Sponsors (16)
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Repeals section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 (codified at 19 U.S.C. 2132), eliminating the statutory balance-of-payments authority.
Strikes the table of contents entry for section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974.
Makes a conforming amendment to the introductory matter preceding subparagraph (A) of 19 U.S.C. 2137(b) by striking specified text (text not shown in provided excerpt).
Repeals the statutory balance-of-payments authority in the Trade Act of 1974 and makes minor conforming edits to that law. It also sets an official short title for the statute. The effect is to remove a specific presidential trade power that had been available under the 1974 Act.
The bill simplifies and clarifies trade law—reducing compliance costs and administrative complexity—but removes a balance-of-payments import authority that could be needed for rapid economic or security responses and may create short-term legal uncertainty.
Businesses, importers/exporters, and trade lawyers face simpler and clearer trade law because Congress repealed an old balance-of-payments statutory authority, reducing overlapping standards and lowering long-run compliance costs.
Trade officials and federal agencies have a streamlined statutory framework (removal of an obsolete authority), which simplifies administration and reduces legal complexity for regulating imports and exports.
Importers, exporters, and policymakers lose a statutory tool to restrict imports for balance-of-payments reasons, reducing options to respond quickly to sudden trade, currency, or national-security-related crises.
Businesses, workers, and the broader economy may face slower or less-targeted responses in an economic emergency because Congress or the President would need new legislation to impose comparable import restrictions.
Importers and exporters may encounter short-term legal uncertainty about past or pending actions taken under the repealed authority, complicating compliance and enforcement during the transition.
Establishes the official short title of the Act as the "Reclaim Trade Powers Act."
Repeals section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2132).
Requires striking the item for section 122 from the table of contents of the Trade Act of 1974.
Amends section 127(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2137(b)) by striking language in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) to conform to the repeal of section 122.
Federal trade law is directly affected: the statute will no longer include the balance-of-payments authority that gave the President a named, statutory tool to address certain balance-of-payments issues. That change reduces one formal legal option available to the executive branch for responding to international payments imbalances and could shift attention to other trade remedies or diplomatic tools. Domestic businesses that rely on rapid trade measures (for example, importers, exporters, and some manufacturers or agricultural exporters) could be indirectly affected if this narrows the federal government's toolkit for addressing sudden trade/payment disruptions. Federal employees who work in trade policy, Treasury, Commerce, USTR, and related agencies will see a narrower statutory mandate. The text, as provided, does not include new funding, mandates for states or localities, or specific implementation steps, so administrative policy decisions and existing trade laws would govern how the change is applied in practice.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Introduced March 11, 2026 by Timothy Michael Kaine · Last progress March 11, 2026
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Introduced in Senate
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