{"bills":[{"photos":{"featured":"https://assets.causes.com/bill/photo/hr1704-116/featured_championing-american-business-through-diplomacy-act-of-2019-1557468098.jpg","featured_large":"https://assets.causes.com/bill/photo/hr1704-116/featured_large_championing-american-business-through-diplomacy-act-of-2019-1557468098.jpg","shareable":"https://n.causes.com/share-images/bills/hr1704-116.png"},"introduced_on":"2019-03-13","title_override":"Should U.S. Diplomacy Seek to Bolster American Businesses?","summary_override":"

This bill — the Championing American Business Through Diplomacy Act of 2019 — would seek to bolster the competitiveness of American businesses abroad by prioritizing U.S. economic and commercial diplomacy through the State Dept., Dept. of Commerce, and U.S. diplomatic missions around the world.

Specifically, this bill would:

Authorize an Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs and make them responsible for promoting and supporting U.S. economic and commercial diplomacy;
Require U.S. diplomats to promote U.S. economic and business interests abroad and report on their economic and commercial priorities and activities;
Mandate economic and commercial diplomacy training for Foreign Service Officers (FSOs);
Increase U.S. businesses’ awareness of U.S. government tools and services to promote American exports and investments overseas; and
Encourage the president to negotiate with countries on international standards for government-support quality infrastructure investments.

