CPA Statement on Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill

WASHINGTON — The Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) today released the following statement after the House of Representatives passed the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden for signature. “The bipartisan infrastructure bill represents a positive step towards investing in our nation’s future. However, Congress has not yet remedied…

Not All Tariffs Are the Same: A Case to Consider Optimal Tariff Policy

Not All Tariffs Are the Same: A Case to Consider Optimal Tariff Policy   By Amanda Mayoral, CPA Economist   Summary Points: Despite popular misconception, economic theory has long suggested that tariffs can benefit a country, particularly one like the US. The most advantageous tariffs are optimal tariffs. This is because optimal tariffs balance the…

Expert Congressional Testimony Confirms: Congress Must End China’s Exploitation of U.S. Capital Markets, Protect U.S. Investors

WASHINGTON — The Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) today submitted written testimony following a hearing in the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Investor Protection, Entrepreneurship, and Capital Markets titled, “Taking Stock of China, Inc.: Examining Risks to Investors and the U.S. Posed by Foreign Issuers in U.S. Markets.” CPA National Security Advisor Robby Stephany…

Tariff Incidence in the Real World: Why Consumers (Mostly) Didn’t Pay the Steel Tariffs

Summary points: The import price of steel fell in the period following the 2018 imposition of a 25% steel tariff, an indicator that steel tariffs were not passed entirely onto consumers. Steel tariffs did not lead to a proportional rise in consumer prices of steel-intensive goods, such as automobiles. In many instances, firms will internalize…

Worker-Centered Trade Means Reshoring U.S. Industries

In June, U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai gave a speech in which she outlined her vision of worker-centered trade, a popular phrase among Biden administration officials. According to Tai: “Build Back Better starts by growing the economy from the bottom up and the middle out and putting workers at the center of our economic plans…In…

Restarting Tariff Exclusions Undermines Build Back Better, Rewards CCP Recalcitrance

By Charles Benoit, CPA Trade Counsel Regrettably, the Biden Administration announced last week that they’re open to tariff cuts to imports of Made-in-China merchandise. First up are 549 different products, mostly machinery and technology products. But more may be coming. Ambassador Tai stated in her recent speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies…

OECD Tax Agreement Must not Disadvantage U.S. Domestic Companies Over Multinational Competitors

WASHINGTON — The Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) today released a statement regarding closed door negotiations in the Organization for Cooperation and Economic Development (OECD) on how to resolve multinational tax avoidance that plagues the U.S. Treasury and puts U.S. domestic companies at a significant disadvantage to multinational competitors. The negotiations have two separate…