U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office

Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800

Fax: (202) 512–2104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402–0001

81–695PDF 2013

EXPORT PROMOTION REFORM ACT AND STATE

TRADE COORDINATION ACT

MARKUP

BEFORE THE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON TERRORISM, 

NONPROLIFERATION, AND TRADE

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH CONGRESS

FIRST SESSION

ON

H.R. 1409 and H.R. 1926

JUNE 26, 2013

Serial No. 113–29

Printed for the use of the Committee on Foreign Affairs

(

Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.foreignaffairs.house.gov/ or

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/

(II)

COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS 

EDWARD R. ROYCE, California, Chairman 

CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey 

ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, Florida 

DANA ROHRABACHER, California 

STEVE CHABOT, Ohio 

JOE WILSON, South Carolina 

MICHAEL T. MCCAUL, Texas 

TED POE, Texas 

MATT SALMON, Arizona 

TOM MARINO, Pennsylvania 

JEFF DUNCAN, South Carolina 

ADAM KINZINGER, Illinois 

MO BROOKS, Alabama 

TOM COTTON, Arkansas 

PAUL COOK, California 

GEORGE HOLDING, North Carolina 

RANDY K. WEBER SR., Texas 

SCOTT PERRY, Pennsylvania 

STEVE STOCKMAN, Texas 

RON DESANTIS, Florida 

TREY RADEL, Florida 

DOUG COLLINS, Georgia 

MARK MEADOWS, North Carolina 

TED S. YOHO, Florida 

LUKE MESSER, Indiana 

ELIOT L. ENGEL, New York 

ENI F.H. FALEOMAVAEGA, American 

Samoa 

BRAD SHERMAN, California 

GREGORY W. MEEKS, New York 

ALBIO SIRES, New Jersey 

GERALD E. CONNOLLY, Virginia 

THEODORE E. DEUTCH, Florida 

BRIAN HIGGINS, New York 

KAREN BASS, California 

WILLIAM KEATING, Massachusetts 

DAVID CICILLINE, Rhode Island 

ALAN GRAYSON, Florida 

JUAN VARGAS, California 

BRADLEY S. SCHNEIDER, Illinois 

JOSEPH P. KENNEDY III, Massachusetts 

AMI BERA, California 

ALAN S. LOWENTHAL, California 

GRACE MENG, New York 

LOIS FRANKEL, Florida 

TULSI GABBARD, Hawaii 

JOAQUIN CASTRO, Texas

AMY PORTER, Chief of Staff THOMAS SHEEHY, Staff Director

JASON STEINBAUM, Democratic Staff Director 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON TERRORISM, NONPROLIFERATION, AND TRADE

TED POE, Texas, Chairman 

JOE WILSON, South Carolina 

ADAM KINZINGER, Illinois 

MO BROOKS, Alabama 

TOM COTTON, Arkansas 

PAUL COOK, California 

SCOTT PERRY, Pennsylvania 

TED S. YOHO, Florida 

BRAD SHERMAN, California 

ALAN S. LOWENTHAL, California 

JOAQUIN CASTRO, Texas 

JUAN VARGAS, California 

BRADLEY S. SCHNEIDER, Illinois 

JOSEPH P. KENNEDY III, Massachusetts 

(III)

C O N T E N T S 

Page

MARKUP OF 

H.R. 1409, To amend the Export Enhancement Act of 1988 to further enhance 

the promotion of exports of United States goods and services, and for 

other purposes ...................................................................................................... 2

Amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 1409 offered by the 

Honorable Ted Poe, a Representative in Congress from the State of 

Texas, and chairman, Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and 

Trade ................................................................................................................. 8

Amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute offered by 

the Honorable Alan S. Lowenthal, a Representative in Congress from 

the State of California ...................................................................................... 15

H.R. 1926, To further enhance the promotion of exports of United States 

goods and services, and for other purposes ........................................................ 16

LETTERS, STATEMENTS, ETC., SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD 

APPENDIX 

Markup notice .......................................................................................................... 28

Markup minutes ...................................................................................................... 29

Markup summary .................................................................................................... 30

(1)

EXPORT PROMOTION REFORM ACT AND 

STATE TRADE COORDINATION ACT 

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26, 2013

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

SUBCOMMITTEE ON TERRORISM, NONPROLIFERATION, AND TRADE,

COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS,

Washington, DC. 