","official_title":"To foster commercial relations with foreign countries and support United States economic and business interests abroad in the conduct of foreign policy, and for other purposes.","short_title":"Championing American Business Through Diplomacy Act of 2019","popular_title":null,"short_summary":"Championing American Business Through Diplomacy Act of 2019 This bill establishes within the Department of State an Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Matters, and establishes that a principal duty of a diplomatic mission to a foreign country is the promotion of U.S. economic and commercial interests in that country. The Assistant Secretary shall be responsible for matters relating to international economics and business matters in foreign policy. The State Department sha...","summarized":true,"cost":2000000,"cost_commentary":"The CBO estimates that implementing this bill would cost less than $500,000 annually, totaling $2 million over the 2019-2024 period.","impact":"U.S. businesses; international businesses competing with U.S. businesses; international business competition; U.S. diplomats; FSOs; State Dept.; Dept. of Commerce; U.S. diplomatic missions; and the president.","argument_for":"American businesses’ global operations play a critical role in the health of the U.S. economy as a whole. U.S. diplomatic efforts should take businesses’ needs into consideration so they can compete against state-owned or state-backed enterprises based in countries like China.","argument_against":"While it’s important for the federal government to try to level the playing field for American businesses competing abroad, federal agencies engaged in diplomacy shouldn’t prioritize economic considerations above other considerations.","bill_type":"hr","published":true,"type":"FederalBill","id":"hr1704-116","bill_id":"hr1704-116","formal_id":"H.R. 1704","chamber":"house","congress":116,"last_action_at":"2019-05-08T00:00:00.000Z","active":false,"enacted":false,"enacted_at":null,"vetoed":false,"last_vote_at":"2019-05-07T00:00:00.000Z","debated_on":"2019-05-03T20:45:36.000Z","congress_url":"https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/1704","plain_text_url":null,"shareable_image_url":"https://n.causes.com/share-images/bills/hr1704-116.png","congress_full_text_url":"https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/1704/text","is_current_congress":true,"last_version_on":null,"related_bill_ids":null,"progress":"Passed House","house_passage_result":true,"senate_passage_result":false,"position_count":216,"committees":[{"name":"Committee on Foreign Affairs","chamber":"house","committee_id":"HSFA","subcommittee":false},{"name":"Committee on Foreign Relations","chamber":"senate","committee_id":"SSFR","subcommittee":false}],"links":{"rollCalls":"/api/roll_calls?bill_id=hr1704-116","details":"/api/bills/hr1704-116/details","sharingMessage":"/api/sharing_messages/hr1704-116","positionsFor":"/api/bills/hr1704-116/positions/for","positionsAgainst":"/api/bills/hr1704-116/positions/against"},"upcoming":false,"cosponsors_count":7,"slug":"hr1704-116-championing-american-business-through-diplomacy-act-of-2019","latest_chamber_votes_id":"hr1704-116","official_url":null,"target_video":true,"following":false,"vote_count":1031,"yea_vote_count":530,"nay_vote_count":500,"passed_house":true,"passed_senate":false,"vote_id":null,"my_position_id":null,"topic_ids":["international-trade-and-affairs"],"issue_ids":["business","international-trade-and-affairs","china","diplomacy"],"sponsor_id":328}],"votes":[],"issues":[{"id":"business","name":"Business","slug":"business","description":"Vote on the latest federal legislation regarding Business. Make your voice heard about the issues you care about. ","page_title":"Business Legislation - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/business/black_business-1429042053.svg","grey":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/business/grey_business-1429042053.svg","white":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/business/white_business-1429042053.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false},{"id":"international-trade-and-affairs","name":"International Trade & Affairs","slug":"international-trade-and-affairs","description":"U.S. Congressional Legislation encompassing arms control treaties, human rights, international law, sanctions, and foreign aid. Recent legislation addressed approving the use of military force against ISIS (ISIL) in Iraq and Syria, the emerging situation in the Ukraine and Ebola. ","page_title":"US Federal legislation related to Foreign Aid, International Trade and Relations and Human Rights - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/international-trade-and-affairs/black_international-trade-and-affairs-1429042060.svg","grey":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/international-trade-and-affairs/grey_international-trade-and-affairs-1429042060.svg","white":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/international-trade-and-affairs/white_international-trade-and-affairs-1429042060.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false},{"id":"china","name":"China","slug":"china","description":"China is a prominent player in the global scene, and its decisions can have a profound impact on the U.S. Tell your congressperson how you feel about current legislation related to U.S.-China relations!","page_title":"China Legislation - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/china/black_china-1429042057.svg","grey":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/china/grey_china-1429042057.svg","white":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/china/white_china-1429042057.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false},{"id":"diplomacy","name":"Diplomacy","slug":"diplomacy","description":"Maintaining positive diplomatic relations with foreign countries is critical in U.S. foreign policy. Tell your congressperson how you feel about current legislation related to the U.S.'s diplomatic efforts!","page_title":"Diplomacy Legislation - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/diplomacy/black_diplomacy-1429042057.svg","grey":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/diplomacy/grey_diplomacy-1429042057.svg","white":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/diplomacy/white_diplomacy-1429042057.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false}],"users":[{"name":"Tim","vote_count":7,"photos":{"large":"https://assets.causes.com/user/avatar/default-2.png","small":"https://assets.causes.com/user/avatar/default-2.png","tiny":"https://assets.causes.com/user/avatar/default-2.png"},"links":{"following":"/api/users/mwobrY4a/following","followers":"/api/users/mwobrY4a/followers"},"about_me":null,"twitter_id":null,"facebook_id":null,"youtube_id":null,"google_plus_id":null,"website":null,"slug":null,"issue_count":18,"is_following":null,"influence_score":0,"influence_level":0,"follower_count":0,"following_count":0,"position_count":4,"id":"mwobrY4a","partner_id":null}],"bill_position":{"flagged":false,"id":"3a23929d-fe88-42a8-816f-e758f9b77831","argument_for":null,"argument_against":"This should be done in trade talks. The beneficiaries of this measure will be the connected top corporations trading campaign donation money for diplomatic advocates and pushing for diplomat appointments for corporate representatives. ","show_argument_for":false,"show_argument_against":true,"upvote_count":0,"upvotes_for_count":null,"upvotes_against_count":0,"has_upvoted":false,"endorsement_count":0,"links":{"self":"https://www.causes.com/positions/3a23929d-fe88-42a8-816f-e758f9b77831"},"body":"This should be done in trade talks. The beneficiaries of this measure will be the connected top corporations trading campaign donation money for diplomatic advocates and pushing for diplomat appointments for corporate representatives. ","stance":"nay","created_at":"2019-05-07T00:47:49.113Z","shareable_image_url":"https://n.causes.com/share-images/positions/3a23929d-fe88-42a8-816f-e758f9b77831.png","note_color":null,"note_text":null,"bill_id":"hr1704-116","user_id":"mwobrY4a","endorser_ids":[]}}

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Should U.S. Diplomacy Seek to Bolster American Businesses?