Issued 2023-12-28 by Joseph R. Biden Jr.
AI-generated summary explaining what this action does, who it affects, and why it matters
Proclamation 10690 adjusts the tariff treatment of aluminum imports from the European Union into the United States. Like its steel counterpart, it modifies the Section 232 national security tariff structure that has applied to aluminum imports since 2018, updating the terms of the arrangement negotiated between the United States and the EU to address aluminum trade on terms both sides found acceptable as an alternative to blanket tariffs.
This proclamation affects U.S. aluminum producers, importers of EU aluminum products, manufacturers that use aluminum, and the workers in those industries. The EU is directly affected as the primary subject of the proclamation's trade arrangement. Changes to aluminum tariff levels can influence domestic production, downstream manufacturing costs, and U.S.-EU trade relations.
The legal authority is Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. The scope of Section 232 authority and the national security rationale for aluminum tariffs have been subjects of ongoing debate, but courts have generally upheld executive discretion in this area.
AI-generated summary for educational purposes
How this action fits (or doesn't) within Article II authority and existing law
This proclamation ("Proclamation 10690-Adjusting Imports of Aluminum Into the United States") imposes or modifies tariffs. The stated rationale is: "the threatened impairment to the national security by aluminum articles imported from the EU." Under Article I, Section 8, Congress holds the power to "regulate Commerce with foreign Nations" and to "lay and collect Duties." However, Congress has delegated significant tariff authority to the President through statutes like Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act (national security tariffs) and Section 301 of the Trade Act (unfair trade practices).
The constitutional question is the scope of that delegation. Courts have historically upheld broad presidential trade actions under these statutes. But sweeping tariff measures that effectively rewrite trade policy — affecting billions in commerce — raise non-delegation doctrine concerns. When the executive branch makes economic policy of this magnitude unilaterally, it sits at the edge of the separation of powers.
DCPD202301155 * {margin:0; padding:0; text-indent:0; } .s1 { color: black; font-family:"Times New Roman", serif; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; font-size: 12pt; } h1 { color: black; font-family:"Times New Roman", serif; font-style: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; font-size: 12pt; } .s2 { color: black; font-family:"Times New Roman", serif; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; font-size: 11pt; } .p, p { color: black; font-family:"Times New Roman", serif; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; font-size: 11pt; margin:0pt; } .s3 { color: black; font-family:"Times New Roman", serif; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; font-size: 12pt; } .s4 { color: black; font-family:"Times New Roman", serif; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; font-size: 9pt; } li {display: block; } #l1 {padding-left: 0pt;counter-reset: c1 1; } #l1> li>*:first-child:before {counter-increment: c1; content: counter(c1, decimal)". "; color: black; font-family:"Times New Roman", serif; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; font-size: 11pt; } #l1> li:first-child>*:first-child:before {counter-increment: c1 0; } li {display: block; } #l2 {padding-left: 0pt;counter-reset: d1 1; } #l2> li>*:first-child:before {counter-increment: d1; content: "("counter(d1, decimal)") "; color: black; font-family:"Times New Roman", serif; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; font-size: 11pt; } #l2> li:first-child>*:first-child:before {counter-increment