On June 28th, 2024, the American Chemistry Council (ACC) filed comments to the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on recommendations contained in its long-awaited Four-Year Review of the Section 301 tariffs on imports from China. ACC has long requested this review so was happy to see the report finally released. ACC supports the intent of this and the previous Administration to address China’s acts, policies, and practices regarding intellectual property, technology transfer, and innovation. Our comments include several suggestions to better implement these recommendations and reform the Section 301 process to target these acts, policies, and practices.
Our suggestions include:
- Publish a current and updated list of goods subject to Section 301 tariffs.
- Reform the Section 301 process to better target chemicals where there are concerns about China’s unfair trade practices.
- Reform the proposed Section 301-exclusion process to include other inputs needed to produce U.S. chemicals and plastics, especially inputs that are not produced domestically or in sufficient quantities.
- Extend the Section 301-exclusion process on a periodic basis instead of a single exclusion process and provide greater clarification for any denials or non-continuations of exclusions.
- Negotiate new agreements with trusted trade partners and implement additional trade and tax incentives to stimulate U.S. investments and production of chemicals.
- Align the Section 301 recommendations with other Administration policy priorities and incentive opportunities.
It is our hope that the USTR will take a careful look at our recommendations and provide a public hearing so that stakeholders can discuss these recommendations with USTR and the Administration.
Read the response
