By Michael Martina and Laura Gottesdiener
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Wisconsin Democratic Senator Tammy Baldwin on Wednesday urged U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai to investigate China’s alleged role in the fentanyl crisis after a group of families whose loved ones died of overdoses of the synthetic opioid filed a petition asking for tariffs on Chinese goods.
That petition, first reported by Reuters, was filed last week under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, a statute that allows the U.S. to impose sanctions on foreign countries that violate trade agreements or hurt U.S. commerce. The families are seeking trade measures that include tariffs of at least $50 billion on Chinese merchandise.
Their Oct. 17 petition alleges that China's failure to rein in exports of chemicals used by traffickers to manufacture illicit fentanyl has cost the U.S. trillions of dollars in lost productivity, higher healthcare spending and other harms. Overdoses from synthetic opioids are approaching half a million fatalities over the past decade, government figures show.
In her Oct. 23 letter, Baldwin urged the USTR to initiate a full investigation and consider relief measures “to address the injury” that Chinese policies and actions have had on the U.S. economy and people.
China says it has some of the strictest drug laws in the world, and that the U.S. needs to curb narcotics demand at home.
Earlier this year, Baldwin urged USTR to take up a Section 301 petition filed by labor unions complaining of China's alleged unfair support for its shipbuilding sector. USTR launched a probe in that case that is ongoing.
Baldwin is in a tight reelection race in the swing state of Wisconsin against Republican U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde.