US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement: It's about time

For over a year, America’s most important trade relationships have faced uncertainty. Last month marked a full year since the signing of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement (USMCA). Since then, the economies of three nations and $6.7 billion dollars have hung in the balance. Mexico’s legislature ratified the agreement almost immediately, and Canada has signaled that they will only move forward with the support of the United States.

Last week marked a major step towards approving an agreement that will modernize and fundamentally improve America’s relationships with two of our most valuable trading partners.

U.S. trade with Canada and Mexico is currently governed by an agreement that went into effect over two decades ago. Back then, only 31% of American households had a computer, and the internet was still a relative novelty. A future where millions would have smartphones in their pockets and entrepreneurs could operate a worldwide company from their home was unthinkable. We lived in a world of Dayton’s catalogs and Blockbuster, instead of same-day delivery and Netflix.

Today, Americans are projected to spend $587 billion this year alone on digital purchases, yet our current trade agreement with Mexico and Canada – NAFTA – does not even mention e-commerce. USMCA not only brings our trade treaty with Mexico and Canada into the digital age, it provides reduced-tariff benefits for American-made goods and provides improved market access for American companies. The agreement also limits tariffs on digital goods like music, movies or software.

In addition to e-commerce, USMCA modernizes our guidelines for trade in several ways. The agreement improves manufacturing rules of origin and regional content to promote local jobs, an area where many felt that USMCA’s predecessor fell short. USMCA levels the playing field for American financial services providers to compete across borders.

The agreement, for the first time ever, specifically addresses innovations in agricultural biotechnology, bringing 21st-century know-how to our growers and producers. Finally, USMCA supports and clarifies regulatory language for the medical device industry, which nearly 30,000 Minnesotans depend on for employment.

USMCA is also designed to improve market access for virtually every major agricultural commodity grown in our state. The agreement will help communities like Stearns County, which leads the state in dairy production, become more competitive with our northern neighbors. Under the agreement, Canada will allow more U.S. dairy products to be sold across its border, eliminating a pricing scheme that has shut out American dairy for decades.

Perhaps most importantly, USMCA tears down barriers for Main Street to reach international markets. While the previous agreement did not specifically address small businesses, USMCA is the first trade deal to focus on small and medium-sized enterprises and will increase American small business’ share of international trade.

If the United States is to remain a leader in the global economy, we must support the economic engines in our local communities. In all, USMCA will spur over $68 billion in new economic activity and is projected to create more than 176,000 new jobs. This deal will help the American economy continue to grow and thrive.

As global commerce and technology evolve, so too should the agreement that governs trade between our two most important trading partners. I am pleased the House of Representatives will finally be able to vote on this critical modernization effort and look forward to seeing all the ways USMCA will bring American trade into the future.

Congressman Tom Emmer is currently serving his third term in the U.S. House of Representatives representing Minnesota’s Sixth Congressional District.