the course of the next year, we will be 
largely in the same place after that process is finished with the 
Department of Commerce. In the meantime, we are not going to have 
American workers and businesses pay the price for this, frankly, 
unfortunate demonstration of political messaging. We want to reach the 
same goal. We don't want to punish workers and industry while we get 
there.
  Having this additional year requested by the Biden administration 
that would be achieved by sustaining his veto is a reasonable outcome 
and I think gets us where we want to be.
  Mr. Speaker, I respectfully suggest that we reject this resolution, 
allow the process to work, do not penalize American workers, and 
strengthen supply chains so that a year and a half from now, we can, in 
fact, be in the same place, having a robust domestic industry and 
enforcing our goals and objectives.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my 
time.
  For years, China has been engaged in a long list of unfair trade 
practices. It is these practices that are harming American workers. 
They cost communities their jobs and create an unfair playing field.
  We are here today to end the misguided reward that the White House 
gave China for one of those unfair practices: shipping solar products 
through four Southeast Asian nations to dodge paying U.S. tariffs.
  That is simply what we are talking about here. That is it. That is 
how you protect American workers.
  It is not allowing the Chinese, the CCP, to have a competitive 
advantage over our manufacturers and over our American workers. But if 
it is for solar panels, wait, it is okay for the Chinese to subsidize 
that. It is okay for American workers to lose their jobs unfairly 
because we don't want to put a tariff on the CCP.
  It is extremely important that even the Department of Commerce, 
President Biden's Department of Commerce, is the one that suggested 
there should be tariffs on these four countries because they are the 
ones that identified these four countries being misused by the CCP.
  That is what we are trying to do, is to follow Biden's Department of 
Commerce. Unfortunately, Biden himself is not even following his own 
Department of Commerce because he is more on the side of his special 
interest groups instead of the American workers who are losing their 
jobs because this resolution, his veto, basically allows more Chinese 
solar panels in without tariffs, and they are not doing anything about 
it.
  That is why, in a bipartisan measure, both in the House and in the 
Senate, we voted to reverse President Biden, including the Finance 
Committee chair over on the other side, a Democrat, who voted to 
reverse the President's proposal.
  The problem is we don't have enough Democrats that will join us. We 
have just a few, but I am thankful for the few who want to stand up to 
the CCP.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the previous question is 
ordered.
  There was no objeciton.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is, Will the House, on 
reconsideration, pass the joint resolution, the objections of the 
President to the contrary notwithstanding?
  Under the Constitution, the vote must be by the yeas and nays.
  Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this question 
are postponed.

                          ____________________