U.S. Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-OH) has introduced a bipartisan bill that would improve how the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) administers tariffs by giving U.S. companies at least 60 days warning before tariffs are imposed.
“When tariffs are enacted, we should not punish American businesses who already have supply or consumer orders en route — a problem I have heard about directly from Ohio businesses,” Rep. Wenstrup said on June 1.
The congressman sponsored the For Accurate Import Relief To Aid Retailers and Importers of Foreign Freights (FAIR TARIFF) Act of 2023, H.R. 3739, on May 25 with several of his fellow members on the House Ways and Means Committee. U.S. Reps. Adrian Smith (R-NE) and Carol Miller (R-WV), and Mike Thompson (D-CA) were among the five original cosponsors of the bill.
The FAIR TARIFF Act would direct the USTR to provide U.S. companies adequate time to land goods from market economies in transit before retaliatory tariffs begin. It would also refund “goods on the water” tariffs paid following the implementation of EU retaliatory tariffs, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. Wenstrup’s office.
Rep. Smith, chairman of the Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee, said the FAIR TARIFF Acis a commonsense solution to help U.S. importers make purchasing decisions. “If tariffs must be implemented, we should ensure American businesses, manufacturers, and workers are protected from unintended negative impacts,” he said.
The USTR implemented 25 percent tariffs on European wine, spirits, food, and other products in 2019 and expanded the tariffs in 2021 with less than two weeks’ notice, and requests from U.S. companies for a “goods on the water” exemption were denied.
“Suppliers should not be unfairly hit by tariffs for goods that have been already purchased,” Rep. Miller said. “The Fair Tariff Act equips our importers for success, ensures USTR gives U.S. companies ample warning when implementing tariffs, and corrects the tariffs that have put unnecessary costs on U.S. businesses that get passed down to consumers,” she added.