AAFA Welcomes Temporary Delay in Some Tariffs; Blasts Imposition of Others

August 13, 2019 | WASHINGTON, D.C.

Rick Helfenbein, president and CEO of the American Apparel & Footwear Association, issued the following statement today in response to the U.S. Trade Representative’s announcement regarding Tranche 4 tariffs. 
 
“While the Trump administration is delaying tariffs on ‘certain items of footwear and clothing' for 105 days, and removing other items from the list entirely, it is still persisting with a destructive plan to impose tariffs on consumer goods used by every American and critical inputs used by U.S. manufacturers," said Rick Helfenbein, president and CEO of the American Apparel & Footwear Association. "Make no mistake, these tariffs, including the ones imposed in earlier tranches, are paid by U.S. companies. They create costs and uncertainty, forcing companies to delay or scuttle hiring and investment decisions and ultimately hit the U.S. consumer. Rebalancing our trade partnership with China is of critical importance, but taxing U.S. companies, U.S. consumers, and the U.S. economy is not the way to achieve that goal.” 

AAFA testified against these tariffs in June, along with approximately three dozen companies from the apparel and footwear industry. Additionally, nearly 200 industry executives across 138 companies sent a letter to the President, clarifying the devastating impact tariffs would have on the industry and petitioning a halt action on new tariffs.