H.R. 7373: Trade Cheating Restitution Act of 2026

The Trade Cheating Restitution Act of 2026 proposes amendments to the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015. Its primary focus is on antidumping duties and countervailing duties, which are tariffs imposed to protect domestic industries from unfair foreign competition. Here’s a breakdown of the bill's key components:

Modifications to Duty Distributions

The bill modifies how interest on certain distributions related to antidumping and countervailing duties is handled. Specifically:

• It changes the cutoff date for relevant distributions from October 1, 2014, to October 1, 2000.
• This adjustment allows for a broader range of distributions regarding interest that has accrued from the specified duties.

Funding for Distributions

The bill stipulates that the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection will use funds from a specific Treasury account—referred to as the "Refund of Moneys Erroneously Received and Covered" account—to support these modifications and cover the distributions of interest.

Special Distribution Process

The Act establishes a special process for distributing the interest accrued from antidumping and countervailing duties for fiscal years ending before the enactment date of the bill:

• The Commissioner must announce the timing of these special distributions in the Federal Register.
• Eligible recipients are those who:
• Have received at least one distribution under the Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act of 2000 in prior years.
• File a timely certification for the special distribution as required by the Commissioner.
• Meet the eligibility criteria set out in the Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act at the time of filing.
• The interest will be aggregated by each antidumping or countervailing duty finding and distributed proportionally among eligible recipients:
• Interest accrued starting on or after October 1, 2010, will be distributed no later than 210 days after the bill’s enactment.
• Interest accrued on or after October 1, 2000, and before September 30, 2010, will be distributed no later than 210 days after the distribution of the more recent interest.

Impacts of the Bill

Overall, the Trade Cheating Restitution Act of 2026 aims to ensure that interest accrued from antidumping and countervailing duties is more effectively and equitably distributed among eligible claimants, thereby addressing past discrepancies and expanding access to restitution related to trade enforcement activities.

Relevant Companies

• None found