The House Agriculture Committee on June 30 approved by a 25-20 vote a bill (H.R. 4645) that would ease onerous restrictions on financing agricultural trade, as well as travel, with Cuba.
The vote was mostly along party lines, with Democrats supporting the legislation and Republicans opposing. Six Democrats opposed the legislation -- Reps. Mike McIntyre, D-N.C., Joe Baca, D-Calif., Jim Marshall, D-Ga., Kurt Schrader, D-Ore., Kathy Dahlkemper, D-Penn., and Mark Schauer, D-Mich. Four Republicans voted for the bill, including co-sponsor Rep. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., and Reps. Tim Johnson, R-Ill., Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo. The NGFA and most agricultural organizations, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and others supported passage of the bill, whose lead sponsor is House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson, D-Minn.
The NGFA commended in particular a core section of the bill that would reverse regulations issued in February 2005 by the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control that currently require U.S. exporters to obtain cash payment in advance from Cuba wired through third-country lending institutions using letters-of-credit before any U.S. agricultural products are allowed to be shipped from U.S ports. These restrictions have added costs and delays, creating an opening for U.S. competitors, such as the European Union, Canada, Brazil and Vietnam.
U.S. agricultural organizations, including the NGFA, have opposed the Treasury Department's policy as being contrary to the intent of the congressionally enacted Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000 that allowed resumption of agricultural exports to Cuba under a broader interpretation of "payment of cash in advance" terms. The House bill still would continue to restrict such trade to cash, not credit, terms. But the legislation would prohibit U.S. government restrictions on direct transfers of cash payments from Cuban financial institutions to their U.S. counterparts to pay for U.S. agricultural products.
In addition, the House bill would prohibit travel restrictions on U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents to Cuba, or any legal business transactions that occur as a result of such travel. It also would facilitate the granting of visas to Cuban officials associated with sales of U.S. agricultural exports, such as consulting with U.S. suppliers, discussing sanitary and phytosanitary issues and verifying U.S. procedures and standards associated with food and agricultural exports. Most opposition to the bill in the House Ag Committee was over the easing of travel restrictions.
While the bill has a bipartisan group of 62 co-sponsors in the House, it faces an uphill climb. It potentially must clear the House Foreign Affairs and Financial Services Committees before a House floor vote. In the Senate, Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., already has threatened to filibuster the measure.