Exclusive / Lawmakers warn Commerce about easing trade penalties

A bipartisan group of lawmakers worry the Trump administration is going easy on foreign companies potentially involved in dumping Chinese and Russian goods in the US.

Reps. John Moolenaar, R-Mich., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., who lead the House China committee, wrote to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick today asking if the department has changed the policy of imposing maximum tariffs on foreign companies that refuse to comply with investigations into imports being dumped, or unfairly subsidized, by a foreign government.

While the lawmakers said their concerns about China are “acute,” they also cited an example of the administration allegedly softening penalties on a company that didn’t cooperate with an investigation into Russian dumping of unwrought palladium.

“Lowering rates despite non-cooperation from foreign competitors sends a dangerous signal to bad actors: refusing to participate in the Department’s investigations may lead to more favorable outcomes than cooperation,” reads the letter, shared first with Semafor.

“Strong enforcement of US trade laws is a cornerstone of protecting American workers, safeguarding industrial capacity, and ensuring fair competition,” the lawmakers wrote. “Any erosion of that enforcement, particularly in cases involving strategic competitors, would have significant economic and national security implications.”

Commerce did not immediately return a request for comment.