From: / Will Leahy, Manager, China Policy
To: / Asia Task Force, China AmChams
I) House Ways and Means Hearing on China
II) Paulson Concludes Trip to China
I) House Ways and Means Hearing on China
The House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Trade convened a hearing earlier today to discuss China-related legislative proposals on currency, trade remedies, and food safety currently under consideration in the House.
In his opening statement, Subcommittee on Trade Chairman Sander Levin (D-MI)highlighted his desire to see limitations on Presidential waiver authority with regard to Section 421 (Special China Safeguard) petitions. Levin expressed his belief that in rejecting all four 421 petitions filed in recent years, the Bush Administration “has used the discretion Congress gave it to eviscerate section 421 in its implementation.” Levin also noted his regret that S. 1607, a bill recently marked up by the Senate Finance Committee, did not include language limiting Presidential discretion on 421 petitions. It would seem likely that whatever bill emerges from the Ways and Means Committee will have language limiting Presidential discretion on such petitions, perhaps similar to that found in S. 364, introduced in the Senate by Jay Rockefeller (D-WV).
The subcommittee heard from three panels, the first comprised of members of the House and Senate, the second of witnesses from relevant Executive Branch agencies, the third of private sector witnesses both in support of and in opposition to legislation currently under consideration.
The administration witnesses, included:
  • David M. Spooner, Assistant Secretary for Import Administration, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce,
  • Mark Sobel, Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Monetary and Financial Policy, U.S. Department of Treasury,
  • Daniel Brinza, Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Monitoring and Enforcement, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, and
  • Daniel Baldwin, Assistant Commissioner, Office of International Trade, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security
In their testimony, Spooner, Sobel, and Brinza voiced Administration opposition to currency legislation currently under consideration in the Senate and House. Spooner expressed the Administration’s “deep concern” with regard to the potential WTO-inconsistency of bills like S. 1607 and S.1677 and also with the potential for such legislation to trigger a “global cycle of protectionism.” In his testimony, Sobel stated that the Treasury Department did not believe that legislation would strengthen their hand in their attempts to get China to liberalize their exchange rate regime.
Full witness testimony can be found on the Committee web site.
II) Paulson Concludes Trip to China
Below, please find a link to Secretary Paulson’s remarks at a press conference concluding his trip to China.
In his remarks, Paulson provides a summary of his various meetings, which were largely focused on currency revaluation, energy and the environment, and consumer product safety. He also mentions that he and Finance Minister Jin Renqing have agreed to hold the next meeting of the Joint Economic Committee (JEC) in October.
Full remarks can be found on the Treasury Department web site.
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