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U.S. Senator Katie Britt, R-Ala., Monday announced that she has joined U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., in co-sponsoring the Fighting Trade Cheats Act, bipartisan legislation introduced by Senators Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, to strengthen U.S. trade law enforcement and give American manufacturers the opportunity to take action against bad actors that engage in customs fraud.
The bill takes aim at companies that dump foreign-made goods into the United States and would allow private companies to sue foreign producers that harm American companies. By allowing private companies harmed by trade cheats to use their own resources to fight back, the bill would help address customs fraud and protect American workers and American jobs.
“For far too long, the Chinese Communist Party and other bad actors have cheated American communities out of jobs, intellectual property, and opportunity,” said Senator Britt. “This bipartisan effort holds foreign entities accountable for malicious trade practices that harm Alabama manufacturers – including our iron and steel industry – and the hardworking Alabamians and families that rely on them for their livelihood. I will continue to fight to ensure that the CCP is held accountable, that we onshore good-paying 21st century jobs back to America, and that we strengthen our domestic supply chains and manufacturing base, especially in critical industries. This will help unlock the American Dream for families nationwide and keep our homeland safe and strong for generations to come.”
American businesses supporting this bipartisan legislation include McWane Incorporated, a Birmingham-based Alabama company with a large national presence, including in Ohio, that manufactures pipes, valves, fire hydrants and fittings used in the nation’s infrastructure.
“Trade cheaters cost American jobs, plain and simple. This bill will give Customs and Border Protection and businesses the tools they need to stop lawless foreign importers from evading U.S. laws and destroying American industries and communities,” said James Proctor II, Senior Vice President and General Counsel for McWane. “We thank Senators Britt and Baldwin for joining Senators Brown and Tillis in standing up for American workers and job creators and helping put a stop to such illegal activity.”
Full text of the legislation can be found here.
