Tomorrow, the House will consider legislation to extend the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program, as well as the Andean Trade Preference Act (ATPA). Coalitions Service Industries (CSI) today wrote a letter to Congress in support of the extension of TAA and ATPA, stating that:

“CSI believes that it is important to maintain programs that address the needs of workers, companies and communities adversely affected by trade. This includes initiatives to improve workers’ skills and to facilitate greater workforce mobility. In addition, the TAA program helps gain wider support for policies that create U.S. jobs and economic growth and that help U.S. companies remain globally preeminent.”

Background:

• CSI is the leading business organization dedicated to the development of U.S. domestic and international policies that enhance the global competitiveness of the U.S. service sector through bilateral, regional, multilateral, and other trade and investment initiatives.
• The broad range and diversity of the U.S. service economy is reflected in CSI’s membership, which includes major international companies from the banking, insurance, telecommunications, information technology, express delivery, audiovisual, energy services, and other service industries.
• Services represents approximately 75% of US economic output and about 80% of US private sector employment.
• CSI members conduct business in all 50 states and in more than 100 countries.
• In 2009, US services exports exceeded $507 billion and had a services surplus of approximately $132.3 billion.

Source: http://www.uscsi.org/ and http://www.uscsi.org/about/

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