This bill requires congressional approval for a presidential import adjustment due to a national security threat from an import and limits the adjustments to certain goods that are essential to national security.
Specifically, the bill limits the President's authority for such import adjustments to goods related to the development, maintenance, or protection of military equipment, energy resources, or critical infrastructure essential to national security. The bill specifies that the term national security (1) means the protection of the United States from foreign aggression, and (2) does not otherwise include the protection of the general welfare of the United States.
The bill requires the President to submit a proposal to Congress to adjust imports. Congress must then approve the proposal with a joint resolution before an import adjustment takes effect. Under current law, the President determines whether any adjustment of an import is necessary and must submit to Congress the reasons for any action taken or not taken. Currently, there is a congressional disapproval mechanism to override presidential actions related to petroleum imports.
The bill also
requires the Department of Defense (currently, the Department of Commerce) to investigate the effect of these imports on national security and submit a report before the President determines whether an adjustment to an import is necessary, establishes requirements for a process to grant requests to exclude certain goods from import adjustments, and applies retroactively to any proposed action taken up to six years before the enactment of this bill.