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The Business Council of Alabama has written members of Alabama's congressional delegation urging support of the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015.
It would renew Trade Promotion Authority, a vital component for American businesses because economic growth and job creation at home depend on our ability sell American goods and services to 95 percent of the world's customers that live outside the United States.
One in four American manufacturing jobs depends on exports, and one in three acres on American farms is planted for consumers overseas. Nearly 40 million American jobs depend on trade.
In Alabama, trade plays a big role in our economy. Trade supports more than half a million jobs in the state, and our exports of goods and services last year reached $23 billion. Trade is especially important for Alabama's small businesses, more than 3,200 of which are exporters.
By creating a level playing field, trade agreements help U.S. companies and the workers they employ compete in overseas markets and support 5 million American jobs. To expand these benefits, the United States is negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement with 11 other Asia-Pacific nations, including some of the world's fastest growing economies.
The United States is also negotiating the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union, the largest market for U.S. business. But to make these growth-driving trade agreements a reality, Congress must first approve Trade Promotion Authority (TPA).
The logic of trade is simple. Without TPA, the United States cannot negotiate new trade agreements to open foreign markets, spur economic growth, and create American jobs. Without TPA, our standard of living and our standing in the world will suffer.
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