HOUSE LAWMAKERS CALL FOR MORE U.S. AGRICULTURE EXPORTS TO CUBA
The Senate’s version of the Farm Bill contains a provision to ease restrictions on U.S. agriculture exports to Cuba, but the House version of the same bill does not.
The bipartisan Congressional Cuba Working Group, led by Reps. Cal Dooley, D-Calif.; Jeff Flake, R-Ariz.; and William Delahunt, D-Mass.; has issued a motion to include changes in the House version of the Farm Bill to amend the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act, lifting limitations on financing private sales to Cuba.
Under the current law, no provision of credit from a U.S. entity is allowed. U.S. agricultural exporters must either arrange for credit through an overseas bank or insist on cash in advance from the Cuban importer.
“The federal government should not be in the position of denying private entities the right to finance sales of agricultural goods to Cuba,” Dooley said. “Lifting the restrictions on financing of private sales to Cuba is the right agricultural policy, the right trade policy, and would increase exports for commodities from the Central Valley (of California).”
Despite restrictions, U.S. farmers have sold about $35 million in agricultural products to Cuba in the past three months alone. These products included rice, chicken, soybeans, wheat, corn and vegetable oil. The U.S. International Trade Commission estimates that U.S. agricultural producers lose more than $1 billion a year in potential trade to Cuba because of the financing restrictions.
The working group believes the adoption of Section 335 of the Senate Farm Bill leaves intact the prohibition on U.S. government financing for Cuban sales and frees U.S. agricultural exporters to compete in the Cuban market.