Sen. Josh Hawley, a populist Republican from Missouri, has introduced a Generalized System of Preferences bill that would only allow the tariff benefits to be granted when unemployment is below 4% in the U.S. The unemployment rate has been below 4% less than two years of the last 20. This version of GSP would also bar any country that the Department of Labor identifies as a country where there's a problem with forced labor or the worst forms of child labor.

The Commerce Department will make some changes to processes used on requests for exclusion from the Section 232, it said in an interim final rule released Dec. 10. One change is meant to “create a more efficient method for approving exclusions where objections have not been received in the past for certain steel or aluminum articles,” it said. Through General Approved Exclusions (GAEs), Commerce will create exclusions “that may be used by any importing entity,” it said. The “change will result in an estimated immediate decrease of 5,000 exclusion requests annually, resulting in a significant improvement in efficiency, with the possibility of more in the future,” it said. “Unlike exclusion requests, GAEs do not include quantity limits.”

Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, criticized the Democratic approach to the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program renewal after Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee Chairman Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., introduced a six-month extension that would change eligibility requirements (see 2012080049). “This is a surprise, and not a welcome one, at this point in the negotiations,” Brady said the evening of Dec. 8. “While I respect the view of Democrats that changes are needed to the program, I support a clean extension that allows us to consider changes under regular order.” Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, introduced an 16-month clean GSP renewal, but Democrats in the Senate do not support it, as they prefer an approach that requires higher standards from beneficiary countries.

A former jewelry importer will pay more than $400,000 to settle a False Claims Act whistleblower lawsuit that alleges it intentionally misclassified imported earrings to avoid paying higher customs duties, the Justice Department said in a Dec. 8 news release. A TSI Accessories Group subsidiary allegedly classified the earrings based on the value of pairs or larger groups, when they should have been classified based on the value of each single earring, said the whistleblower complaint, subsequently joined by the Justice Department.

Democrats and at least one Republican in the House have objected to products included in the next Miscellaneous Tariff Bill, a lobbyist interested in MTB told International Trade Today, complaining about both inputs and consumer goods. Many of the petitions that drew objections were in textiles and apparel, he said. He said he's seen “a couple dozen” items that members want removed, but said he doesn't know if there are more objections.

International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from Nov. 30-Dec. 4 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.

House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee Chairman Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., introduced a bill that would add eligibility requirements to the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program, including whether the country either has established, or is making continual progress toward establishing, “the rule of law, political pluralism, the right to due process, a fair trial and equal protection under the law,” and whether those countries are working to “reduce poverty, increase the availability of health care and educational opportunities,” among other goals, including combating corruption. It also would predicate eligibility on whether a country effectively enforces its environmental laws and regulations, and is fulfilling its international environmental obligations, including those related to public health.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said that he hopes that a technical fixes bill for USMCA can pass this month, but its passage is hung up on whether goods manufactured in foreign-trade zones should be able to benefit from USMCA if those goods meet the rules of origin.

More than 200 businesses and trade groups, led by the National Association of Manufacturers, are asking House and Senate leadership to include a renewal of the Miscellaneous Tariff Bill in the spending bill Congress is working to pass this month. The omnibus appropriations bill, which covers the fiscal year that began Oct. 1, is attracting lobbying on many trade priorities, including the alcohol excise tax reduction for small producers, the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program, and more.

Importers must file protests to preserve their rights to Section 301 tariff exclusions issued after an entry has already liquidated, the Department of Justice said in a motion to dismiss a pair of lawsuits that seek to have the exclusions applied past the protest deadline. CBP’s failure to apply the exclusions was a protestable event, even if the exclusions did not exist at the time, and the Court of International Trade’s jurisdictional scheme means CIT can’t hear cases wherein the importer skipped the protest scheme, DOJ said.