A Great Week for Nebraska Trade
Trade is critical to rural states such as Nebraska. Producers, manufacturers, and consumers all benefit from sound trade policies which expand access to international markets. One of the primary reasons I joined the Ways and Means Committee, is to seize opportunities to reduce tariffs, remove artificial barriers, and ensure all Nebraskans can benefit from fair, open markets. Fortunately, within the past week, we received great news on two massive trade wins for the United States, and Nebraska in particular.
Nebraska's three largest export markets are Mexico, Canada, and Japan. Combined these three countries make up 54 percent of Nebraska's exports. In 2018, Nebraska exported $1.3 billion worth of beef – the most in the nation – and almost 29 percent of it went to Japan. However, Japanese tariffs on United States agriculture products have prevented producers from maximizing their opportunities in Japan. Because of this, I have long advocated for a bilateral trade agreement with the U.S. and Japan to reduce these barriers.
Seeing opportunity before us, President Trump has made trade a focus in his administration. President Trump, Prime Minister Abe, and their teams have been working tirelessly to strike a deal. On December 4th, the Japanese Diet (Parliament) approved the United States-Japan trade deal. This agreement brings Japanese tariff rates on U.S. agriculture in line with our competitors, relieving a burden for our farmers and producers. The Diet's approval should ensure the trade deal goes into effect by the first of the year. While this initial deal is a win for agriculture, I hope the administration continues to work on a more comprehensive agreement with Japan to address other sectors of our economy.
Closely following the great news with Japan, on December 10th, agreement was reached on the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). USMCA improves upon NAFTA, which was signed more than 25 years ago, and modernizes trade in North America. In addition to providing much needed updates, USMCA will improve provisions relating to innovation and intellectual property, provide much needed certainty for American farmers and ranchers, and would provide more than $68 billion in economic activities.
In addition to ensuring continued opportunities for Nebraska's largest exports, USMCA improves access to Canada for dairy, wheat, poultry, and egg production. I have been a steadfast advocate for completing USMCA, including serving on the congressional delegations to Mexico City and Montreal during the negotiations. After much hard work, this agreement is a great step forward for America, and I look forward to passing USMCA in the House.
Progress in trade benefits the American taxpayer, and we will see the benefits of these two trade deals for years to come. I thank President Trump and his team for their diligent work for the future of our country. So, let us celebrate this great week for trade and what it means for America.