To protect America’s economic and national security, U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood (R-IL) recently led a bipartisan contingent of his colleagues in voicing concerns about efforts by the European Union (EU) that they say would regulate the digital economy in ways that harm American companies and workers.
“Left unaddressed, the discriminatory elements of these policies will weaken American competitiveness by unfairly advantaging domestic European firms and inadvertently benefitting Chinese, Russian, and other foreign-owned competitors,” wrote Rep. LaHood and 46 of his colleagues in a June 21 letter sent to President Joe Biden.
The lawmakers encouraged the president to raise these issues with the EU, including through the Trade and Technology Council (TTC) and in discussions over the implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act.
Rep. LaHood, a co-chair of the Digital Trade Caucus, and his fellow lawmakers want “to ensure that the EU enforces these policies fairly and refrains from targeting American companies in future regulations,” according to their letter.
The members pointed out that American leadership in the digital economy supports millions of jobs across the nation and has the potential to create significant economic opportunities for many years ahead.
“We strongly believe that we must safeguard the success of the United States in this sector by ensuring that American companies and workers face a fair and level playing field when competing in foreign markets,” they wrote.
But unfortunately, according to their letter, parts of the EU’s approach “go beyond legitimate public policymaking and instead disproportionately and needlessly target American companies.”
For instance, according to recent findings from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the direct threat to the U.S. economy from proposed EU digital regulations could raise costs on American businesses by $97 billion, including $45 billion on small businesses, and reduce American exports by $13 billion or more, wrote the members.
Such policies include the recently enacted Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act, which could limit access for American cloud service providers.
“There are many opportunities to push the EU to amend its proposals and enforce its laws in an even-handed manner, including through continued TTC discussions,” Rep. LaHood and his colleagues wrote. “We also believe that as the EU raises concerns over components of the Inflation Reduction Act, the United States should not hesitate to raise our own concerns over the EU’s digital policies.”