House Ways and Means Committee Field Hearing on U.S. Trade Policy
January 1, 2024
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The Frame
This hearing serves as a formal record of public and expert testimony that will influence future federal trade legislation, specifically regarding supply chain independence and trade enforcement against foreign competitors.
Potentially affected actors named in the source documents. Mention is not a position.
American workers
Trade policies discussed in the hearing impact job security, wages, and the competitiveness of domestic industries.
U.S. farmers
The committee is evaluating trade barriers that affect the ability of farmers to sell products internationally.
Small businesses
Changes to trade enforcement and supply chain regulations directly impact the operational costs and market access for small businesses.
Last recorded activity January 1, 2024.
Next step not available in the current record.
Summary
Key Facts
- The hearing took place on May 9, 2023, at the Global Containers Terminal in Staten Island, New York.
- This event marked the first time in 100 years that the House Ways and Means Committee held a full committee hearing outside of Washington, D.C.
- The total value of U.S. goods traded in 2022 was approximately $5.3 trillion.
- The U.S. trade deficit reached $945 billion in 2022, the largest on record.
- The committee requested public input via notebooks provided to audience members for submission into the official record.
- Chairman Smith stated the committee's intent to reassert Congressional authority over trade policy, criticizing current administration frameworks that lack the force of law.
- The hearing focused on reducing dependency on foreign nations for food, energy, and medicine.
- The committee emphasized the need to enforce trade agreements and address predatory trade practices, specifically naming China.
Why It Matters
This hearing serves as a formal record of public and expert testimony that will influence future federal trade legislation, specifically regarding supply chain independence and trade enforcement against foreign competitors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why was this hearing held in Staten Island instead of Washington, D.C.?
Can members of the public contribute to this hearing?
News Coverage
Lobbying Activity
AARP
2026
“P.L. 119-21, One Big Beautiful Bill Act H.R. 8867, Planning for Long-term Aging Needs (PLAN) Act H.R. 5861, Legacy Act of 2025 H.R. 9393, the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act. H.R. 9396, the Prior Authorization Accountability Act. S. 4916, the Aging with Artificial Intelligence Act. H.R. 8100, Safe Staffing Saves Lives Act. S. 3886, Nurses Belong in Nursing Homes Act. H.R. 6766/S. 3492, the Essential Caregivers Act of 2025. H.R. 7966/S. 4118, Hospice Care Accountability, Reform, and Enforcement (Hospice CARE) Act. S. 2120, the Older Americans Act Reauthorization Act of 2025 H.R. 5575, the Firefighters Assisting Seniors to Emergency Response (FASTER) Act of 2025. H.R. 3954/S. 4641, Improving Access to Medicare Coverage Act. H.R.5554/S.2831, Stand Strong for Medicare Act. S. 3439/H.R. 6735, Connecting Caregivers to Medicare Act and efforts related to the bill S. 1227/H.R. 2491, Alleviating Barriers for Caregivers Act S. 668/H.R. 3183, Supporting Access to Falls Education and Prevention and Strengthening Training Efforts and Promoting Safety Initiatives (SAFE STEPS) for Veterans Act of 2025 CMS-1851-P, Hospice Proposed rule. CMS-1843-P, Skilled Nursing Facility Proposed rule. CMS-1844-P, Home Health Proposed rule. No bill number. Health care transparency. No bill number. Discussed use of artificial intelligence and health data technology. No bill number. Discussed health-related policies and activities around the fall respiratory virus season. No bill number. Discussed health insurance affordability proposals. No bill number. Discussed Nursing Home staffing standards, safety, and quality. No bill number. Discussed Nursing home transparency and ownership requirements. No bill number. Discussed home health, hospice, and long-term care. No bill number. Discussed falls prevention. No bill number. Discussed social isolation. No bill number. Discussed HUD Assisted Living Requirements No bill number. Discussed family caregiving. No bill number. Discussed AARP paper on Medicare Caregiver Training Services. No bill number. Discussed Medicaid community engagement interim final rule, including the family caregiver exemption. No bill number. Discussed the paid direct care workforce in long-term care. No bill number. Discussed the unaffordability of long-term care. No bill number. Discussed Money Follows the Person Rebalancing Demonstration Program and Medicaid HCBS spousal impoverishment protections. No bill number. Discussed Medicaid fraud and family caregivers, Medicaid self-direction programs. No bill number. Discussed sandwich generation family caregiver hearing and submitted a statement for the record discussing family caregivers and sandwich generation caregivers, programs that support them, AARP caregiving resources, and federal policies to support sandwich generation caregivers and caregivers more broadly. No bill number. Discussed long-term care. No bill number. CMS-2453-NC; Medicaid Program; 2028 Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services Quality Measure Set Submitted comments No bill number. Discussed expanding access to home care. No bill number. Discussed the increasing cost of home care No bill number. Discussed HSA use for telehealth chronic care management services/subscriptions. No bill number. Discussed artificial intelligence and technology”
Sponsors
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Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Return to Field Hearings
The committee explicitly noted this as the first full committee field hearing in 100 years, signaling a potential shift toward more localized, public-facing legislative processes.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.govinfo.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance65How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy40Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment20Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
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