Rep. Stansbury Joins Labor Caucus Backing Biden-Harris Administration Investigation
Urges Strong Remedies to Support American Workers
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congresswoman Melanie Stansbury (NM-01) signed a letter led by Congressional Labor Caucus Co-Chairs Reps. Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Donald Norcross (D-NJ), Steven Horsford (D-NV), and Mark Pocan (D-WI) and Caucus members Reps. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), Jared Golden (D-ME), Joe Courtney (D-CT), and Val Hoyle (D-OR), supporting the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to protect American workers from China’s unfair practices in the shipbuilding industry.
“I am deeply concerned about the ongoing unfair trade practices employed by China in the shipbuilding industry,” said Rep. Stansbury (NM-01). “These practices not only undermine our domestic shipbuilders but also threaten our national security and economic stability. Which is why I signed a letter with 70 of my colleagues urging the Biden Administration to swiftly conclude its investigation into these practices and to implement remedies that are commensurate to the harms caused by China.
“The shipbuilding sector is vital to our economy, providing thousands of good-paying, union jobs and supporting critical infrastructure. We must level the playing field for those competing against state-subsidized Chinese companies that do not adhere to fair trade policies and principles.
“The time for action is now. We must ensure that our trade policies reflect fairness and equity, protecting American jobs while promoting a robust industry.”
“China’s industry is insulated from market forces, utilizes state-owned enterprises to provide cheap inputs and cut yard production costs, and strengthens the People’s Liberation Army’s Navy with expansive shipbuilding, repair, and maintenance capacities. Meanwhile, U.S. shipyards have been shuttered or forced to compete for a handful of remaining contracts. While the U.S. produces fewer than 10 ocean-going vessels annually, Chinese yards churned out over a thousand,” the members wrote to President Biden.
“To meet the immense challenge of rebuilding U.S. maritime capabilities, we need a robust, highly-trained workforce. Tens of thousands of jobs have been lost as shipyards have closed and experienced workers have been forced out of the industrial base,” the co-chairs added. “We strongly urge you to swiftly conclude this investigation and to implement resolute measures to remedy decades of unfair and discriminatory policies by the CCP that have harmed our members and the economic and national security of the United States. The remedies must be commensurate in scope and magnitude to the large-scale harm caused to U.S. industry over the past several decades.”
On March 12, 2024, five labor unions filed a petition urging USTR to initiate a Section 301 investigation into the acts, policies, and practices of China relating to competition in the maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors. In April, Rep. Courtney led a letter with 37 other Member of Congress in support of the petition, and USTR subsequently announced that it would accept the petition. In May, Caucus Co-Chairs Reps. Dingell and Norcross testified in support of American workers and the domestic shipbuilding industry as part of USTR’s investigation
A full copy of the letter can be found here.
The letter was signed by 70 Members of Congress, including: Reps. Brendan Boyle; Julia Brownley; Nikki Budzinski; André Carson; Troy Carter; Judy Chu; Yvette Clarke; Joe Courtney; Danny Davis; Donald Davis; Rosa DeLauro; Christopher Deluzio; Mark DeSaulnier; Debbie Dingell; Lloyd Doggett; Dwight Evans; Lois Frankel; John Garamendi; Robert Garcia; Jared Golden; Daniel Goldman; Josh Gottheimer; Steven Horsford; Val Hoyle; Jonathan Jackson; Marcy Kaptur; Ro Khanna; Daniel Kildee; Raja Krishnamoorthi; Greg Landsman; Stephen Lynch; Seth Magaziner; Grace Meng; James Moylan; Frank Mrvan; Kevin Mullin; Grace Napolitano; Donald Norcross; Eleanor Norton; Frank Pallone; Chris Pappas; Mary Peltola; Scott Peters; Mark Pocan; Katie Porter; Raul Ruiz; Patrick Ryan; Andrea Salinas; Linda Sánchez; Mary Scanlon; Janice Schakowsky; Adam Schiff; Hillary Scholten; David Scott; Robert Scott; Brad Sherman; Elissa Slotkin; Eric Sorensen; Melanie Stansbury; Haley Stevens; Thomas Suozzi; Eric Swalwell; Shri Thanedar; Dina Titus; Lori Trahan; David Trone; Maxine Waters; Susan Wild; Nikema Williams; Frederica Wilson.
###