12.04.19

Hoeven: Congress Should Approve USMCA Now

Senator Outlines Agriculture Benefits of USMCA, Urges House to Advance Agreement

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven today joined a Senate colloquy urging the House of Representatives to move forward with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) which, according to the International Trade Commission, will increase U.S. agricultural and food exports to Canada and Mexico by $2.2 billion when fully implemented. Hoeven outlined the severe weather challenges facing U.S. agriculture producers and the need to provide them with the certainty of passage of this trade agreement.

“Our farmers and ranchers are facing real challenges back home. Severe weather has destroyed crops or made them impossible to harvest. Unjustified retaliatory tariffs have disrupted markets and driven prices lower. That is why Congress must approve USMCA now. Now, more than ever, farmers and ranchers depend on stability in our trading relationships with Canada and Mexico – our nation’s two largest trading partners,” said Hoeven on the floor of the U.S. Senate.

The senator worked to ensure that the USMCA benefits North Dakota producers by:

  • Eliminating Canada’s Downgrade of U.S. Wheat: Hoeven worked to ensure that USMCA eliminates Canada’s automatic downgrade of imported U.S. wheat to feed grade to help make certain that grading standards and services are non-discriminatory.

Additionally, USMCA:

  • Expands access to the Canadian market for U.S. poultry, eggs and dairy and eliminates Canada’s Class 6 and 7 dairy program.
  • Requires 75 percent of auto content to be produced in North America in order to be exempt from tariffs, up from 62.5 percent.
  • Makes needed modernizations on intellectual property, digital trade and financial services.

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