Senate Approves Bill Giving President "Fast-Track Trade" Authority; MEMA Applauds Vote.(George W. Bush, Motor & Equipment Manufa

The Senate Finance Committee voted 18-3 to approve a modified version of the House-passed trade promotion authority bill, H.R. 3005. The bill, sponsored by Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) and Ranking Member Charles Grassley (R-IA), is similar to the House-passed legislation with a few minor changes involving Congressional oversight.

U.S. House of Representatives-approved bill would give the White House expanded authority to negotiate new trade pacts, handing a major victory to President Bush -- and to the automotive supplier industry, according to the Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association (MEMA), which represents North American manufacturers of motor vehicle components and systems.

Christopher Bates, president and CEO of MEMA, says the passing of Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) will help secure foreign market access for U.S. products and keep U.S. manufacturing industries strong. "MEMA applauds the Congress on this vote and is proud of the role we played on behalf of our members in making it happen," Bates said. "We look forward to . . . . . signing by the president and then getting down to serious work on the new round of World Trade Organization negotiations, the Free Trade of Americas agreement and finalizing the U.S.- Chile FTA."

The vote moves Congress one step closer to ending a seven-year impasse on how to handle labor and environmental concerns associated with trade. A sharp disagreement between Republicans and Democrats on those issues has blocked renewal of TPA -- also known as "fast track" -- since it expired in 1994.

TPA allows the president to negotiate trade deals that Congress can approve or reject but cannot change. The White House says that authority is essential if the United States is to be a serious participant in a new round of global trade talks to start next month. The House voted 215-214 (with five members not voting) to pass the measure.

"TPA is critical for the nation's future economic growth and for the negotiation of proposed trade agreements including the Free Trade Area of the Americas," Bates said, adding that "there are more than 130 trade agreements around the world and the United States is only party to three."

U.S. tariffs average around 2 percent, but U.S. products face tariffs of 20-30 percent and even more throughout the world. Bates noted that MEMA and its members were instrumental in influencing Congress on the importance of TPA to U.S. automotive parts manufacturers.

UAW Opposes Bill

"Once again, the Bush Administration and House Republican leaders have put the interests of multinational corporations first and the interests of America's working families last. The fast track bill passed by the U.S. House will do nothing to help the hundreds of thousands of workers laid off since September 11 or to get America's economy moving again or to help in the war against terrorism," UAW President Stephen P. Yokich said in a statement.

"What fast track will do is give the Bush Administration a blank check to negotiate more NAFTA-style trade deals that will cost more American workers their jobs, weaken our nation's industrial base, and intensify the downward pressure on living standards, workers' rights, and environmental standards here and abroad. It is unfortunate that some cowardly members of Congress who opposed fast track in the past were bought off by the Administration's last-minute deals and empty promises, Yokich added.

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