The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement moved closer to a final vote in the Senate, with the Senate Finance Committee advancing the legislation Tuesday in a 25-3 vote.
Impeachment of President Trump, however, could delay the U.S. Senate's consideration of the new trade deal, Sen. Chuck Grassley warned Tuesday.
The Des Moines Register reports that the Iowa Republican says he is considering steps that would ensure the Trump administration properly restores biofuels demand lost to waivers from a federal requirement to blend ethanol and biodiesel into the nation's fuel supply.
Grassley, chairman of Senate Finance Committee, which approved the trade deal Tuesday, said he expects few roadblocks in getting it approved by the full Senate. But he said that "the articles of impeachment have priority over everything else."
“We are now one step away from unleashing the competitiveness of America’s farmers and ranchers with our two largest trading partners thanks to today’s Senate Finance Committee vote," says American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. "The USMCA will protect our valuable trade relationships with our nearest neighbors and return certainty to our markets. We urge immediate approval by the full Senate to deliver a much-needed win for agriculture.
Duvall says the industry is eager for new opportunities to compete, building on the progress with Japan and the pending announcement of a new China agreement.
“We hope the USMCA will be a model for future U.S. trade agreements as the administration pursues a level playing field around the globe for our farmers and ranchers," he says.
USMCA Background
- Designed to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement, the USMCA builds on important trade relationships in North America.
- The agreement is expected to increase U.S. ag exports by $2 billion and result in a $65 billion increase in gross domestic product.
- The agreement will provide new market access for American dairy and poultry products while preserving the zero-tariff platform on all other ag products.
- In particular, the agreement gives U.S. dairy products access to an additional 3.6% of Canada’s dairy market – even better than what was proposed in the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement.
- U.S. wheat will receive fairer treatment, thanks to Canada’s agreement to grade our wheat no less favorably than its own.
- Mexico and the United States have also agreed that all grading standards for ag products will be non-discriminatory.
- Additional provisions enhance science-based trading standards among the three nations as the basis for sanitary and phytosanitary measures for ag products, as well as progress in the area of geographic indications.
- The agreement also includes measures that address cooperation, information sharing and other trade rules among the three nations related to agricultural biotechnology and gene editing.
