Sens. Cruz, Cornyn, Rep. Pfluger Call on Amb. Salazar to Defend USMCA Provisions That Benefit Texas Energy and Agriculture
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and John Cornyn (R-Texas), along with U.S. Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas), today sent a bipartisan, bicameral letter with other members of the Texas Congressional Delegation to the recently confirmed U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar. In the letter, the lawmakers draw attention to Mexico’s discriminatory actions that violate the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), and urge Ambassador Salazar to directly engage with senior Mexican officials to ensure fair trade for Texas agriculture and energy producers.
Co-signers include Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), Michael McCaul (R-Texas), Michael C. Burgess (R-Texas), Randy Weber (R-Texas), Roger Williams (R-Texas), Brian Babin (R-Texas), Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas), Jodey C. Arrington (R-Texas), Michael Cloud (R-Texas), Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas), Van Taylor (R-Texas), Lance Gooden (R-Texas), Ronny L. Jackson (R-Texas), Tony Gonzales (R-Texas), Beth Van Duyne (R-Texas), Jake Ellzey (R-Texas), and Pete Sessions (R-Texas).
In the letter, the lawmakers wrote:
“Mexico has taken several actions that discriminate against American energy producers and favor SOEs [state owned enterprises]. This includes the recent modifications to the Hydrocarbons Law, which allows Mexican officials the power to suspend and revoke key permits for private operations. Most recently, the government’s proposed constitutional reforms would increase state control of the electricity industry and severely limit private investment. These steps, among others, harm our critical trading partnership with Mexico and potentially violate key tenets of the USMCA.”
[…]
“Proper implementation of the USMCA is a top priority and the U.S. must engage at all levels of government to ensure that the American people can reap the full benefits from this important trade agreement.”
Read the full text of the letter below and here.
October 19, 2021
The Honorable Ken Salazar
Ambassador of the United States of America
Paseo de la Reforma 305
Colonia Cuauhtemoc
06500 Mexico City, Mexico.
Dear Ambassador Salazar,
Congratulations on your recent confirmation to serve as the United States’ Ambassador to Mexico. As members of the Texas delegation, we understand the close cultural and economic ties our country has with Mexico. We look forward to working with you on the many shared issues facing our countries, including border security and economic cooperation.
The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) is a historic, bipartisan pro-growth trade agreement that puts American businesses, families, and workers first. This agreement is especially important for our home state, because it will allow more made-in-Texas goods to flow freely across North America. That is why we are focused on ensuring full implementation of USMCA and are concerned with recent actions taken by the Mexican Administration to favor state owned enterprises (SOEs) and push out American investment. These actions violate the spirit and letter of the USMCA and need to be addressed.
As you begin your new role, we respectfully request you raise the serious concerns voiced by America’s energy producers and continue to champion the strong agriculture provision included in the USMCA.
Mexico has taken several actions that discriminate against American energy producers and favor SOEs. This includes the recent modifications to the Hydrocarbons Law, which allows Mexican officials the power to suspend and revoke key permits for private operations. Most recently, the government’s proposed constitutional reforms would increase state control of the electricity industry and severely limit private investment. These steps, among others, harm our critical trading partnership with Mexico and potentially violate key tenets of the USMCA. The Mexican government’s measures on renewable energy and recent news related to the Zama field serve as good examples of the larger problems that concern us. We urge you to engage directly with senior Mexican government officials to ensure that American energy firms are able to export goods fairly and can continue to drive private investment and job growth throughout the region.
Additionally, Texas farmers and ranchers have long benefited from free trade with Mexico and Canada. The USMCA locked in key provisions for agriculture and includes state of the art rules on agricultural biotechnology. Rigorous enforcement of these important priorities is vital for Texas producers. Mexico remains the top destination for U.S. agricultural trade – ensuring that Mexico abides by these commitments remains a top concern for the producers we represent.
We also have raised these concerns directly with United States Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai. Proper implementation of the USMCA is a top priority and the U.S. must engage at all levels of government to ensure that the American people can reap the full benefits from this important trade agreement. We appreciate your commitment to these issues and look forward to working with you to deliver solutions for Texas businesses, workers, farmers, and ranchers.
Sincerely,
/s/
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