Today, Rep. Rick Larsen, WA-02, voted for and the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to give the President authority to finalize trade agreements. Larsen backed the Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015 (H.R. 2146) because trade supports jobs and a growing economy in the Second Congressional District and in Washington state.

Larsen also voted last week to reauthorize a program to help workers whose jobs have been affected by trade, called Trade Adjustment Assistance. That measure did not pass the House, though Larsen continues to call for its renewal.

“Today I voted in favor of opening up new markets for businesses of all sizes in my district to sell their goods overseas and create jobs here at home. The 2015 TPA bill gives the President the authority he needs to finalize trade agreements based on strong direction from Congress. And the bill will help level the playing field for our workers while upholding labor and environmental protections we have worked so hard in this country to achieve.

“There is more work to do to strengthen our country’s approach to trade by renewing TAA. The TAA program has helped workers whose jobs have been hurt by trade for the last 40 years, because Democrats understood the job shifts likely to result from an increasingly global economy. In recent years, TAA has helped nearly 2,900 workers in the Second Congressional District and more than 17,500 workers in Washington state with job training and income support.

“The TAA measure before the House renews the program for six years, the longest extension since 1986, with $450 million of funding each year. It also expands who is eligible for the program’s benefits.

“I supported TAA when the House voted last week, and I remain committed to the program. We had the chance to pass the program in tandem with TPA, but Democrats blocked it and TAA failed. I expect the House to reconsider TAA, and I look forward to voting for TAA again,” Larsen said.

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