Americans for Free Trade Applauds Introduction of Bipartisan Legislation to Create a Tariff Exclusion Process for Tariffs on $200 Billion in Goods

(WASHINGTON) – Americans for Free Trade, a coalition of business organizations from every sector of the American economy, today released the following statement on introduction of the Import Tax Relief Act. The bipartisan bill would provide American businesses with much-needed relief by providing an exclusion process for recent tariffs on $200 billion in goods.

“Tariffs are taxes, and Americans are footing the bill for the $200 billion in goods currently being taxed without an exclusion process. This bill provides much-needed tax relief for American manufacturers, retailers, and businesses of all sizes.

“We applaud Senators Lankford and Coons and Reps. Kind and Walorski for stepping up to defend hardworking Americans who are paying these tariffs without any recourse. While our coalition’s primary objective is the elimination of these tariffs entirely, delivering relief for American businesses that can’t adjust their supply chains or are being faced with the need to increase prices on everyday products is a welcome step forward.

“While negotiations between the U.S. and China continue, our hope is that members of Congress from both sides of the aisle will join this effort to provide tax relief to Americans burdened by a trade war that is beyond their control. They need all the relief they can get.”

BACKGROUND: For more on the price Americans are paying for import tariffs nationally and state by state visit www.tariffshurt.com where you will find a ticker calculating the total cost of tariffs for Americans, monthly tariff data, and state by state fact sheets. You can also find a searchable database of over 500 stories of Americans who have been hurt by tariffs. According to our own monthly data, American families have already paid nearly $18 million in import taxes due to the trade war and pay another $1,046 every second.

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