Retail Groups Welcome Bill Extending Trade Preferences Program

Last week, Congress began deliberation on legislation pertaining to the preferential trade agreements covered under the Generalized System of Preferences. Congressman Jim McDermott, D-Wash., introduced H.R. 4101, the New Partnership for Trade Development Act of 2009, on Wednesday. The bill would reauthorize the Generalized System of Preferences for 10 years after it expires on Dec. 31, and expand the list of products eligible for tariff-free treatment under the program by including textiles, apparel and footwear. The measure would also expand benefits for poor countries outside sub-Saharan Africa under the African Growth and Opportunity Act by providing more liberal rules on how products quality for preferential treatment.

Introduction of the bill came a day after the subcommittee held a hearing on the nation’s trade preferences programs in which 18 government, trade, labor and humanitarian groups testified. The National Retail Federation of Washington, D.C., submitted written testimony asking that they be renewed and expanded because the demand for affordable goods has increased during the current recession. The programs have frequently been renewed for as little as a year or two at a time, but NRF asked that they be given permanent or extended authorization in order to make long-term planning easier.

“Extending the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) for 10 years would give retailers the stability they need when making long-term business decisions and ensure that U.S. consumers can continue to buy the affordable products they’re looking for in today’s economic climate,” said Erik Autor, NRF vice president and international trade counsel. “Adding clothing and shoes to the list of products that receive duty-free treatment is important because these are goods that are in high demand here at home and which the countries that participate in this program are capable of making. Including these products in GSP would be a major step forward both for U.S. consumers and for promoting economic development and job creation in the world’s poorest countries. This bill will help move forward the debate in Congress on improving our system of trade preferences.”

Speaking on behalf of the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) based in Arlington, Va., Stephanie Lester, vice president for international trade, said, “RILA is committed to promoting flexible and meaningful preference programs that assist in the development of the world’s poorest countries and enhance the availability of a wide range of high quality products for American families.”

The United States has six trade preference programs that offer duty-free treatment or reduced duties on specified lists of imports from developing countries in Central America, the Caribbean, Africa and Asia, each with its own specific rules. Click here for more details.

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