Federal Legislative Update (June 23)

Congress Is Getting It Done Before Clocking Out This week, Congress focused on gun safety legislation, defense reauthorization and spending bills as it works to get as much done as possible before the scheduled July 4 recess. Specifically for agriculture, the House agriculture appropriations bill is being considered today by the full House Appropriations Committee after passing out of the subcommittee last week without AFIA’s ask of $5 million for the Food and Drug Administration. The Senate Agriculture Committee considered bills yesterday aimed at cracking down on concentration and marketing practices in the cattle and meat processing industry.

Could Renewing TPA Close Gap on China Competition Bills? While Congress struggles to reconcile the trade provisions in the House-passed America COMPETES Act and the Senate’s U.S. Innovation and Competition Act, Senator Rob Portman, R-Ohio, believes proposals to renew the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) may break the gridlock between House and Senate conferees charged with reconciling the two China-focused competition bills. Sen. Portman said last week that the conferees are “at loggerheads” over the trade provisions in the two competition bills, in part, due to the House version calling for an expansion and extension of Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA), which is typically paired with TPA. Sen. Portman suggested including a “limited TPA” might deliver a “potential breakthrough” in the current impasse, and indicated that Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., will collaborate with him on a proposal that would provide new authority to the president to negotiate plurilateral agreements at the World Trade Organization. Portman, a former U.S. trade representative (USTR), said the proposal represents a form of TPA that would provide the president with the authority to negotiate a free trade agreement with the United Kingdom — long a priority for both senators. We have been calling for TPA, which gives the U.S. strong negotiating power to move forward with free trade agreements>>

Biden Proposes Gas, Diesel Tax Holiday On Wednesday, President Joe Biden asked Congress to suspend taxes on gasoline and diesel, and for state and local governments to do the same, for three months to provide consumers and businesses “extra breathing room” amid soaring fuel costs. The federal taxes are currently 18 cents per gallon on gasoline and 24 cents per gallon on diesel, with national average fuel costs hovering around $4.95 per gallon and $5.81 per gallon respectively. The question is met with mixed reviews from legislators, who are concerned about where funds will come from for rebuilding roads and highways.