US foreign investment bill targets China, ethics concerns

Washington, June 12 (IANS) Democratic lawmakers introduced legislation that would create a new federal authority to review and monitor large foreign investment commitments in the United States, arguing that Washington needs stronger safeguards to ensure such investments benefit American workers and do not create ethical conflicts for public officials.

The proposal, led by Senator Tammy Baldwin and Congressman Ro Khanna, comes as the White House touts hundreds of billions of dollars in investment commitments from countries including Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, while also pursuing broader economic engagement with China.

The legislation would establish a new body called the Foreign Investment Review Authority (FIRA), tasked with identifying, tracking and publicly disclosing foreign investment commitments made to the United States. It would also assess whether investments provide what lawmakers describe as a “net economic benefit” to the country through job creation, domestic production and supply-chain integration.

“While foreign investments can create jobs and support our local economies, they also can open the door to adversaries undercutting American workers and the President lining his pockets,” Baldwin said.

“If foreign countries are going to invest in the United States like the President says they are, we need some basic oversight and transparency to make sure its American workers and American communities seeing a return, not our adversaries, the President’s family, or the well-connected,” she added.

Khanna said the measure would help prevent foreign governments from using investment commitments to gain unfair economic advantages.

“Establishing the Foreign Investment Review Authority (FIRA) would empower the US government with the tools it needs to ensure investment commitments negotiated by the President benefit working Americans and never our economic adversaries, such as the People’s Republic of China (PRC),” he said.

“Our bill would ensure foreign countries are unable to leverage FDI to gain unfair access to the US market or make corrupt deals that lack Congressional oversight,” Khanna added.

The lawmakers said foreign direct investment can create jobs, encourage innovation and strengthen cooperation with allies. However, they argued that economic competitors, particularly China, have at times used investment to expand influence in key industries and gain access to the US market.

The bill cites announced investment commitments including $550 billion from Japan, $350 billion from South Korea and $500 billion from Taiwan. It also references anticipated investments linked to a recently announced US-China Board of Investment and Board of Trade.

Under the proposal, FIRA would review whether investments create quality jobs, support domestic competition and strengthen American supply chains. The authority would also enforce reporting requirements, maintain a public database of covered investments and examine potential conflicts of interest involving government officials.

The legislation would establish a Chief Ethics Officer, a Public Oversight Board and mechanisms for public complaints. It would also require disclosures if senior government officials or their family members stand to benefit from covered investments.

The proposal has backing from Representatives Thomas Suozzi, Debbie Dingell and Shontel Brown. It is also supported by the United Auto Workers union.

“In the US auto industry and beyond, trade and investment rules have empowered corporations to destroy jobs, erode union density, and undercut the working class,” said Rajiv Sicora, legislative director of the United Auto Workers.

“Instead of inviting a race to the bottom, we should make sure that all foreign direct investment upholds the highest standards and strengthens our economy — especially when such investment is linked to trade concessions.”

–IANS

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