Sec. 2. Findings
242 words·~1 min read·
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Congress finds the following: The European Union enacted, and is beginning enforcement of, a carbon border adjustment mechanism that will impact the United States. Other major trading partners of the United States are exploring or developing similar policies, including Australia, Japan, and the United Kingdom. Questions remain about how the European Union and others will calculate United States emissions intensity for covered products and the accuracy of such determinations. Public entities, like the Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory, and various private sector groups have published studies showing the United States comparative emissions intensity advantage in production of manufactured goods like steel and aluminum, as well as raw energy sources like critical minerals, natural gas, and crude oil.
The private sector of the United States is leading in emissions reductions and abides by some of the cleanest and safest standards in the world. There is a need to obtain high-quality and consolidated government data to show America’s comparative emissions advantage in the event of questionable calculations of United States emissions by foreign entities. In stark contrast, China has leveraged human rights abuses and lax environmental performance and enforcement to create a competitive advantage in international trade, undermining United States industrial competitiveness.
Nonmarket economies that do not share common social and economic values with the United States share this general tendency. The United States needs a better understanding of the extent of human rights abuses and how they impact international trade flows.