Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Foreign Pollution Fee Act of 2025”.
Foreign Pollution Fee Act of 2025
A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to impose a fee on certain products imported into the United States based on the pollution intensity associated with the production of such products, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Sense of Congress; Purpose
Sense of Congress— It is the sense of Congress that—
the United States has led the world in carbon emissions reductions over the past 15 years, cutting more emissions than any other nation;
the United States economy is 55 percent more carbon-efficient than the global average;
on average, goods produced in China generate more than 3 times the carbon emissions of equivalent American-made goods, while Russian-made goods produce 5 times the emissions, which gives foreign polluters an unfair cost advantage over American manufacturers;
Federal environmental regulations impose an estimated $400,000,000,000 in annual costs on the economy of the United States, placing a disproportionate burden on American businesses and workers;
manufacturers in the United States face staggering environmental regulatory compliance costs, averaging $17,200 per employee, which are costs that foreign competitors, particularly in China, do not bear;
American businesses spend a higher percentage of their revenue on environmental compliance than many of their global competitors, making it harder to compete internationally;
as a result of these costs, companies in the United States have lost market share to foreign producers operating under weak, underenforced, or nonexistent environmental standards;
China is by far the world’s worst air and water polluter, responsible for 30 percent of global carbon emissions;
the Chinese Communist Party effectively subsidizes its exports by refusing to enforce basic environmental protections, undercutting responsible manufacturers in the United States;
China’s state-controlled industries operate as an extension of the Communist Party, using predatory trade practices, including environmental exploitation, to eliminate American competition and expand Beijing’s control over global markets;
United States trade policy has given foreign polluters a competitive edge at the expense of American workers for decades, rewarding bad actors while punishing responsible manufacturers in the United States;
China has been the primary beneficiary of these policies, with the United States losing approximately 5,000,000 jobs in the last 2 decades, with half of that loss directly attributable to the growing trade deficit with China; and
recognizing and rewarding manufacturers in the United States for their environmental leadership would strengthen domestic industry, create high-paying jobs, and reduce America’s dependence on high-emitting producers like China and Russia.
Purpose— The purpose of this Act is to level the playing field for American workers and manufacturers by ensuring that China and other foreign adversaries cannot exploit weak environmental standards, lack of enforcement, and noncompliance to gain an unfair advantage in global trade.
Sec. 3 Rule of construction
Nothing in this Act, or any amendments made by this Act, shall be construed to authorize the creation of any carbon tax, fee, pricing, or other mechanism that imposes additional costs to any covered product (as defined in section 4695(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as added by this Act) which is produced domestically and sold, used, further refined, or distributed within United States or exported to another country for sale or use.