The Motor and Equipment Manufacturers Association (MEMA) recently announced its support of the 39 Congress members who wrote Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross last week to express concern over the Section 232 aluminum and steel tariffs.
The product exclusion process is moving too slowly, the lawmakers wrote, creating a backlog of requests and placing a burden on manufacturers. Changes need to be made to improve the process and provide relief for small businesses, they continued.
More than 7,700 comments and applications for product exclusions have been filed with the Department of Commerce, but only 1,701 has been posted as of May 4. Less than a third have been processed and posted on the docket.
“The sheer volume of submissions requesting product exclusions gives us reason for concern,” Bill Long, MEMA executive vice president of government affairs, said. “This apparent backlog creates uncertainty for our members, which puts businesses – and jobs—at risk. If you are importing steel from any country that is not exempted, you are paying a tariff now, even if you have filed for an exclusion. That could mean tying up millions of dollars that a business would rather invest in facilities and people.”
The members of Congress submitted 10 solutions to the application process, including allowing trade associations to apply for exclusions for an industry, taking measures to protect sensitive information and trade secrets, providing timely information to companies requesting exclusions, and regularly reviewing the impact of tariffs on the economy and downstream users.