The Window & Door Manufacturers Association filed coalition comments with the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) as part of its statutory four-year review of the China-related Section 301 tariffs. The Section 301 tariffs were first imposed over four years ago for the stated purpose of obtaining the "elimination of China's harmful acts, policies and practices" as it relates to forced technology transfer and the theft of intellectual property, but the purpose of the tariffs morphed as the trade war escalated unnecessarily.
WDMA's take on the tariffs
Since April 2018, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has assessed more than $165 billion in Section 301 tariffs on American companies who import products from China. The WDMA feels that these taxes create tremendous uncertainty, increase the cost of doing business in the United States, and place a financial burden on American businesses—negatively impacting their ability to invest in their companies, hire more American workers, innovate new technologies and remain competitive globally. For many companies, they feel the tariffs are a primary impediment to growing their businesses in the U.S. and are resulting in increased prices for goods and have had a negative impact across the U.S. economy.
The WDMA has called for an immediate end to the Section 301 tariffs on products imported from China. They feel that these tariffs have had a disproportionate economic impact on American companies, consumers and workers across the U.S. economy and urge the U.S. Administration to abandon this policy by rolling back the tariffs and pursuing a new and more effective strategy.
