Senate Finance Committee member Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) introduced legislation yesterday to reauthorize the Trade Adjustment Assistance program.  No Senators from across the aisle joined the initiative. The TAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 would reauthorize the 2015-2021 version of the TAA program, which includes support for workers, farmers and firms, through December 31, 2030.

A Washington State importer firm pleaded guilty to one felony count, was fined and received probation for evading source of origin declarations for Chinese-origin cabinets in violation of the Lacey Act. Tip the Scale LLC, of Tacoma, Washington, pleaded guilty and was sentenced for making false declarations regarding the species and harvest location of timber used in wooden cabinets and vanities.  The firm agreed to appoint its current Sales Manger, Tran Dip as Chief Compliance Officer to implement a compliance plan.  

The Treasury Department Friday issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to implement Executive Order 14105 of August 9, 2023, “Addressing United States Investments in Certain National Security Technologies and Products in Countries of Concern”. The NPRM builds on the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking issued by Treasury last August and provides the full draft regulations and explanatory discussion regarding the intent of the proposal, and solicits comment from the public

Just in case you're still depending on a Russian vendor for your cybersecurity, the Commerce Department has banned Kaspersky Labs from directly or indirectly providing anti-virus software and cybersecurity products or services in the United States or to U.S. persons. The Final Determination by the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is the first of its kind and is the first Final Determination issued by BIS’s Office of Information and Communications Technology and Services (OICTS).  

The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM)  signed a US$500 million Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. in a ceremony in Port of Spain, Trinidad June 20. The MOU will develop opportunities and support financing in the "maritime domain awareness, cybersecurity, renewable energy, and water sanitation sectors."  In addition, the bank delivered a  $150 million Letter of Interest to finance "maritime vessels and aircraft in support of its maritime operations."

The Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere of the House Foreign Affairs Committee will convene a hearing titled “The Curse of Socialism in Central America and the Caribbean,” on Thursday, June 27th.

Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is designating a network of two individuals and seven entities that provide major sources of revenue for U.S.-designated Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik and his family. Dodik used his official position to direct RS government contracts to a network of private companies that he and Igor oversee. While Igor controls many of the companies in this network, he obfuscates his personal connection to the companies by relying on distinct nominal owners and directors.

The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) expects to issue a final rule this Summer revising the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to authorize the release of certain technology and software in the context of standards setting and development in standards organizations. Much of the rulemaking activity was initiated in response to the Huawei sanctions and US firms' continued participation in 5G telecoms standards negotiations.  The Bureau published the interim rule in June of 2020, incorporating comments in a follow on interim rule two years later.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection has recently updated the Frequently Asked Questions for Section 232 Tariffs on Aluminum Section 301 FAQs …

BIS Published the final rule announced last week as part of the Administration's participation in the G7 summit. The bulk of the rule is as displayed last week, though the published version adds additional EAR 99 software to coordinate with allies,

A Canadian national and resident of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), pleaded guilty today to conspiring to send trade secrets that belonged to Tesla Motors. …

The new Iran Foreign Direct Product rules go into effect next month, and the unusual way the rule was imposed may have left some practitioners unprepared.  Enacted by Congress with no input from the Deparetment of Commerce, the provisions of (HR. 6603) introduced by Rep. Nathaniel Moran (R-TX) were included in the massive emergency supplemental appropriation [HR 815] signed into law April 24th.  "This is the first time in the history of Congress that it passed a bill to codify a foreign direct product rule," Mr. Moran's office stated.

Ahead of the 2025 expiration of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) trade preference program, one of the Senate's chief boosters of renewal expressed hope the bipartisan support could deliver, but the state of Washington politics makes any outcome uncertain. The day before the Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee considered potential reforms to help US Farm exports and counter Russian and Chinese activities in the region.

The Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has imposed a three-year denial order against a Portland, Oregon, package forwarding service prohibiting the firm from from participating in all exports under BIS jurisdiction from the United States. “If a forwarding company – with an entire business model based on exports – fails to implement an adequate compliance program even while subject to a suspended denial order, it should not be able to export items subject to the EAR from the United States,” said Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod.

The new chair of the World Trade Organization’s Committee on Trade and Environment has shared ideas on how to advance thematic sessions on few topics in the complex and controversial arena of trade and climate change – where there is no clear mandate from the WTO’s recent 13th ministerial conference, said people familiar with developments.

The House of Representatives passed their version of the FY23 National Defense Authorization Act.  The narrow 217 to 199 vote on the normally nonpartisan legislation reflected the last minute addition of a raft of culture war amendments which alienated all but six Democrats.

Coordinator on Global Anti-Corruption Richard Nephew will travel to Montenegro, Lithuania, and Albania June 16-21. Mr. Nephew will visit Podgorica, Montenegro to meet with government officials and civil society representatives. He will then travel to Vilnius, Lithuania on June 18-19, to the opening plenary of the International Anti-Corruption Conference.

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai convened the 15th U.S. - Central Asia Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) Council meeting in Kazakhstan Friday, capping a week of yakking with envoys from the host country as well as the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

 Congressional China hawks called for the Commerce Department to include Chinese drones in evolving regulations for connected vehicles.  "With UAVs’ connected software and hardware posing similar national security threats to those of other identified connected vehicles, such transactions present undue and unacceptable risks to U.S. national security," the lawmakers wrote.

After Chinese fast fashion powerhouse pulled its plans to list shares in the US, Congressional bedevilment persists. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) sent a letter to the U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, informing him of SHEIN’s reported human-rights abuses and exploitation of trade loopholes and the risks these tactics pose to businesses and investors. The letter urges Hunt to investigate SHEIN thoroughly before allowing the company to list on the London Stock Exchange.