Press Releases

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA) released the following statement after convening a conference call with Democratic members of the Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to discuss the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA):

“This afternoon, Democrats on the Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee had a productive discussion with Ambassador Lighthizer regarding the entry into force, implementation, and enforcement of the USMCA. Last December, Congress passed the agreement with broad bipartisan support, in large part due to the improvements to the deal House Democrats secured in hard-fought negotiations with USTR. Today, my colleagues and I emphasized to the Ambassador that the USMCA’s new enforcement mechanisms must be more than simply words on a page, particularly with regard to workers’ rights and environmental protection. We also reiterated the importance of the new IP provisions that will help patients more quickly access affordable medicines and vaccines. Given the unprecedented circumstances our hemisphere and the world face at this time, we inquired how the Administration anticipates the COVID-19 pandemic will affect nations’ ability to implement USMCA’s requirements.

“We expect that the high level of engagement that occurred between USTR and House Democrats during the process of negotiating revisions to the USMCA will continue as we move forward with the agreement’s implementation. The Ambassador provided assurances that our communications will remain frequent and thorough. My colleagues and I are deeply invested in the success of the USMCA and the positive impacts it will have on America’s workers, patients, economy, and environment, and we will closely monitor the deal’s implementation and enforcement in the coming months and years.”

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