America First Trade Policy Targets Deficits and Unfair Practices
Published Date: 1/30/2025
Presidential Document
Summary
The America First Trade Policy puts American workers, businesses, and national security front and center by tackling unfair trade and big trade deficits. It calls for new investigations and smart actions like possible tariffs and a new External Revenue Service to collect trade money. These changes aim to boost U.S. industries and protect the economy starting now, with big impacts on how America trades with the world.
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Analyzed Economic Effects
7 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 1 costs, 6 mixed.
Potential Additional China Tariffs or Measures
The U.S. Trade Representative and Commerce are ordered to review U.S.-China agreements and the May 14, 2024 Section 301 four-year review and to recommend actions, up to imposing tariffs or other measures, to address unfair practices and supply-chain circumvention. Recommendations could include tariff modifications under 19 U.S.C. 2411.
Possible New Global Supplemental Tariffs
The Secretary of Commerce is ordered to investigate U.S. trade deficits and recommend measures, such as a global supplemental tariff, to remedy large and persistent goods trade deficits. This could lead to recommendations to impose new tariffs that change import costs for businesses and prices for consumers.
Study to Create an External Revenue Service
The Secretary of the Treasury must investigate the feasibility of designing and implementing an External Revenue Service (ERS) to collect tariffs, duties, and other foreign trade-related revenues. This could lead to a new federal collection body affecting how importers remit duties and how trade revenues are administered.
Review of $800 De Minimis Duty Exemption
Treasury, Commerce, Homeland Security, and trade advisers must assess revenue loss and risks from the current $800 or less duty-free de minimis exemption and recommend modifications to protect revenue and public health. The review explicitly targets the $800 threshold under section 1321 of title 19, U.S. Code.
USMCA Review Ahead of July 2026
The United States Trade Representative is directed to start public consultation under 19 U.S.C. 4611(b) and to assess the USMCA's impact on American workers, farmers, ranchers, service providers, and businesses in preparation for the July 2026 review. The USTR will recommend whether and how the U.S. should participate.
Review of Antidumping & Countervailing Duty Rules
The Secretary of Commerce shall review application of antidumping and countervailing duty (AD/CVD) laws—covering topics like transnational subsidies, cost adjustments, affiliations, 'zeroing,' and verification procedures—and consider modifications to induce compliance by foreign respondents and governments.
Export Controls and Connected Tech Review
The Secretary of State and Secretary of Commerce must review the export control system and recommend modifications to protect technological advantages, close loopholes that enable transfer of strategic goods and tech, and assess export-control enforcement. Commerce will also review rulemaking on connected vehicles to consider expanded controls for ICTS transactions.
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