Congress Still Working on Miscellaneous Tariff Bill

March 16, 2010

House and Senate aides have confirmed that they are close to finalizing the first “minibus” Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (“MTB”), a process in which the new Senate lobbying disclosure requirements and independent review by the U.S. International Trade Commission became sticking points. Despite these sticking points and a self-imposed ban on earmarks by House Republicans, both House Ways and Means and Senate Finance staff have indicated that Democrats now hope to introduce their first tariff package before Congress leaves for its spring recess on March 26^th.

This package will likely include only certain House extensions of expired suspensions and reductions, Senate extensions of expired suspensions and reductions, and new suspensions and reductions that both committees have already reviewed and cleared.  The remaining new suspensions, technical customs amendments, and liquidation/reliquidation bills would then be consolidated into a second MTB package to be taken up at a later date.  

What remains unclear at the moment is what shape Republican support for any MTB package will take.  On March 11, 2010, the House Republican leadership announced a “total ban” on earmarks, including, tariff-related earmarks. Staff in the Republican Leader’s office has not yet commented on what constitutes a “tariff-related earmark,” or whether previously introduced duty suspensions/reductions will be implicated.

If it is decided that the latter is indeed covered by the ban, Republican House members may withdraw support for bills they introduced by asking the Ways and Means Committee not to include their suspensions/reductions in any proposed MTB package. There is also the possibility that House Republicans could abstain from voting on the package or attempt to vote it down.

To date, Republican leaders in the Senate have not taken a stance regarding earmark reform and have not commented on whether they will join their House counterparts in the ban.