Sep142016
Posted at 1:56 PM
Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker attended the final meeting of the Obama Administration’s President’s Export Council. Bringing together leaders in government, business, labor, and agriculture, the PEC has served as the principal national advisory committee on international trade and meets regularly to discuss new recommendations for resolving trade-related challenges among the business, industrial, agricultural, labor and government sectors.
In its final meeting with Secretary Pritzker, the PEC adopted key recommendations that emphasize the immediate need to work with Congress to approve the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement and secure a quorum on the board of the Export-Import Bank.
In a letter to President Obama on behalf of the Council, PEC Chair and Chairman and CEO of Xerox Corporation Ursula Burns stated that the private sector members of the PEC believe that the “single most important step the United States Government can take to promote increased U.S. exports and the continued recovery and growth of the U.S. economy is to secure passage of TPP this year.”
Citing increased market access abroad, comprehensive tariff elimination, enhanced IP protections, and strengthened labor and environmental protections, the PEC noted that TPP represents an important symbol of American commitment and leadership in the Asia Pacific, promoting geopolitical stability and offering positive direction for international relations.
In her remarks to the Council, Secretary Pritzker affirmed the Department of Commerce’s commitment to securing approval of the TPP, noting that it provides an opportunity to secure America’s influence in the Asia-Pacific, the fastest growing region in the world, and ensure U.S. businesses can compete on a level playing field.
In praising PEC members for their vocal support for TPP as it nears the finish line, Secretary Pritzker noted that with their help, the Trans-Pacific Partnership will be the crowning achievement of this Administration’s trade agenda.
Secretary Pritzker closed by thanking Council members for their work to strengthen the American economy and their pivotal role in supporting the Obama administration’s accomplishments in international trade including the passage of Trade Promotion Authority and Trade Adjustment Assistance, creating a more transparent and efficient export control system, finalizing a new trade agreement with Korea, Colombia and Panama, and creating the 2016 National Export Strategy, which is set to publish later this month.