New York, N.Y., March 22, 2013 – Industry groups are pressing for action on pending Customs re-authorization legislation, urging lawmakers not to let differences over trade remedies upend progress on the long-awaited bill.

The United States Council for International Business (USCIB) and several other industry associations sent a joint letter today to leaders of key committees in the House and Senate, noting their “deep concern” over the state of the “much-needed” bill.

The organizations said they are concerned that differences over a provision on enforcement of anti-dumping and countervailing duties could impede progress on the broader bill. They called on Congress to deal with this issue separately, or reach a compromise that would allow the Customs bill to move forward this year.

“We would hate to see any disagreement over trade remedies detract from the common ground struck in the other 98 percent of the bill,” said Nasim Deylami, USCIB’s manager of customs and trade facilitation. “We are hopeful that the parties will reach a compromise in the interest of achieving a Customs re-authorization bill this year. Another option would be to remove the trade remedy provisions from the legislation and address them separately, allowing the remainder of the bill with bipartisan support to move forward as quickly as possible.”

Earlier this month USCIB endorsed legislation in the House and Senate that would raise the minimum value (the “de minimis” value) at which customs duties are imposed on imported goods, calling the move a boon to companies both large and small. The house drafts of the Customs reauthorization bill already include identical provisions increasing the de minimis value to $800,

About USCIB:

USCIB promotes open markets, competitiveness and innovation, sustainable development and corporate responsibility, supported by international engagement and regulatory coherence.  Its members include U.S.-based global companies and professional services firms from every sector of our economy, with operations in every region of the world.  With a unique global network encompassing leading international business organizations, USCIB provides business views to policy makers and regulatory authorities worldwide, and works to facilitate international trade and investment.  More information is available at www.uscib.org.

Contact:

Jonathan Huneke
VP communications
(212) 703-5043
jhuneke@uscib.org

More on USCIB’s Customs and Trade Facilitation Committee

More on USCIB’s Trade and Investment Committee

New York, N.Y., March 1, 2013 – Robert J. Mulligan has been named to head up policy advocacy for the United States Council for International Business (USCIB). Previously the head of USCIB’s Washington, D.C. office, he succeeds Ronnie Goldberg, who is retiring following more than two decades leading USCIB’s policy and program department.

As senior vice president for policy and government affairs, Mulligan will oversee USCIB’s wide-ranging activities on international trade, investment, economic and regulatory matters. He will supervise USCIB’s team of policy professionals, whose expertise covers a host of issues affecting American companies engaged in business around the world, and will coordinate input to the three international business organizations of which USCIB serves as the American affiliate.

“We are fortunate to be able to tap Rob Mulligan’s proven policy expertise, as well as his diplomatic and management skills,” said USCIB President and CEO Peter M. Robinson. “Over the past two years, Rob has not only visibly strengthened the Washington office but has demonstrated his ability to develop policy excellence across the organization.”

Robinson continued: “It is essential that the global companies USCIB represents be able to reach out to governments and international organizations with a positive message of what business can do to promote growth and jobs, and meet larger societal goals. Rob is well positioned to make that happen.”

Mulligan came to USCIB from TechAmerica, the largest U.S. high-tech trade association, where he was senior vice president, international. He previously served as assistant vice president for international external affairs for The Chubb Corporation, and as executive director of the Central Europe Institute, a Prague-based business training organization. Mulligan has also lobbied on health issues for the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, worked for the U.S. Department of Commerce, and began his career as an attorney with the firm of Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease in Columbus, Ohio. He has an MBA from the Solvay Business School at the Université Libre de Bruxelles, a J.D. from the Ohio State University College of Law and a B.A. in history from Miami University.

Goldberg will serve as senior counsel to USCIB, Robinson said, while she completes her current terms as a member the International Labor Organization’s governing body and as chair of the employment committee at BIAC, the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD.

“It’s hard to put into words what a pleasure and honor it has been to work alongside Ronnie all these years,” he said. “She has been a consummate policy professional, demonstrating an incisive intellect and outstanding diplomatic skills. She has also been an incubator of talent, bringing and mentoring many top-notch professionals to USCIB’s policy team over the years.”

About USCIB:
USCIB promotes open markets, competitiveness and innovation, sustainable development and corporate responsibility, supported by international engagement and regulatory coherence.  Its members include U.S.-based global companies and professional services firms from every sector of our economy, with operations in every region of the world. With a unique global network encompassing the International Chamber of Commerce, the International Organization of Employers and the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD, USCIB provides business views to policy makers and regulatory authorities worldwide, and works to facilitate international trade and investment. More at www.uscib.org.

Contact:
Jonathan Huneke, USCIB
+1 212.703.5043, jhuneke@uscib.org

New York, N.Y., February 13, 2013 – The United States Council for International Business (USCIB) welcomed the announcement by President Obama and European Union leaders that the United States and the EU will soon launch negotiations toward a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

“We applaud this move, which has the potential to further expand and reinforce the world’s largest two-way commercial relationship, and solidify our historic strong ties with Europe,” said USCIB President Peter M. Robinson. “We urge negotiators to strive for a high-standards, 21st-century trade and investment agreement.”