The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 2 o’clock p.m., in room 

2200 Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Ted Poe (chairman of 

the subcommittee) presiding. 

Mr. POE. The committee will come to order. We meet today pursuant to notice to mark up two bipartisan export promotion measures. As all offices were previously notified, it is the intent of the 

Chair to consider the following items en bloc: H.R. 1409, the Export 

Promotion Reform Act, introduced by Mr. Engel, a bipartisan 

amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 1409 offered by 

the Chair, an amendment to my amendment in the nature of a substitute offered by Mr. Lowenthal; and H.R. 1926, the State Trade 

Coordination Act, introduced by Mr. Chabot. 

Without objection, these items are considered as read and will be 

offered and considered en bloc. 

[The information referred to follows:]

2


81695a-1.eps
3


81695a-2.eps
4


81695a-3.eps
5


81695a-4.eps
6


81695a-5.eps
7


81695a-6.eps
8


81695c-1.eps
9


81695c-2.eps
10


81695c-3.eps
11


81695c-4.eps
12


81695c-5.eps
13


81695c-6.eps
14


81695c-7.eps
15


81695d.eps
16


81695b-1.eps
17


81695b-2.eps
18


81695b-3.eps
19


81695b-4.eps
20


81695b-5.eps
21

Mr. POE. I will now recognize myself and the ranking member 

to speak on these measures. I recognize myself for 5 minutes. 

Our economy is still in bad shape. Fewer people are participating 

in the labor force this year than at any point since 1979. Twentytwo million Americans are unemployed or underemployed. I have 

the Port of Houston in my district. It is responsible for 50 percent 

of the City of Houston’s economy. The Port of Houston exports 

more cargo than any other port in the United States. Ninety-five 

percent of the world’s consumers live outside the United States, 

and the fastest-growing region of the world is Africa, with a growth 

rate of 4.2 or 4.7 percent in 2012. 

The Port of Houston and other facilities just like it are hungry 

for more business and trade. If we want to grow the American 

economy, exporting more goods and services has to be part of the 

solution. Instead of tying up small businesses with red tape, we 

need to free them up to reach growing markets. We need to come 

along and help them identify export opportunities abroad. No one 

can match the quality and innovation that we can provide in this 

country. 

H.R. 1409, the Export Promotion Reform Act, would give the Secretary of Commerce 6 months to submit to Congress the results of 

a global assessment of overseas markets. The report would tell us 

which ones provide us with the best export potential for Americans. 

After that, the Secretary will send commercial service personnel to 

work with our diplomatic personnel to reduce obstacles to U.S. exports and seal the deal. 

Last year, this very bill made it through the House with unanimous support, only to get held up in the do-nothing Senate. My 

amendment in the nature of a substitute, incorporates language 

from Representative Sam Graves’ H.R. 1909. The amendment says 

the Federal Government should let businesses know when there 

are Federal- and State-led trade missions so businesses can take 

advantage of those trade missions. It also requires the seven different Federal agencies in charge of export policy to tell us why all 

seven are needed, and how they measure results. We need a more 

efficient and streamlined approach when it comes to export policy. 

In all, this bill will help grow the economy, create jobs, and put 

money back in the pockets of Americans. 

H.R. 1926 requires the Federal Government to work better with 

the States on trade. It requires the Secretary of Commerce to 

produce a State-by-State export strategy every year. That strategy 

has to have reporting metrics so we can measure how well we are 


81695b-6.eps
22

doing. Mr. Chabot has worked on this bill to produce a straightforward result. 

To do trade well, you can’t just have some grand national policy. 

