U.S. Trade Representative Tai announced the reinstatement of a targeted exclusion process for 549 products currently subjected to Section 301 tariffs on China. The exclusion process is limited to those products that were previously granted an exclusion, which expired on Dec. 31, 2020.

Beginning Oct. 12, USTR will open a 50-day comment process through their USTR Comment Portal. AEM encourages all member companies who were previously granted an exclusion, to file a comment.

Specifically, USTR wants commenters to focus on:

• Whether the particular product and/or a comparable product is available from sources in the United States and/or in third countries
• Any changes in the global supply chain since September 2018 with respect to the particular product or any other relevant industry developments
• The efforts, if any, the importers or U.S. purchasers have undertaken since September 2018 to source the product from the United States or third countries
• Domestic capacity for producing the product in the United States

USTR will consider whether or not reinstating the exclusion will impact or result in severe economic harm to the commenter or other U.S. interests, including the impact on small businesses, employment, manufacturing output, and critical supply chains in the United States. USTR will also assess the overall impact of the exclusions on the goal of obtaining the elimination of China’s acts, policies, and practices covered in the Section 301 investigation.

AEM continues to stress the importance of global supply chains for U.S. manufacturing competitiveness. While reopening the exclusion process to a limited number of products is a step in the right direction, USTR must reopen the entire exclusion process to allow new products consideration in a transparent manner.

For additional information, please contact AEM Senior Advisor of Global Public Policy Alex Russ at aruss@aem.org. 

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