PSW Weekly Round-Up - 7/27

Legislative Update

House. The House is in recess and is scheduled to return Aug. 31 for four days before leaving for a one-week Labor Day break. Before departing town last week, the House approved a continuing resolution to provide government funding through Dec. 4, a $95 billion FY2027 budget resolution, and its version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

Senate. The Senate is in session this week and is also scheduled to be in next week before leaving until Sept. 14. On Tuesday, Senators will attend a 2 p.m. memorial service at the National Cathedral for Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and then will reconvene that evening to vote on the nomination of Jay Clayton to be Director of National Intelligence. The Senate is also planning to take a procedural vote Tuesday night on the Russia sanctions bill, a priority for Senator Graham. Among other things, the legislation would make it harder for Russia to sell its oil and natural gas abroad by imposing tariffs of up to 100% on the top five countries that buy those Russian exports.

There is speculation that Majority Leader John Thune could also schedule a procedural vote on the CLARITY Act, which provides a cryptocurrency regulatory framework, but it’s unclear whether it will clear the 60-vote hurdle due to a Democratic push for stronger ethics language. Also on the agenda before the recess is a continuing resolution (CR) to provide temporary government funding after Sept. 30, but Thune hasn’t said whether the Senate will take up the measure this week or next. It is a given though that the Senate version of the CR will not be identical to the measure approved by the House on July 21.

Committee Action of Note:

Wednesday, July 29

• Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Hearing: "Testimony of Anthony Fauci."
• Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety Hearing: "The Impact of AI on the Workforce."

Thursday, July 30

• Senate Judiciary Committee Markup to consider the nomination of Todd Blanche to be Attorney General.
• Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Markup to consider legislation and nominations, including:
  • S.5046 -- to prohibit the transfer of certain offices and functions of the Department of Education to other Federal agencies.
  • S.2511 -- to establish a postsecondary student data system.
  • S.4097 -- to establish that a State-based education loan program is excluded from certain requirements relating to a preferred lender arrangement.
  • S.3333 -- to modify the eligibility requirements and account contribution maximum for pension-linked emergency savings accounts.
  • S.4965 -- to amend the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 to establish a Railroad Retirement Board Administrative Account.
  • S.3097 -- to provide additional protections with respect to health information.
  • Erica Schwartz to be Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
  • Sean Kaufman to be Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, Department of Health and Human Services.
  • Keith Sonderling to be Secretary of Labor.

Executive Action of Note:

Under a proclamation President Trump issued July 20, the Commerce Department will set up a program for companies to apply for reduced tariffs on aluminum imports if they commit to invest in domestic aluminum production. Most aluminum imports currently face a 50% Section 232 tariff. Also on July 20, the President issued three proclamations announcing 50% tariffs on most goods imported from Canada, effective in 30 days, which would be imposed under Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 and would not exempt those goods that are covered by the USMCA trade agreement.

• Securing America’s Defense Supply Chains and Ensuring Domestic Acquisition of Critical Materials - July 20, 2026
• Further Strengthening Actions Taken to Adjust Imports of Aluminum Into the United States - July 20, 2026
• Imposing Additional Duties to Offset Canadian Discrimination Against the Commerce of the United States With Respect to Dairy - July 20, 2026
• Imposing Additional Duties to Offset Canadian Discrimination Against the Commerce of the United States With Respect to Alcoholic Beverages - July 20, 2026
• Imposing Additional Duties to Offset Canadian Discrimination Against the Commerce of the United States With Respect to Motor Vehicles - July 20, 2026
• Actions by the United States in the Investigations under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 of the Acts, Policies, and Practices of 60 Economies Related to the Failure of Each Economy to Impose and Effectively Enforce a Prohibition on the Importation of Goods Produced with Forced Labor - July 23, 2026​​

Tariff Update

Section 301 Tariffs. On July 23, President Trump announced a new round of tariffs on more than 80 countries, effective July 24. The new tariffs were announced shortly before the July 24 expiration of the temporary 10% Section 122 tariffs that the President imposed in February following the Supreme Court’s decision that invalidated the tariffs levied under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). According to U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, the tariffs are being imposed under Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act for the countries’ failure to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor.” Countries that have laws on the books to combat forced labor, including Mexico, Canada, India, and the UK, will be subject to a 10% tariff, while those without such statutes were given a 12.5% tariff.

The 301 tariffs cover 99.4% of U.S. imports and nearly all major U.S. trading partners, including China, the European Union, Japan, Korea, Canada, Mexico, India, and the United Kingdom. There are exemptions for imports subject to Section 232 tariffs, which include steel, aluminum, automobiles, and auto part. Also exempt are certain food and agricultural imports, fertilizers, and energy products. Items covered by the USMCA trade agreement with Mexico and Canada will also be excluded.

EU. After the European Union announced on July 23 that it was fining Google $1 billion for breaking digital antitrust rules, President Trump posted on social media July 24 that the U.S. would open a Section 301 unfair trade practices investigation into the EU’s practice of “robbing” American companies and that he anticipated a “substantial” tariff would be placed on them.

Generic Drugs. In a July 21 social media post, President Trump said the U.S. would impose a 100% tariff on generic drugs, effective Aug. 1, 2028, and increase it to 200% a year later. The threat of future tariffs, Trump said, is designed to encourage companies to reshore generic pharmaceutical production into the U.S. Generic drugs account for about 90% of the drugs that Americans take and about 70% of those come from other countries. No formal order has been released, but the administration reportedly intends to use Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, which applies to national security concerns tied to imports, to impose the tariffs.

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