On May 16, 2023, President Joseph Biden vetoed the Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution that would have nullified the temporary moratorium on the collection of antidumping and countervailing (AD/CVD) duties on imports of certain solar cells and modules from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam. See House Joint Resolution (H.J. Res.) 39. Background Under the Congressional Review Act, Congress may pass a resolution of disapproval of an agency action. The resolution in this case would have nullified the temporary waiver issued by President Biden via Presidential proclamation in June 202 ..read more

On November 15, 2022, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) opened its docket (USTR-2022-0014) seeking public comments in its review of Lists 1 and 2 of the Trump-era tariffs on Chinese imports. The tariffs were issued by then-President Donald J. Trump under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. USTR seeks comments from interested parties on the effectiveness of the tariffs in achieving the goals of the trade action, other actions or modifications that could be taken that would be more effective, and the effects on various aspects of the U.S. economy. After receiving many requests for ..read more

The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has announced the next steps in its review of Lists 1 and 2 of the Trump-era tariffs on Chinese imports. Today, on October 17, 2022, USTR published the official request for comments in the Federal Register. The tariffs were issued by then-President Donald J. Trump under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. USTR seeks comments from interested parties on the effectiveness of the tariffs in achieving the goals of the trade action, other actions or modifications that could be taken that would be more effective, and the effects on various aspects of th ..read more

** Update: Announcement has been moved to Friday October 7, 2022 at 9:30 AM Eastern Daylight Time ** On Thursday, the Biden administration will announce new restrictions preventing China from accessing advanced U.S. semiconductor technology. According to reports, the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) will issue new rules that would clarify which semiconductor technologies may be exported to China, including codifying earlier guidance given to specific companies. This new development is part of the U.S. Government’s long standing effort to limit China’s access t ..read more

Last week, the United States government imposed additional restrictions on the imports from, and exports to, Russia. The import changes stem from the Suspending Normal Trade Relations with Russia and Belarus Act, signed into law by President Biden, that increase the duties for products that claim Russia or Belarus as their country of origin. In terms of exports, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issued a press release last Saturday announcing further controls on the export and reexport of U.S.-origin and certain foreign-produced commodities, software, and techn ..read more

Today, in a rare demonstration of bipartisanship, the U.S. Senate passed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (the “Act”) – the text of which was a compromise between Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Representative Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) – which had already passed the house on Tuesday of this week. Over the years, including most recently in February 2021 (see our post here), we’ve seen different attempts from both chambers to pass legislation prohibiting the imports of goods from Xinjiang or the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (“XUAR”) – a region in China where, per the U.S. Department of L ..read more

If your company is like many, your board of directors may be demanding that you put more effort into environmental, social, and governance issues, which have become known by the now-ubiquitous acronym “ESG.” Those demands don’t come from nowhere: consumers are demanding transparency and social responsibility. In particular, if your company does business internationally, regulators are focused on international social justice issues (such as the use of forced labor) more than ever. For companies engaged in international trade, there are many dilemmas to confront in implementing your ESG agenda ..read more

Today, the United States Trade Representative issued a notice informing the importing community about a new Section 301 exclusion process and seeking comments from affected importers. The comment period begins on October 12, 2021, and ends on December 1, 2021. As with past exclusion processes, the USTR proposal would permit importers to apply for relief from Section 301 duties on certain imports from China, which range from 7.5% to 25%. But importantly, the range of exclusions available under the new procedures is very limited, as outlined below. Targeted Scope of the New Section 301 Exclusion ..read more

Companies are putting forth more effort, thought, commitment, and resources into environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) considerations across their business lines. The focus of ESG has primarily centered around climate change and sustainability, but the “S” in ESG is becoming increasingly important to consumers and other stakeholders. As global corporate citizens become more vocal about asserting their identity and values, it is critical to think about how their global trade and compliance policies and supply chains reflect those values. Issues like forced labor in the supply ch ..read more

This is the second of three articles on the Solar Industry and Forced Labor. Here we focus on interactions with solar module suppliers. Our first article in the series focused on regulations in this area, and our next will focus on investors and their requirements. Your shipment of solar equipment is stopped by Customs at the U.S. border because of the potential use of forced labor in the product’s supply chain. What help can your supplier provide in demonstrating the absence of forced labor? Will your supplier certify that the equipment is free of forced labor? What are the supplier’s oblig ..read more