The office of the U.S. Trade Representative said on Friday it will convene public hearings on April 28 and April 29 to examine a slate of ongoing Section 301 unfair trade practice investigations focused on alleged failures by dozens of countries to prevent imports produced with forced labor. The sessions are scheduled to take place at the U.S. International Trade Commission headquarters in Washington, the USTR statement said.
According to the published schedule, the hearings are organized into 12 panels with approximately 60 witnesses expected to appear. Witnesses span a range of stakeholders - including advocacy groups, human rights organizations, U.S. industry associations and representatives of foreign governments.
USTR initiated the investigations on March 12 into the economies of 60 countries, asserting that those nations failed to prohibit imports of goods produced using forced labor. The roster of countries under review includes several significant U.S. trade partners and allies such as Australia, Canada, the European Union, Britain, Israel, India, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. China and Russia are also listed among the 60 economies under investigation.
The hearings come amid a broader trade-policy backdrop. President Donald Trump’s administration has sought to restore tariff pressure on countries around the world after the U.S. Supreme Court on February 20 found his global tariffs to be illegal. USTR official Jamieson Greer indicated an intention to complete the Section 301 probes, including any proposed remedies, before the temporary tariffs that were imposed in late February are set to expire in July.
The scheduled public testimony will give a range of actors the opportunity to present perspectives directly to USTR and the commission. The hearing schedule’s mix of civil society, industry and government witnesses reflects the multifaceted nature of the investigations, which touch on trade policy, import controls and international diplomatic relationships.
Context and next steps
The USTR statement sets the hearings as a next procedural stage in the Section 301 investigations. The office has signaled a compressed timeline in which it hopes to finalize findings and any remedies prior to the expiration of temporary tariffs in July. How the hearings will influence the ultimate remedies is a procedural question the USTR will address as it moves to conclude the investigations.