Today, Congressman Patrick McHenry (NC-10) voted in favor of H.R. 2378, the Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act.  This bill takes a measured response to unfair currency manipulation by China and other countries, which has cost the U.S. more than one million jobs during the last decade, including hundreds of thousands of textile and apparel jobs.  Congressman McHenry is a co-sponsor of this legislation.  H.R. 2378 passed the House of Representatives today by a vote of 348-79.

“We need to send a strong message to China to abandon its predatory currency practices, and this bill does just that,” said Congressman McHenry.  “Should the Chinese refuse, this bill provides our manufacturers the tools needed to defend their livelihood when it’s undermined by foreign governments.  China’s aggressive trade policies and currency manipulation have devastated Western North Carolina’s manufacturing base.  I am more than happy to join a bipartisan effort to stand up for hard working Americans.”

H.R. 2378 has been constructed to stay consistent with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and other international obligations.  This legislation also ensures that China and other nations will have no grounds to retaliate against any trading partner, and tasks the Commerce Department to investigate alleged currency undervaluation as a prohibited export subsidy on a case-by-case basis.