Category: Press Releases and Statements
NFTC Joins In Urging Timely Appointments to the Eximbank
March 8, 2013
The President
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
The undersigned associations view the U.S. Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im), with its mission to create or sustain U.S. jobs, as one of the most important tools we have to promote economic growth through exports. Accordingly, we urge you to move swiftly on nominations for the Ex-Im Bank’s Board of Directors. The bipartisan Board of Directors is instrumental to its day-to-day operation – managing the Bank and approving its transactions.
Ex-Im Bank authorized more than $35 billion in financing in FY 2012, supporting more than 255,000 American jobs. The Bank worked with more than 3,400 U.S. companies, 85 percent of which were small businesses. Ex-Im is a vital tool in leveling the global playing field, helping manufacturers to offset the financing support our foreign competitors receive from their governments, and in securing new customers in emerging markets. With the U.S. economy still growing slowly, it is vital that we maintain the competitiveness of U.S. exporters. The Ex-Im Bank also generates enough fees to offset its costs, contributing the remaining surplus to the U.S. Treasury.
By law, the Bank’s Board of Directors must have a quorum – or three of its five members – to approve transactions. Ex-Im Bank Chairman and President Fred P. Hochberg was confirmed by the Senate on May 14, 2009. His term ended on January 20, 2013, and he is currently leading the Bank under a six-month extension. Director and Vice Chair Wanda Felton and Director Larry Walther are also continuing to serve under similar extensions. The extensions allowed under the Bank’s charter will expire, at the latest, in July. If three of the five positions go unfilled, the Bank’s business will grind to a halt.
Failure to act quickly on nominations for the pending Board vacancies would threaten those hundreds of thousands of American jobs that depend directly or indirectly on Ex-Im Bank’s export financing. Reliable access to export financing is a vital part of being globally competitive, and export financing has taken on renewed importance in today’s unsettled financial environment. Exporters increasingly face difficulties in obtaining credit and working capital, and overseas customers are financially stretched – conferring a decisive advantage on exporters who can provide better financial terms.
If the Bank’s activities are halted, without a quorum to approve transactions, U.S. exporters would lose access to this crucial “lender of last resort.” The playing field would tilt against U.S. companies, and customers may turn to foreign competitors that have support from aggressive foreign export credit agencies. Exports are increasingly critical to manufacturers in the United States, and the latest trade data highlights the continuing challenges in the global marketplace.
U.S. goods exports in 2012 grew by only $66.7 billion, less than half the value of export growth between 2010 and 2011. This 4.9 percent increase in exports is far from the 15 percent rate of increase necessary for the United States to meet the goal of the National Export Initiative and create much-needed new economic opportunities. Disrupting Ex-Im Bank’s transactions would only put up another road block for U.S. exporters.
Ex-Im Bank needs stable, dynamic leadership that will ensure the Bank maintains its track record of continuous improvements, fiscal responsibility and effective export promotion. The undersigned associations respectfully urge you to move swiftly on nominations for the Ex-Im Bank’s Board of Directors. We stand ready to work with you, your administration, and Congress to achieve the goal of doubling America’s exports.
Aerospace Industries Association
Association of Equipment Manufacturers
Coalition for Employment through Exports
Emergency Committee for American Trade
Financial Services Roundtable
General Aviation Manufacturers Association
National Association of Manufacturers
National Foreign Trade Council
National Small Business Association
Nuclear Energy Institute
Small Business Exporters Association
TechAmerica
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
About the NFTC
Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century- The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
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NFTC Names James Wilkinson Vice President for Strategy and Growth
Washington, DC – The National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) today announced that James Wilkinson will join the association as Vice President for Strategy and Growth, effective April 15. Wilkinson has served as Executive Director of the Washington International Trade Association (WITA) since 2003.
“James has done a superb job of growing WITA and its membership over the past nine years, and I am excited that we will now be able to take advantage of his many talents on behalf of the NFTC, particularly as we approach our centennial,” said NFTC President Bill Reinsch. “This is a great fit on many levels, and we look forward to his arrival. Given his extensive background in international trade, we know that James will be an asset as we advocate policies to maximize U.S. economic growth and job creation through increased engagement in the global economy.”
As Vice President for Strategy and Growth, Wilkinson will lead NFTC’s business development efforts, including marketing, communications and membership growth, as well as coordination with the Board of Directors and organizing the NFTC Foundation’s annual World Trade Dinner.
While at WITA, Wilkinson doubled individual membership and the number of corporate sponsors and group memberships. He also launched the Young Trade Professionals and USTR Alumni Association affiliate groups. In February 2012, he was appointed by U.S. Secretary of Commerce John Bryson to the District Export Council (DEC), a public-private sector organization helping small- and medium-sized enterprises in the area advance their export operations.
Prior to joining WITA, Wilkinson managed business development and customer relations for several international educational organizations. Wilkinson is also active in municipal government, serving in his second term as Mayor Pro Tem for the Town of Berwyn Heights, MD. In this capacity, he serves as Head of the Public Works Department, leads the Town’s efforts to build more sidewalks, particularly along bus routes and routes to schools, and serves as Mayor when the Mayor is absent. He has served as a Council Member since May of 2009.
