Newsletter: Trade Done Right

Statement

Our home here in California is the Salad Bowl of the World. To feed the world and strengthen our local economy, our growers need access to markets both here and abroad. More sales abroad create more jobs here at home. Trade is good for the Central Coast but it has to be trade done right.

Recently Congress voted to give Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), more commonly referred to as "fast-track" authority, to President Obama. This was not a trade bill itself but instead TPA is a process that the White House and Congress will use to write new trade pacts with foreign countries. This was a tough vote but I ultimately supported the legislation because it will allow us to negotiate strong trade deals.

Under TPA, Congress outlined a list of standards that have to be met by any country wishing to trade with the United States. This TPA sets the strongest standards in history on human rights, environmental protections and labor conditions. These are not sidebar agreements like in past trade deals but instead must be front and center in any deal. They are a floor, not a ceiling, allowing the President to push for even stronger provisions as he negotiates.

Once a deal has been reached, the entire agreement is made public and presented to Congress for review. We will then spend the next 60 days gathering public input, holding hearings and debating the merits of the deal. After that, both the House and the Senate hold an up or down vote on to the trade agreement.

So why is TPA important?

Right now, the White House is negotiating several trade deals with foreign countries. This includes the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) which is a trade deal with 12 other countries in South America, Asia, Australia and both Mexico and Canada here in North America. There is a separate deal being negotiated with European countries called the Transatlantic Trade Investment Partnership (TTIP). These two deals will determine how trade is handled with the majority of our partners around the world.

The Central Coast is connected to that international community. We are the home of the Defense Language Institute, the Naval Postgraduate School and many other world renowned colleges and universities. Our local businesses rely on access to new markets around the globe to compete so it's important both of these trade deals are done right.

It's also important to the people in the countries we trade with to get these deals right. If we want to improve human rights conditions around the world, protect the environment and help build better lives for workers around the world then trade gives us the opportunity to push for those stronger standards.

This is why I am watching these trade negotiations very closely. When the President brings TPP and TTIP to Congress for a vote, I expect them to be the best trade deals ever negotiated. To win my support, the agreements must boost our local economy. They must not only improve the lives of folks here on the Central Coast and around the United States, but they most also improve the lives of everyone around the globe. If we engage in trade the right way, we can change the world.

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