June 24,2015

Wyden Floor Statement on Trade Enforcement and Aid for Workers

As Prepared for Delivery

Today the Senate is taking major steps toward a new, progressive trade policy that shuts the door on the 1990s NAFTA era in trade once and for all. One of the biggest ways this overall legislative package will accomplish that goal is by kicking our customs enforcement into high gear. Later today, the Senate will vote to go to conference with the House on strong, bipartisan legislation that was passed by this chamber only a few weeks ago by a vote of 78-20.

It’s my view that vigorous enforcement of our trade laws must be at the forefront of a modern approach to trade in 2015 and beyond. At its core, the bipartisan legislation headed into conference is a jobs bill that protects American workers and exports from the misdeeds of trade cheats.

Foreign companies and nations employ complicated schemes and shadowy tactics to break the rules. They bully American businesses and undercut our workers, so the name of the game is staying ahead of these unfair practices.

My colleagues and I believe the Senate has offered the right plan to fight back and protect American jobs and companies from abuse. That starts with the ENFORCE Act, which is a proposal I first offered years ago to give our Customs agency more tools to crack down on cheaters. There’s bipartisan, bicameral agreement on the need for an “unfair trade alert,” which is another major upgrade I fought to include in this package.

Any bill that comes out of the conference committee should also reflect important American priorities, such as smart protection of the environment. When our trade agreements establish rules on environmental protection, they have to be enforced with the same vigor as the rules that knock down barriers for business overseas. Senator Bennet offered a proposal that will help accomplish this important goal, and it was overwhelmingly agreed to by the Finance Committee and passed by the Senate. Likewise, it’s my view that climate change is the greatest challenge of our time, and it’s critical to make sure that this package sends the right message on that issue and does not unnecessarily play politics. Whether the issue at hand is climate change, fisheries, or conservation, the overall package must strike the right balance for the environment.

I also want to take a moment to reiterate from yesterday certain markers on Democratic priorities that my colleagues and I will fight for in conference. Those include provisions championed by Senator Shaheen, which will help ensure small businesses can take full advantage of trade, the environmental protection provisions introduced by Senator Bennet that I just addressed, and Senator Cantwell’s trade enforcement trust fund.

When I’m at home talking with Oregonians about trade, people often ask why the U.S. is negotiating trade deals if it has a hard time enforcing the laws that are already on the books. This is our chance to show that strengthening enforcement is an integral part of the new, modern approach to trade. Our policies will give America’s trade enforcers the tools they need to fight on behalf of workers across the country and stop the trade cheats who seek to undercut them. I urge my colleagues to vote yes later today on the motion to send the enforcement bill to conference and work on a bipartisan basis to put strong trade enforcement legislation on the president’s desk.

I would also like to make some remarks on the Trade Adjustment Assistance package, known as TAA. At the heart of the set of trade bills Congress is considering is protecting American workers and ensuring that more trade means everybody has an opportunity to get ahead. And that’s why the package of legislation under debate expands and extends the support system for America’s workers called Trade Adjustment Assistance.

TAA dates back to President Kennedy, who, during his push for the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, called it, “a program to afford time for American initiative, American adaptability and American resiliency to assert themselves.” Since then, TAA has been extended by Republican and Democratic presidents.

TAA is a lifeline for more than 100,000 Americans today, including 3,000 Oregonians, with job training and financial support. It gives people a springboard to new opportunities, and it guarantees that workers and their families won’t get knocked off stride when times are tough. In my view, it’s a core element of what I call “trade done right.”

 For a year and a half, TAA has been running at reduced strength, but that’s going to change once this legislation becomes law. The funding for TAA will go back up to a level that will cover everybody who qualifies. Once again, service workers will be eligible for the program, because in today’s economy, they face competition from overseas, too. TAA will also take into account competition from anywhere in the world, not just from our trade agreement partners.

These are significant improvements that I fought for tooth and nail in negotiations with Chairmen Hatch and Ryan, and I believe they will make a big difference for workers across the country who fall on hard times. If China manages to lure a manufacturer away from the U.S., for example, those American workers will be covered. They’ll have a chance to learn new skills and find a job that pays good wages. And they won’t have to worry about whether the bills will get paid or if they’ll have food on the table.

Along with TAA, this legislation will reinstate the Health Coverage Tax Credit that expired at the end of last year. The majority of workers in this country – tens of millions of middle-class people and their families – get their health insurance through their employer.

The Health Coverage Tax Credit guarantees that workers and families affected by trade will still be able to see their doctors. If they get sick or suffer an injury, they won’t face colossal medical bills or the threat of bankruptcy. They’ll be protected until they’re back on their feet.

In the process of bringing this legislation together, my friend on the Finance Committee Senator Brown offered a proposal that would go a long way to strengthening our enforcement of key trade laws. It’s called the Leveling the Playing Field Act.  I urged the Senate Majority Leader to include this important legislation in the TAA bill, both because it is good policy, and as a sign of good faith. 

When I was Chairman of the Finance Trade Subcommittee, my first hearing was on trade enforcement. My good friend from the Steelworkers, Leo Gerard, together with U.S. Steel Chairman Mario Longhi, spoke at length about how American workers needed someone to stand up for them and finally fix the shortcomings in our trade remedy laws.  

Senator Brown’s proposal is all about strengthening our trade laws to stop unfair trade, so that foreign companies do not undercut American workers and manufacturers. I’m proud to have stood with Senator Brown on this critical issue, and I want to thank him for his diligent work, as well as our House colleagues for coming together with us on a bipartisan basis to advance this proposal.

These three programs -- TAA, the HCTC, and Senator Brown’s Leveling the Playing Field Act – are moving through the Senate alongside legislation that creates new economic opportunities for impoverished countries in Africa and other places around the world. This trade package will extend the biggest of these programs, the African Growth and Opportunity Actor AGOA, for ten years.

I am a strong believer in AGOA – it works for the U.S. and it works for Africa, and it helps build a stronger economic future for everyone. I worked hard to make sure the Finance Committee held a hearing and found ways to strengthen AGOA, extend it for another decade, and the committee came together on a bipartisan basis to make smart improvements.

It’s my view that anybody who wants to see trade done right – anybody who wants American workers to thrive in the 21st century – should get behind these key programs. By supporting this legislation, Congress will reaffirm our commitment to the American initiative, adaptability, and resiliency that President Kennedy rhapsodized 53 years ago. So I encourage all my colleagues to vote yes later today.

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