United States of America: Renewal of preferential trade programs
Description
The authorizations for two preferential trade programs that extend duty-free treatment to U.S. imports from developing countries were due to expire on December 31, 2009 unless new legislation was approved to renew the programs. Both houses of Congress approved a bill to achieve this end, which President Obama signed into law just days before the programs expired.
At issue were the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) and the Andean Trade Preferences Act (ATPA). The GSP extends duty-free treatment to many items imported from developing countries, but excludes many sensitive sectors that face higher tariffs (e.g., textile and apparel, glass products, etc.). The ATPA covers virtually all products imported from the two remaining beneficiary countries (i.e., Colombia and Ecuador).
On December 14, 2009 the House of Representatives approved a bill (designated as H.R.4284) that would renew the authorizations for both programs through December 31, 2010. The bill would not make any substantive changes in either the GSP or the ATPA, but it is expected that Congress might consider reforms to both programs in 2010. The Senate then approved the bill by unanimous consent on December 22, 2009. The bill became law after it was signed by President Obama on December 28, 2009.
If the programs had not been not renewed before January 1, 2010 many imports from GSP and ATPA beneficiary countries that might otherwise enter on a duty-free basis would have been subject to duties on a most-favored-nation basis.
Any Evidence-Based Deliberation:
| Question | Result |
|---|---|
| Is there anything in the public record to suggest that evidence of the effectiveness of the proposed measure was considered during official deliberations? | Yes |
| Is there any evidence that alternatives to the proposed measure were considered? | No |
| Is there anything in the public record that suggests that empirical evidence informed the comparison across the alternatives available to government? | |
| Was such evidence identified? | |
| Is such evidence publicly available? | |
| Did the official decision-maker in question provide an explanation as to why a chosen measure was favoured over alternatives? | |
| Is there any evidence to suggest that potentially affected trading partners were consulted before the measures were taken? | |
| Is there any evidence that safeguards have been put in place to ensure that implementation of the initiative is transparent and non-discriminatory? | Yes |
| Did the government state its intention to review the measure within one year of implementation? | Yes |
Date Discovered:
Implemented: No
Date of inception:
GTA Evaluation: Amber
Source:
Full details on the status of the bill are available via http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d111:h.r.04284:.
Government Response:
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