(Washington, DC) — Today, Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher (TX-07) voted to advance the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).  The USMCA makes critical improvements to the trade agreement between our countries, includes strong environmental standards, creates enforceable labor standards, and maintains Congress’ authority to bring down the cost of pharmaceutical drugs.

“In Houston and Texas, trade with Mexico and Canada accounts for billions of dollars and millions of jobs,” said Congresswoman Fletcher.  “As Co-Chair of the New Democrat Coalition Trade Task Force, which has been actively working to advance this agreement all year, I am glad to see the USMCA pass the House. I hope the Senate will join us in passing this historic agreement.

“The USMCA modernizes the framework for trade, strengthening enforcement, labor, and environmental provisions in an updated agreement that does not adversely impact our businesses, workers, or consumers. It is important to our energy future, codifying a new zero-tariff policy and further encouraging the energy exports across North America for years to come. It represents a bipartisan accomplishment that will set the standard for future trade agreements.”

International trade supports an estimated 3 million jobs in Texas, many of them at the Port of Houston and in the greater Houston area.  The state exported a record $315.9 billion in goods in 2018. Mexico is Texas’ largest trading partner, and Canada is the state’s second largest trading partner. The agreement enjoys support from a broad coalition of stakeholders, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the AFL-CIO.

You can watch the Congresswoman’s floor speech on the agreement here.