Biden vetoes bill to reinstate punitive tariffs

U.S. President Joe Biden has, as expected, vetoed legislation to reinstate punitive tariffs on solar panels from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. The »Congressional Review Act« had been supported mainly by the Republican Party but also by some members of Bidens own Democratic Party in the House and Senate. Biden had suspended the tariffs by decree last June for 24 months, until June 2024.
In the justification for his veto, the president primarily outlines the successes that the U.S. solar industry has had since the introduction of the Inflation Reduction Act (Public Law No. 117-169) last August, particularly through the projects that have begun to build factories. There have been 51 such announcements since he took office, he stated, and domestic solar module production capacity is expected to increase eightfold during his current term.
Biden confirmed that the suspension of punitive tariffs is »a temporary, 24-month bridge« to ensure that »when these new factories are operational, we have a thriving solar installation industry ready to deploy American-made solar products.« In view of the progress already made in this regard, Biden does »not intend to extend the tariff suspension at the conclusion of the 2-year period in June 2024.«
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