On Wednesday, the Coalition for GSP hosted its biggest lobby day yet — by far — to urge Congress to renew GSP this year. Nearly 100 advocates met with 115+ House and Senate offices to share why GSP renewal is so important to their companies and industries, development, and diversifying supply chains.
According to our latest estimates, American companies paid at least $3.2 billion in extra tariffs paid between when GSP lapsed on December 31, 2020 and Wednesday’s lobby day. A timeline created for the meetings shows how costs keep rising despite a stream of bipartisan legislation and letters of support to renew GSP (see below, or download here).
The days’ meetings were followed by a memorable wine and cocktail reception at the Embassy of Argentina, graciously co-hosted by the Ambassadors of Argentina, Brazil, and Thailand. Attended by various GSP embassies, American companies and associations, and U.S. Congressional and Administration officials, it was a strong display the various groups with a stake in GSP renewal. Fun fact explaining the picture below: many Hawaiian leis are actually produced from orchids imported from Thailand under GSP!
While there is so much partisanship in Washington these days, GSP is an issue that transcends these partisan divides. With the limited time left in 2023, Congress should focus on passing legislation like GSP where this is broad bipartisan support.
