Senate Agreement on Trade Promotion Authority Reached
On Thursday, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) announced that they had reached an agreement on Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) legislation and a bill was introduced later that day. As you may recall, TPA would give the Obama Administration the ability to bring trade agreements currently being negotiated (the Transpacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership) to a vote in Congress with no amendments. TPA is considered a critical tool that the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) needs to bring these negotiations to a successful conclusion.
Also included in the bill are a number of non-binding objectives that Congress would like to see USTR achieve in the negotiations. Of interest to agriculture, outlined objectives include achieving “robust and enforceable” sanitary and phytosanitary standards and to curb the abuse of geographical indicators (GI) on food products. The bill also outlines steps that would increase congressional input and bring greater transparency to the public.
NCFC and much of agriculture has joined in the push to see TPA passed in this Congress. In response to the introduction of the bill, NCFC President and CEO Chuck Conner issued a statement emphasizing, “expanding overseas markets by breaking down trade barriers is critical to the continued success of many farmer co-ops and their producer-owners. These co-ops have seen the real benefits that trade adds to the bottom line and bringing pending trade negotiations to a successful conclusion is a top priority. NCFC urges members of the Senate Finance Committee to support the TPA bill when it is taken up in the next week or so and looks forward to the Senate and House moving quickly to pass TPA.”
The Finance Committee is expected to take up the bill next week.
Tax Day Brings Flurry of Activity to Capitol Hill
For most Americans, April 15th traditionally brings long lines at the Post Office and lots of tired jokes about death and taxes. For Washington, both official and unofficial, the day provides an easy hook to debate taxation and related issues.
So it was that the 15th was the deadline set by the Senate Finance Committee Tax Reform Working Groups for stakeholders to provide input as the process of developing a tax reform package begins. NCFC submitted comments to the co-chairs of the group looking at business taxes, Senators John Thune (R-S.D.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.), outlining concerns with several tax reform proposals under discussion. These include the Section 199 deduction for domestic manufacturing, changes to depreciation rules and several proposed changes to accounting methods such as the proposed repeal of LIFO. The letter also emphasized that such changes, even if coupled with a lowered corporate tax rate, would have the perverse effect of increasing the tax burden on co-ops and their member-owners.
NCFC also joined with a coalition of other farm and agriculture groups in submitting comments on tax issues that would impact individual farmers and ranchers. The coalition letter expressed concern with proposals to limit the use of the cash method of accounting and eliminate Section 1031 Like-Kind Exchange Provisions. The letter also urged that Section 179 small business expensing provisions be made permanent.
Across the Capitol, the House took up a number of bills dealing with taxes and reform of the Internal Revenue Code. Most notably, they passed H.R. 1105, the Death Tax Repeal Act of 2015, by a vote of 240-179. The ultimate fate of estate tax repeal is unclear—even if 60 votes could be found to move it forward in the Senate, it appears highly likely that President Obama would veto the measure.
House T&I Committee Approves Bill to Stop WOTUS Rule
On Wednesday, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee held a markup of H.R. 1732, the Regulatory Integrity Protection Act of 2015. Ahead of the session, NCFC had joined with other members of the Waters Advocacy Coalition in urging support for the measure.
The bill would force the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Corps of Engineers to withdraw their proposed rule redefining “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) under the Clean Water Act. The agencies would also be directed to work with state and local officials and other stakeholders to develop a new WOTUS rule that respects congressional intent and decisions made by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Committee voted to favorably report the bill to the House by a vote of 36 to 22.
Upcoming Events:
- Cotton Committee—April 22-23, 2015—Washington, D.C.
- Spring Executive Council Meeting—April 23-24, 2015—Washington, D.C.
- NCFC Washington Conference—June 22-24, 2015—Hyatt Regency Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.
- LTA Subcommittee Chairs-Vice Chairs Meeting—September 23-25, 2015—The Edgewater, Seattle, WA
- Fall Executive Council Meeting—September 30 & October 1, 2015—Washington, DC
- Human Resources Conference—October 22-23—Sheraton Chicago O’Hare
- Government Affairs Meeting—November 11-13—TBD