The map below shows the overall GSP imports and savings by state from January to August.

Select artisans in India working with GSP importer WorldFinds

While we generally focus on the benefits to U.S. companies of the GSP program, it is important to remember that sourcing from GSP countries has a positive impact on the lives of workers and their families in developing countries. Sometimes, the benefits to poor workers come simply from having a job that otherwise would not exist without the additional U.S. demand created by GSP. Often times, though, U.S. companies importing under GSP choose to go above and beyond in terms of promoting development.

For example, Preferred Brands International in Stamford, Connecticut imports ready-to-eat food products from India. The company cares about more than just increasing sales of its Tasty Bite brand foods: it uses its 23-acre farm in India as a demonstration location to teach best practices in organic and sustainable farming and has a number of community initiatives such as a scholarship fund for factory workers’ children.

Similarly, Nina Designs in Emeryville, California imports fair trade jewelry from multiple GSP countries. This small business has funded $115,000 in microloans to more more than 150 women artisans in 20 developing countries, most of which are GSP beneficiaries. One of the company’s microloan partners is Novica (also on the GSP Supporter List), which has sent more than $68 million to artisans around the world. Nina Designs’ commitment to employees is simply inspirational.

The examples of the companies above run counter to what nearly all trade critics think about imports from lower-wage countries. While GSP and programs like it help make such development possible, they are not guaranteed. For example, WorldFinds in Westmont, Illinois paid $6,000 in extra taxes in the first month after GSP expired in 2013. In the words of founder Kelly Weinberger:

“These tariffs are paralyzing us as a small fair trade business with limited resources and an already tight clash flow. Suddenly a huge amount of money needs to be reallocated to pay tariffs instead of being able to order more product from our low-income artisan groups.”

So while GSP benefits help economic development both at home and abroad (such as WorldFinds artisans pictured above), GSP expiration can quickly reverse those gains. That is just one more reason that Congress must pass legislation to renew GSP early next year to prevent another expiration when its authorization expires on December 31, 2017.

This post is part of the 5th Annual “Imports Work for America Week.“ For more information visit the Imports Work website.

But instead of talking about how GSP reduces prices for the American families in the abstract, we thought we’d show you some ways the Coalition’s own Dan Anthony uses GSP products every day. For example, here’s a picture of his dinner from last night:

Like almost every night, the meal was served on GSP-eligible dinnerware from Indonesia. The plate and bowl are part of a set for which GSP eliminates import taxes of 8 percent!  And it’s not just the plates: the wine is from South Africa and also eligible for duty-free treatment because of GSP.

At meal time, our four-legged family members may also benefit from GSP. Every night before eating, Duchess takes a moment to appreciate the fact that GSP eliminated the 2 percent tariff on her stainless steel dog bowl from India:

“Thanks Congress! I can almost taste the GSP savings!” – Duchess

While they actually live far away, we keep our family members close in these wooden picture frames from Thailand, whose import taxes are reduced by 3.9 percent because of GSP:

These are just some of the items we could identify quickly.  Counter tops, bathroom sinks and toilets, wooden doors – all of these products found in the home are top imports under GSP.  Unfortunately, no “Made in…” labels were present, so Dan couldn’t confirm any of those items.

Of course, GSP is not the reason these items were purchased (and Dan’s background clearly is not photography). But that’s one beauty of the GSP program for American families: they benefit from lower costs resulting from GSP even if they’ve never heard of it!

American families can use those GSP savings to buy other things, go out to dinner (like Dan and his wife may do tonight), or otherwise raise their standard of living, as highlighted in the new “Imports Work for America” report.  All they need is for Congress to renew GSP before July 31 so those savings will continue.

This post is part of the 2013 Imports Work for America Week initiative, an effort by a number of organizations and individuals in the trade policy community to talk about the benefits of imports for the U.S. economy.  You can see our previous post here or visit the Imports Work website here.

So it’s good news for American families when another U.S. government trade program exists to save them from paying these taxes. The Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) is such a trade program, eliminating tariffs imposed on certain products imported from about 130 developing countries around the world.  GSP was created in the 1970s as part of an international effort to promote development through “trade, not aid.”  Yet many of the benefits from the GSP program go straight to the wallet of American families.  Last year, more than $5.5 billion in consumer goods entered the United States duty free under GSP.

And as a result, American families saved millions: $52 million for jewelry, $35 million for tires, $10 million on sugar, and $8 million each for rugs, candies, and fruits and nuts.  While most families won’t think about GSP (or any U.S. trade program) while shopping for that new set of tires, rug, or jar of pickles, the program saves them real money.

This post is part of the Imports Work for America Week initiative, an effort by a number of organizations and individuals in the trade policy community to start talking about the benefits of imports for the U.S. economy.  You can see our earlier blog post about the initiative here or visit the Imports Work website here.

So how does a program aimed at increasing production in poor countries abroad create American jobs?  It turns out that most of the imports that benefit from duty-free GSP treatment are raw materials, components, parts, and machinery used by U.S. manufacturers in their American production facilities. Although the GSP program benefits only a small slice of the U.S. import pie, American companies used it to save more than $700 million in import taxes last year.  Lower prices for these inputs reduce production costs and help keep American manufacturers competitive – and thus able to hire American workers.  Furthermore, someone needs to both move the goods around the country and then sell the final product.  In fact, a study for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce estimated that moving “GSP imports from the docks to the retail shelves” alone supported 82,000 jobs – a figure that did not count any jobs at companies using the program!

GSP clearly helps American workers when in effect, but has been plagued by short-term renewals and even expirations in the recent past, including a 10-month expiration from January to November 2011.  That expiration period, during which importers had to pay tariffs, hit American workers hard. These unforeseen cost increases forced manufacturers such as Mullican Flooring and Besa Lighting to lay off workers.

So the next time someone says that imports cost U.S. jobs, remember all the workers using GSP to produce something new, the people responsible for moving the goods around country (both the direct GSP imports and the products using GSP components), and finally those selling the finished products.  You’ll see that even a relatively small import program can have a large, positive impact for American workers.

This post is part of the Imports Work for America Week initiative, an effort by a number of organizations and individuals in the trade policy community to start talking about the benefits of imports for the U.S. economy.  You can see our earlier blog post about the initiative here or visit the Imports Work website here.