Bill to Prosecute Trade Crimes

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers, including the chairman and ranking member of the House Select Committee on China, unveiled legislation yesterday creating a new structure within the US government to prosecute international trade crimes.

Companies based in China frequently commit crimes violating US trade laws including fraud, duty evasion and transshipment, according to the bill’s sponsors.

Despite the large volume of trade crime-related cases, the Department of Justice has under-resourced its prosecution of these crimes, they said.

This bill would direct DOJ to establish a new structure dedicated to prosecuting nternational trade crimes in order to enhance US capabilities for detecting, investigating and prosecuting trade fraud, duty evasion, transshipment and other trade-related crimes.

Bill’s Provisions

The Protecting American Industry and Labor from International Trade Crimes Act would:

•  Establish a new task force or similar structure within the DOJ’s Criminal Division to investigate and prosecute trade-related crimes.
•  Enhance nationwide responses to trade-related offenses by providing training and technical assistance to other federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, expanding investigations and prosecutions and allowing for parallel criminal and civil enforcement actions.
•  Require the Attorney General to submit an annual report to Congress assessing the DOJ’s efforts, statistics on trade-related crimes, and fund utilization.
• Authorize $20 million for fiscal year 2025 to support these efforts with appropriate guardrails.

Support for the legislation has come from The National Council of Textile Organizations, , the Campaign for Uyghurs, and The Coalition for a Prosperous America, among others.

Sponsors of the legislation include Select Committee Chairman John Moolenaar (R-Mich), Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa) and ranking Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi (Ill), along with Reps. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), Rosa DeLauro (D-Ct), Darin LaHood (R-Ill), Glenn Ivey (D-La), Nate Moran (R-Texas), Ted Lieu (D-Calif), Ben Cline (R-Va), Haley Stevens (D-Mich), Kevin Kiley (R-Calif), Deborah Ross (D-NC) and Lou Correa (D-Calif).