September 13, 2024

Arlington, Va.— NEMA Managing Director of Global Policy Fred Fischer today issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Trade Representative’s (USTR) announcement implementing new Section 301 Tariffs: 

“Electrical manufacturers are meeting growing demand for clean energy goods by reshoring, new-shoring, near-shoring, and friend-shoring critical supply chains. NEMA members have invested more than $12 billion to expand manufacturing of clean energy and advanced technology goods in the United States across the grid, industrial, built environment, and mobility sectors.

“NEMA supports government policies that encourage greater supply chain resiliency as the electroindustry proactively diversifies its supply chains and lessens its reliance on China as a source of imports. As a result, China’s share of U.S. electroindustry imports has decreased substantially, falling from 28.2 percent in 2018 to 17.9 percent in 2023.

“However, these tariff hikes come at a critical time when domestic manufacturers are working to prioritize and accelerate the energy transition while balancing ongoing global supply chain challenges that hinder competitiveness. USTR’s announced tariff increases will disproportionately impact the electrical industry by increasing assessed Section 301 duties on electroindustry goods from $1.3 billion in 2023 to $4.0 billion in 2026.

“While we appreciate that USTR took additional time to review the 1,100 public comments it received on its proposed tariff process, we continue to urge the Administration and Congress to request a transparent and comprehensive investigation of the economy-wide effects of the Section 301 duties, including the impact on downstream industries, U.S. investments, U.S. competitiveness, U.S. exports and imports, and the long-term impacts on the U.S. economy.

“To ensure that the Section 301 tariff increases have a positive impact and advance the Administration’s goals, USTR should also adopt reasonable implementation flexibilities to ‘rates and dates’ based on empirical data, market realities, and alignment with changing government policies and priorities.

“International trade is critically important to strengthening the U.S. electroindustry and maintaining the competitiveness of domestic manufacturers that are essential to modernizing critical U.S. infrastructure and accelerating the transition to a clean energy economy.”