Business groups press Congress for TPA legislation

   The Trade Benefits America coalition has written the leadership of the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means committees seeking passage this year of Trade Promotion Authority, which would give the president fast-track ability to negotiate free trade agreements and require Congress to make a ratification vote on the whole plan without amendment. 
   The Obama administration is currently pursuing the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a free-trade deal with the European Union and a multi-lateral trade services agreement.
   TPA authority for the president lapsed in 2007.
   “By updating and passing TPA, Congress can help shape the negotiating goals pursued by U.S. negotiators while also strengthening the hand of those negotiators in achieving solid outcomes favorable to the United States,” the coalition said in a letter.
   TPA ensures Congress is consulted during the negotiation process about objectives that should be pursued, the group said.
   The coalition is comprised of the American Farm Bureau Federation, the Business Roundtable, the Coalition of Services Industries, the Emergency Committee for American Trade, the National Association of Manufacturers, the National Foreign Trade Council, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the U.S. Council for International Business. – Eric Kulisch