You have to get local. You have to talk to the manufacturers, service providers, small business owners. By getting the Federal Government to work closely with States, it will increase efficiency and 

reduce duplication. Local businesses will better understand export 

opportunities, have a more targeted approach to potential markets, 

and create more jobs as they grow. 

This is why it matters. In 2011, over 40,000 companies exported 

goods and services from just the State of Texas. Ninety-three percent of those companies were small- and medium-sized businesses, 

and they accounted for 30 percent of Texas’ total exports. In 2012, 

Texas’ export shipments of merchandise totalled $250 billion. Houston accounted for half of that. While it is hard for any State to try 

to stack up, I think, to the State of Texas, this goes to show how 

important exports are to the economy. 

If we can get the Federal Government to work closely with the 

States, then all States win. Together, these bills will help grow the 

economy, create jobs, put money back in the pockets of Americans. 

I now recognize the ranking member for 5 minutes. 

Mr. SHERMAN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to thank you 

for calling this markup and urge my colleagues to support your motion that we pass all the items on the agenda en bloc by unanimous 

consent. I strongly support efforts to increase exports, and believe 

that both bills under consideration, including the Lowenthal 

amendment, will make important contributions to our efforts to 

promote exports. 

In a world with a perfectly free economy, the United States 

would not be in the export promotion business, and no other government would be in the export promotion business. But the reality 

is far different. With our competitors doing far more than we are 

to promote their exports, we need an effective commercial diplomacy and other export promotion programs. 

In my nearly 17 years on the committee, I have seen a shocking 

difference between the attitude of our Diplomatic Corps toward 

pushing American exports, where it seems to be below getting more 

people to show up at the 4th of July party, and the focus of foreign 

diplomatic corps, which seem to put export promotion at the very 

top of their list. 

The measures we have under consideration are long-recommended changes to the operation and planning of the multiagency Trade Promotion Coordination Committee, commonly 

known as TPCC, and they provide for State promotion agencies, 

State trade promotion agency representation on the TPCC, and 

greater State participation in the TPCC’s activities more generally. 

The GAO has recommended that our export promotion efforts 

across disparate agencies involved be better coordinated, better 

planned, and these measures will help implement those recommendations, as well as ensure that State government efforts to 

promote exports are part of the planning and coordination process. 

I strongly support the measures being adopted today and look forward to perfecting them at the full committee. 

23

I have agreed, of course, to co-sponsor them both. I know that 

our colleague, Brad Schneider, the gentleman from Illinois, has 

amendments that he will, in due time, put forward as the process 

moves on, and these will also deserve all of our support. At least, 

they will have my support. 

I do want to take a brief opportunity to note that to address our 

long-term chronic trade deficit we have to do more than the very 

limited amount that we are talking about doing here today. Since 

the 1970s, we have run larger and larger trade deficits. We have 

eroded and decimated our manufacturing base, shifted 1 million 

jobs overseas, and seen a depression of domestic wages. 

Export promotion is not the solution, or at best is a tiny part of 

the solution. We need a completely different trade policy. That will 

become apparent when the whole thing crashes, because you can’t 

run these trade deficits year after year without eventually a crash 

similar to the one we faced in 2008. 

Finally, I want to argue against a change being put forward by 

some American corporations. They are lobbying to reduce the domestic content requirement of Export-Import Bank financing. 

While the Export-Import Bank is not under the jurisdiction of this 

subcommittee or our full committee, it is the sister agency of OPIC, 

which is an important part of our jurisdiction. 

Currently, for most of its programs, Ex-Im Bank will finance the 

lesser of 100 percent of the value of the American content of an export, or 85 percent of the total export. There are exceptions to this 

rule. There are those who want to weaken the rule, and basically 

use U.S. taxpayer money to finance goods that are not, for the most 

part, made in the United States. 

We can understand why individual companies would be concerned chiefly at generating profitable business rather than generating jobs in the United States, but the Ex-Im Bank is not in the 

business of generating profits. It is in the business of creating U.S. 

jobs. And I hope they keep that in mind. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I yield back my time. But I am 

sure I have exhausted it. 

