Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Protecting the USMCA from Harmful Chinese Investment Act”.
Protecting the USMCA from Harmful Chinese Investment Act
A BILL
To direct the United States Trade Representative to prioritize North American alignment on foreign investment review during the next joint review conducted under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
Sec. 2 North American alignment on foreign investment review
Sense of Congress— It is the sense of Congress that—
Canada and Mexico are the two largest trading partners of the United States, with bilateral goods and services trade between the United States and each such country reaching approximately $1,000,000,000,000 in 2024;
the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) underpins much of the trade referred to in paragraph (1) and promotes a strong North American supply chain that supports millions of good-paying jobs in the United States;
given the close economic relationship between the United States, Mexico, and Canada under the USMCA, ensuring that each party has robust investment review mechanisms in place is important towards strengthening the collective national security interests of those countries against risks stemming from foreign investments by nonmarket economy countries, including the People’s Republic of China;
the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States plays a critical role in protecting the national security of the United States by reviewing foreign investments for national security risks; and
the establishment by Mexico and Canada of legislative and regulatory frameworks to review foreign investments for national security risks that are similar to the framework established under section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4565) would—
advance the national security interests of the United States; and
allow for closer coordination between the USMCA countries with respect to shared threats from investments by nonmarket economy countries in strategically important economic sectors and critical infrastructure in North America.
Joint review negotiation objective— Subject to the requirements of section 611 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 4611), during the first joint review conducted after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Trade Representative shall advocate for—
each USMCA country to implement a legislative and regulatory framework for reviewing foreign investment for national security risks that is similar to the framework established under section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4565); and
the establishment of a mechanism for USMCA countries to coordinate to address shared threats from investments by nonmarket economy countries.
Technical assistance— In carrying out subsection (b), the Trade Representative shall coordinate with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of State with respect to the provision of technical assistance to USMCA countries to support the establishment of frameworks for reviewing foreign investments for national security risks.
Definitions— In this section:
Joint review— The term joint review has the meaning given that term in section 611 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 4611).
Nonmarket economy country— The term nonmarket economy country has the meaning given that term in section 771(18) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1677(18)).
Technical assistance— The term technical assistance includes—
the use of short-term and long-term expert advisers to assist foreign governments with the establishment of frameworks for reviewing foreign investments for national security risks;
training in the recipient country, the United States, or elsewhere for the establishment of such frameworks;
grants of goods, services, or funds to foreign governments;
grants to United States nonprofit organizations to provide services or products that contribute to the provision of advice to foreign governments; and
study tours for foreign officials in the United States or elsewhere for the purpose of providing technical information to such officials.
Trade Representative— The term Trade Representative means the United States Trade Representative.
USMCA— The term USMCA has the meaning given that term in section 3 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 4502).
USMCA country— The term USMCA country has the meaning given that term in section 202(a) of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 4531(a)).