WASHINGTON, USA – Today, chairman John Moolenaar (R-MI) of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party and Congressman Tom Suozzi (D-NY) introduced the Restoring Trade Fairness Act, the first bipartisan bill that would revoke China’s Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR). This comes following president Trump’s new executive order, directing the secretary of commerce and the United States Trade Representative to assess legislative proposals regarding Permanent Normal Trade Relations with the People’s Republic of China.
In 2000, as China prepared to enter the WTO, Congress voted to extend PNTR status to the People’s Republic of China (PRC), hoping that the Chinese Communist Party would liberalize and adopt fair trading practices. Achieving PNTR status meant that the Chinese state-run economy received preferential tariff treatment under US law, opening the door for the mass influx of products made in the communist nation. This gamble failed. In the two decades since, the United States manufacturing industry has been depleted, American firms have had their intellectual property pillaged by CCP economic coercion, and the CCP grew into America’s foremost adversary.
Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Jim Banks (R-IN) introduced companion legislation in the senate today as well.
“The Restoring Trade Fairness Act is a critical step toward ending the unfair economic practices of the Chinese Communist Party that have hurt American workers and weakened our national security. For too long, permanent normal trade relations with China have undermined our manufacturing base, shifted American jobs abroad, and allowed the CCP to exploit our markets while betraying the promise of fair competition. In response, this legislation will safeguard U.S. national security, enhance supply chain resilience, and bring manufacturing jobs back to America and our allies,” said chairman Moolenaar, following the bill’s introduction.
Moolenaar continued: “The bipartisan consensus that both parties recognize the need to reset our economic relationship with China is a big win for our nation and the Select Committee. Building on the tariff measures across three successive administrations, and in alignment with president Trump’s leadership through his new Executive Order, the Restoring Trade Fairness Act takes decisive action. Thank you to Congressman Suozzi, senator Cotton, and senator Banks for co-leading this legislation and for their collaboration to tackle one of the most pressing challenges of our time.”
“This bipartisan bill makes the message clear — the Chinese Communist Party cannot receive preferential tariff treatment. The Chinese Communist Party is engaging in unfair trade practices that devastate the American manufacturing industry’s ability to compete, contribute to the theft of American intellectual property, and allow goods made with forced Uyghur labor in Xinjiang to enter our supply chain,” said Suozzi, a member of the Ways and Means Committee and co-founder and chair of the Bipartisan Uyghur Caucus.
“China’s Permanent Normal Trade Relations status has enriched the Chinese Communist Party while costing the United States millions of jobs. This comprehensive repeal of China’s PNTR status and reform of the US-China trade relationship will protect American workers, enhance our national security, and end the Chinese Communists’ leverage over our economy,” said senator Cotton.
Read the Restoring Trade Fairness Act HERE.
Background
Bipartisan consensus on tariff measures across the last three presidential administrations has effectively already revoked China’s PNTR status. As a result, the Select Committee voted nearly unanimously in 2023 to recommend revoking China’s PNTR status in statute. The Restoring Trade Fairness Act achieves this bipartisan goal and codifies a series of tariffs to push back against the CCP’s state-run economic aggression. The bill provides American businesses a clear structure and strategy to compete against CCP-aligned companies, provides assurances in the case of Chinese retaliation, and rectifies the jobs-killing mistake of granting Communist China privileged access to the American market.
The recent United States International Trade Commission (ITC) report confirms that Section 301 tariffs on products from the PRC have not contributed meaningfully to inflation. Instead, these tariffs encouraged a shift in supply chains, reducing US reliance on PRC imports in key sectors like electronics, automotive parts, and apparel. For every 1 percent increase in tariffs, imports from the PRC declined by about 2 percent, as US importers diversified their manufacturing. Ultimately, the report highlights that the tariffs achieved a reduction in PRC dependence without causing significant price increases for US consumers.
How the Bill works
- The bill would end PNTR for China. There would be no annual Congressional vote for recertification. It would codify tariffs in statute and create a new tariff column for China.
- The new column would create a minimum 35 percent ad valorem (in proportion to the estimated value of the goods or transaction) tariff for non-strategic goods and a minimum 100 percent ad valorem tariff for all strategic goods.
- Phase-in period: The new tariff column rates would be phased-in over five years with 10 percent of the tariff increase implemented in year one, 25 percent of the increase implemented in year two, 50 percent of the increase implemented in year four, and 100 percent of the increase implemented in year five.
- Strategic Goods: Strategic goods are listed in the bill by HS code. They are based on the Biden administration’s Advanced Technology Product List and China’s Made in China 2025 plan.
- The bill would end De Minimis treatment for covered nations (including China) and require customs brokers for other de minimis shipments.
- It would provide tariff revenue to US farmers and manufacturers injured by possible Chinese retaliation. Additional revenue would be used to purchase munitions vital to deterring CCP aggression in the Pacific.
What they are saying
“The trade relationship between the United States and China is anything but ‘normal.’ For nearly 25 years, the US government has pursued ever greater engagement with the PRC in service of the false hope of an open and democratic China. Instead, the CCP has maintained its state-directed, mercantilist economy while America has lost thousands of factories, millions of jobs, trillions in assets, and increasingly, its ability to innovate. Chairman Moolenar’s bill, which ends ‘normal’ trade relations with China, recognizes the gravity and urgency of this situation and will put the United States on track to restore balance, end its reliance on China, and rebuild a more resilient economy,” said Oren Cass, Founder and chief economist of American Compass.
“Granting China MFN status was a mistake, and we applaud the introduction of this legislation to remedy it,” said Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) chairman Zach Mottl. “China has exploited this status to fuel its military buildup, erode US industrial capacity, and fund other adversaries including Russia, China, and North Korea. Strengthening America’s domestic industrial capacity is paramount to growing the economy, creating good-paying jobs, and safeguarding our nation’s future. Every sector of domestic production—whether it’s manufacturing, agriculture, or energy—plays a critical role in bolstering US economic resilience and national security. Congress’s focus on revoking China’s MFN status is a necessary step to ensure America’s prosperity and independence.”
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