Mr. POE. Thank you, Ranking Member. Does any other member 

seek recognition? 

The gentleman from California, Mr. Lowenthal, is recognized for 

5 minutes. 

Mr. LOWENTHAL. Thank you, Mr. Chair, for including this 

amendment today, and the ranking member for your support. 

I would like to say, in 1992, the Congress enacted the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee, the TPCC, to oversee the 20 Federal export promotion programs which were spread across the entire Federal Government. The TPCC membership is currently 

drawn from Federal agencies with jurisdiction over our interest in 

our trading relationships. My amendment would add critical representation on the TPCC from State government trade development agencies. 

This is in furtherance of the goals of H.R. 1409, which are to 

strengthen the coordination of programs, which will hopefully increase U.S. exports and create jobs for American workers. 

24

Including State government representatives would have three 

benefits: Improved efficiency, added State expertise, and ultimately 

result in a better use of Federal funds. 

On the efficiency front, virtually all States have agencies to help 

companies increase exports. In this era of budgetary constraints, 

maximizing coordination between the Federal and State levels 

would increase the efficient use of all interested parties in promoting exports. 

With regard to the expertise of State export promotion agencies, 

many States, such as my home State of California, have extensive 

and sophisticated export development programs. Under the California Economic Development Agency, there are 14 trade coordination offices that work closely with industry and labor to sell more 

California products overseas. These agencies have a lot to contribute to the Federal effort. 

Finally, working with a constrained fiscal environment, we must 

always look for ways to better use our Federal funds. Every year, 

State export agencies receive some $30 million in Federal funds, 

primarily from the Small Business Administration, yet the programs supported by these funds are not fully leveraged and coordinated with Federal export programs. 

This amendment would help solve the problem. The underlying 

bill, H.R. 1409, together with these provisions added by Chairman 

Poe and from Chairman Graves’ bill, H.R. 1909, and from Representative Chabot’s bill, H.R. 1926, all fit together and constitute 

a robust package of provisions to help our exporters. 

It is an important issue for me, as I represent the Port of Long 

Beach. And the Port of Long Beach, along with the adjacent Port 

of Los Angeles, is the busiest port complex in the United States. 

I encourage my colleagues to support this amendment, and I again 

want to thank Chairman Poe and the Ranking Member Sherman 

for including the amendment in H.R. 1409, because I believe it 

makes the bill better. 

And I will yield back. 

Mr. SHERMAN. So you are saying that the Long Beach and San 

Pedro ports together are busier and handle more traffic than the 

Houston port? 

I yield back. 

Mr. POE. Did I say that? I don’t recall. It must have been something that just slipped from my lips. 

I agree that the Houston port, I think, is the largest port in the 

Gulf. 

Mr. LOWENTHAL. As Long Beach would be the largest port in 

California. [Laughter.] 

Mr. POE. Thank you. Does anybody else wish to speak? 

[No response.] 

Mr. POE. Hearing no further requests for recognition, the question occurs on adopting the items under consideration en bloc. 

Those in favor, say aye. 

[Chorus of ayes.] 

Mr. POE. Those opposed, no. 

[No response.] 

Mr. POE. In the opinion of the Chair, the ayes have it, and the 

en bloc items are approved. 

25

Without objection, the items in the bloc will be reported favorably to the full committee. H.R. 1409 will be reported in the form 

of a single amendment in the nature of a substitute, incorporating 

the adopted amendments, and the staff is directed to make any 

technical and conforming changes. 

I want to thank all of our members and the staff for the assistance and cooperation that went into today’s markup. The subcommittee stands adjourned. Thank you very much. 

[Whereupon, at 2:34 p.m. the subcommittee was adjourned.] 

(27)

A P P E N D I X 

MATERIAL SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD

28

f


81695n.eps
29

f


81695m.eps
30

Æ


81695e.eps