Wilkinson holds a master’s degree in Organizational Leadership from Gonzaga University, and in 2012 earned the prestigious Certified Association Executive (CAE) credential from the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE).
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About the NFTC
Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century- The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
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NFTC Joins With Leading Business Organizations in Sending a Letter to President Obama on Expanding the Information Technology Agreement
U.S. Business Organizations Issue Joint Statement Expressing Deep Concern with New Zealand’s Announcement that it will Proceed with Plain Packaging Legislation
Miller & Chevalier and National Foreign Trade Council Announce Results of the Seventh Annual Tax Policy Forecast Survey
Washington, DC – Miller & Chevalier Chartered and the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) today announced the results of their 2013 Tax Policy Forecast Survey measuring the current perspectives of leading business tax executives on the tax legislative agenda in 2013. The results demonstrate a leading concern that in light of the current political and fiscal environment, Congress will enact revenue offsets to fund other legislative initiatives rather than to make the U.S. tax system more competitive.
Business tax executives continue to believe that fundamental tax reform is necessary, but expressed increased doubt that such reform will be enacted in the near future. Respondents said the lack of activity is attributable to a variety of factors, including the existence of competing legislative priorities, a lack of public agreement, budget constraints and a lack of Administration interest.
“Respondents this year express deep concern and doubt over the future of tax policy in 2013. The focus on revenue offsets and the uncertainty regarding fundamental tax reform presents a very challenging environment for taxpayers this year,” said Miller & Chevalier Member Marc Gerson, former Majority Tax Counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways & Means.
A majority of respondents also believe that an increase in the U.S. taxation of their international operations will be used for revenue, which is a top business concern in 2013.
“Worldwide American companies favor tax reform that will modernize the U.S. corporate tax rate and tax system to bring it in line with the rest of the world and are clearly concerned that their competitive situation will be further jeopardized by new U.S. taxes being imposed on them to offset pending budgetary problems. The focus on raising revenue from the business sector has business leaders worried about the future of tax reform,” said Catherine Schultz, Vice President for Tax Policy at the NFTC.
Survey Highlights
In January 2013, Miller & Chevalier and the NFTC distributed a survey via email to leading business tax executives, including Vice Presidents, Managers and Directors of Tax at a broad cross-section of large U.S.-based and foreign-based multinationals and major trade associations. Some survey highlights include:
- Top two business concerns in 2013: The enactment of revenue offsets without adoption of a competitive tax system and/or competitive tax rates (39 percent of those responding) and changes to the U.S. taxation of international operations (21 percent of the respondents) are the top two concerns of business tax executives in 2013.
- Most impact on tax policy in 2013: A plurality of business tax executives (34 percent) believe that a continued focus on the economy will have the most positive impact on tax policy in 2013,while 56 percent of executives believe that the Administration’s priorities (which will likely include revenue raising) will have the most negative impact on tax policy in 2013.
- International operations: 68 percent of respondents say an increase in the U.S. taxation of international operations is likely to be a revenue source to pay for any Congressional tax initiatives this year, and 47 percent of respondents say such an increase will have a negative impact on their business.
Click here for a full copy of the survey results and analysis, or please contact Laura Miller at (312) 252-4104 or lmiller@greentarget.com or visit www.millerchevalier.com or www.nftc.org.
About Miller & Chevalier
Founded in 1920, Miller & Chevalier is a Washington, D.C. law firm with a global perspective and leading practices in Tax, Employee Benefits (including ERISA), International Law and Business, White Collar and Internal Investigations, Complex Litigation and Government Affairs. For more information on the firm, visit www.millerchevalier.com.
About the National Foreign Trade Council
Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century – The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
CONTACTS:
Marc Gerson, Member, Tax Department, Miller & Chevalier, 202-626-1475
Catherine Schultz, Vice President, Tax Policy, National Foreign Trade Council, 202-452-8160
Laura Miller, Media Relations, Greentarget, 312-252-4104
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NFTC President Delivers Remarks on the Costs of Sanctions, U.S. Humanitarian Trade Policy
Washington, DC –National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) President Bill Reinsch delivered remarks yesterday on the costs of sanctions at a Georgetown University Law Center event themed, “The Evolution of Economic Sanctions: Increasingly Financial, Multilateral, and Robust.” During a panel discussion on “The Legal and Economic Impacts of Financial Sanctions on Targeted Activities and Affected Institutions,” Reinsch shared his views on the ineffectiveness of national, state and local sanctions and U.S. humanitarian trade policy.
Reinsch stated:
“In the case of Iran sanctions, for example, U.S. law and policy permit humanitarian trade – largely agricultural and medical items – pursuant to licenses granted by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) at the Treasury Department. However, Iran’s largest banks are sanctioned by executive order without including a humanitarian exception. In turn, OFAC licenses expressly prohibit direct or indirect involvement of these banks. This has created enormous uncertainty in the exporting community and among banks. Companies that have those licenses find it difficult to obtain financing for their exports because banks find it easier to avoid all transactions with Iran rather than trying to distinguish between the ‘good’ ones and the ‘bad’ ones, even though the former are documented with a government license. The result is that it is virtually impossible to find a bank willing to finance a humanitarian transaction.
