U.S. Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.) Friday released the following statement after the Government Accountability Office (GAO) announced it would review the Commerce Department’s tariff exclusion process, an investigation of which Walorski was a co-requestor:
“A robust product exclusion process is critical to providing relief for American manufacturers and small businesses affected by the steel and aluminum tariffs. The Commerce Department’s process has been broken from the start, and while improvements have been made, I continue to have serious concerns about its efficiency, transparency, fairness. I am hopeful this GAO investigation, along with the ongoing Commerce Department Inspector General review, will shed light on flaws in the process and lead to additional reforms.”
BACKGROUND
The GAO this week agreed to a request led by Senator Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) to formally review the the tariff exclusion process for the Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs administered by the Department of Commerce. Walorski joined a group of House members in co-requesting the audit.
Walorski has led the charge in the House to hold the Department of Commerce accountable for fixing problems faced by businesses requesting relief from the tariffs. In response to concerns raised by Walorski, the Commerce Department in August adopted several changes to the exclusion process.
Walorski represents the 2nd Congressional District of Indiana, serving as a member of the House Ways and Means Committee.