In his State of the Union Address last night, Obama said the U.S. “will launch talks on a comprehensive Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union – because trade that is free and fair across the Atlantic supports millions of good-paying American jobs.” The call followed the release of a report by a joint U.S.-EU High Level Working Group outlining the significant benefits of a transatlantic pact for growth and jobs in both the United States and Europe. The U.S. and the EU together account for almost half the world’s GDP and 30 percent of world trade.

USCIB is especially pleased that the High-Level Working Group’s report identified several new trade and investment issues as priorities for action in a transatlantic agreement. These include leveling the playing field with respect to state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and forced-localization measures that can distort trade and investment. Robinson said USCIB “will work with both the U.S. and EU on a broad range of areas where we can bring substantive expertise, especially investment, environment, labor and customs, and also addressing anti-competitive policies such as SOEs and localization barriers.” This will include working as part of the steering group of the Business Coalition for Transatlantic Trade.

Robinson acknowledged that negotiations would not be easy. “There are a broad range of regulatory issues to address in a comprehensive U.S.-EU trade and investment agreement,” he said. “We must aim high, striving to use this historic opportunity to modernize existing regulation affecting trade and investment, while creating new and better rules that will set a global example for other countries.

“In the end, a transatlantic agreement must reflect the fact that cross-border trade and investment are closely intertwined and mutually supportive. This is why we need a comprehensive, high-standards agreement.”

Last November, USCIB submitted a statement on promoting regulatory compatibility between the U.S. and EU, outlining areas where further regulatory coherence and cooperation is needed to deepen and enhance the transatlantic economic relationship.

About USCIB:

USCIB promotes open markets, competitiveness and innovation, sustainable development and corporate responsibility, supported by international engagement and regulatory coherence. Its members include U.S.-based global companies and professional services firms from every sector of our economy, with operations in every region of the world. With a unique global network encompassing leading international business organizations, USCIB provides business views to policy makers and regulatory authorities worldwide, and works to facilitate international trade and investment. More at www.uscib.org.

Contact:

Jonathan Huneke, USCIB
+1 212.703.5043, jhuneke@uscib.org

More on USCIB’s Trade and Investment Committee

More on USCIB’s European Union Committee

We are saddened to announce that Abraham Katz, USCIB’s president emeritus, passed away February 5 in New York, at age 86, following a short illness. Katz was an accomplished diplomat with a long career in the U.S. Foreign Service when he joined USCIB in 1984 as president, a post he held until his retirement in 1999.

“Abe Katz left an indelible mark on USCIB,” said USCIB President and CEO Peter M. Robinson. “With a keen grasp of trade and investment policy, and economic statecraft more broadly, he reinforced and expanded USCIB’s advocacy for open markets. In addition, he presided over an expansion of USCIB’s policy work into new areas, including environment and e-commerce, and the greater professionalization of our policy staff.”

In 1998, USCIB recognized Katz’s 14-year tenure by presenting him with the organization’s International Leadership Award.

Katz played a leading role in USCIB’s affiliated global business organizations. He was an active supporter of the International Chamber of Commerce and the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD, as well as a long-serving member of the Employers Group of the ILO Governing Body. Even after he retired from USCIB, he remained closely engaged in our work and that of our global business network, culminating in his service as president of the International Organization of Employers from 2006 to 2008.

Under Katz’s leadership, USCIB contributed strong business input to a number of important achievements in international trade and economic policy, including the conclusion of the WTO’s Uruguay Round, the North American Free Trade Agreement, the OECD anti-bribery convention and the ILO’s Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.

In a 34-year diplomatic career largely devoted to economic affairs and promotion of American business interests, Katz served as economic counselor in the Moscow embassy in the 1960s, and in Paris first as U.S. deputy chief of mission to the OECD, and then as U.S. representative to the OECD, a post that carried ambassadorial rank. He also served as assistant secretary of commerce for international economic policy.

“Those of us who had the opportunity to work with Abe appreciated his intellectual leadership, mastery of the trade and investment policy field, constant challenging of assumptions, personal support, and commitment to the organization,” stated USCIB’s Robinson.

Many words of admiration have come in to USCIB following Katz’s death. “He was as fair and open in his professional relations, including to those sitting on the other side of the table, as he was formidable in his knowledge and mastery of complex issues,” according to ILO Director General Guy Ryder.

“Abe Katz was a wise and effective voice for international trade during a time of unprecedented growth in our history,” said Richard D. McCormick, former CEO of U S West, Inc. and former chairman of USCIB.

“Abe distinguished himself in two careers,” stated Thomas Niles, former U.S. assistant secretary of state, who succeeded Katz as president of USCIB and currently serves as a USCIB vice chair. “A generation of Foreign Service officers-ud-736-UD-736, of whom I was one, benefited enormously from his mentoring and guidance.”

USCIB extends its deep condolences to Katz’s family, including his wife Marion. Funeral services are planned for February 8 at Park Avenue Synagogue in New York City. Donations in memory of Abraham Katz may be made to the UJA-Federation of New York by clicking here.