“… In our view, state and local sanctions are particularly pernicious for legal, foreign policy, and practical reasons.
“First, courts have generally found them unconstitutional. … There are also practical issues. When sanctions move into new areas, such as requiring state pension funds to divest themselves of stock in companies that do business with sanctioned countries, they create a new category of victims besides companies – retirees – who have generally been slow to identify their stake in these measures.
“State sanctions also create significant new compliance costs for business because of the need to deal with potentially 50 different laws and standards. With divestment sanctions, for example, a company could be in compliance with California law and in violation of New Jersey law at the same time. If it divested to comply with New Jersey law, it could be sued in California.”
About the NFTC
Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century- The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
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Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century- The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
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NFTC Welcomes Introduction of Sugar Reform Bills in House and Senate
Washington, DC – The National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) welcomed the introduction of bipartisan sugar reform legislation in both the House and Senate today. The Sugar Reform Act proposes needed reform of the current protectionist U.S. sugar program, rolling back the most restrictive provisions included in the 2008 farm bill. The NFTC applauds Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Mark Kirk (R-IL), Pat Toomey (R-PA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Rob Portman (R-OH), Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Bob Corker (R-TN), Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN), as well as Representatives Joe Pitts (R-PA), Danny Davis (D-IL), Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) for spearheading sugar reform efforts.
NFTC President Bill Reinsch released the following statement:
“The NFTC commends this bipartisan group of Senators and Representatives for introducing sugar reform legislation in both the House and Senate and championing efforts to reform the U.S. sugar program this year. Outdated sugar policy not only stifles U.S. economic growth and job creation, but is one of the oldest and most protectionist programs mandated by Congress.
“The bills introduced today propose modest reforms, including repealing the additional import restrictions added in the 2008 farm bill and providing USDA with more flexibility in administering the import quota system. All together, these and other provisions of these sugar reform bills could help save consumers and businesses about $3.5 billion a year and protect about 600,000 jobs in sugar-using industries.”
The NFTC is a member of the Coalition for Sugar Reform, an alliance of business, consumer and environmental organizations calling for reform of the U.S. sugar program. In January, the NFTC signed onto a letter sent by the coalition to all new Members of Congress, urging them to support sugar reform legislation.
About the NFTC
Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century- The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
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Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century- The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
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NFTC Welcomes President’s SOTU Remarks on Expanding Trade Partnerships, Immigration Reform
Applauds Launch of U.S.-EU Trade Negotiations
Washington, DC – National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) President Bill Reinsch today released the following statement in response to President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address:
“The NFTC welcomes President Obama’s remarks on enhancing U.S. competitiveness and job creation, specifically through the pursuit of comprehensive trade agreements with nations around the world and immigration reform.
“We applaud the President’s announcement that the United States will continue to work toward completion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement and launch trade negotiations with the European Union.
“While the U.S.-EU talks will not be easy, they are critically important. In the integrated world market we now have, trade is neither optional nor a lagniappe. It is a necessity if we are to remain competitive, and there is no better partner than Europe where we already have longstanding economic relationships and substantial investment already flowing across the Atlantic in both directions.
“Beyond trade, if we are to truly harness the United States’ economic growth potential, the President and Congress must also work together to reform our broken immigration system to ensure America attracts and retains the world’s best and brightest talent. This too will not be easy, but the proposals the President and bipartisan groups of Members of Congress are putting forth are certainly a good start.”
About NFTC
Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century- The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
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Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century- The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
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NFTC Joins Over 100 Associations and Companies in Calling on Congress to Renew GSP
Washington DC – The National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) joined with 138 other leading American companies and associations calling on Congress to immediately renew the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program. The GSP program saves American importers hundreds of millions of dollars by eliminating tariffs on imports from approximately 130 developing countries. However, GSP is set to expire at the end of July and American companies would face $2 million per day in new taxes if Congress fails to renew GSP by August 1.
“GSP is a critically important program that helps U.S. companies of all sizes, but particularly small- and medium-sized businesses, access low-cost inputs they need to manufacture a wide range of exports,” said NFTC Vice President for Regional Trade Initiatives Chuck Dittrich. “The program is central to U.S. export growth and helps support economic growth and American jobs. We urge Congress to renew GSP immediately.”
The Coalition for GSP, of which the NFTC is a member, yesterday released its 2013 GSP Supporter List, which includes 124 companies ranging from small, family-owned businesses to some of the largest corporations in the world, such as General Electric and Home Depot. Fifteen business associations have also joined the GSP Supporter List.
The full list of organizations, which is expected to grow over time, is available here: http://renewgsptoday.com/2013-gsp-supporter-list.
The Coalition’s Renew GSP Today website “Press Resources” page includes the latest facts and figures about the GSP program, Coalition press releases and links for media inquiries. For more information about the Coalition, contact Daniel Anthony from the Coalition for GSP at anthony@tradepartnership.com.
About the NFTC
Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century- The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
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Advancing Global Commerce for Nearly A Century- The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules-based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.
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