The White House is racing to complete the renegotiations for the North American Free Trade Agreement partly because it is not clear when the deadline is.
Administration officials have told reporters they believe the deadline is May 18, but have avoided saying that publicly, because they don’t want to be tied to that date if they cannot make it.
The deadline involves rules for the White House submitting a deal to Congress for approval under the Trade Promotion Authority law. The rules state that the president must give Congress notice 90 calendar days before signing an agreement. It also must give the International Trade Commission the same notice and allow it 195 days to produce an assessment of the deal. It must be done this year because the current Congress expires in December.
That would put the deadline at about May 18, according to most estimates, because that is 195 days from when Congress is scheduled to conclude. However, the deadline depends on how certain days are counted. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said the deadline was May 17 in a Thursday press conference.
The U.S. Trade Representative’s Office declined to confirm any deadline in response to the Washington Examiner. As a different federal official who requested anonymity noted, TPA doesn’t specifically say that the administration must wait for the ITC report.
“It would seem self-evident that they would have to because that is why Congress ordered it — so that the ITC could judge the merits of the agreement. But TPA doesn’t specifically say that,” the official said.
But the administration isn’t eager to open itself up to a legal challenge or to create any situation in which a NAFTA deal could get caught up in red tape. So, it is shooting for May 18, without saying it is required.
Congressional Republicans could extend the current Congress’ end, pushing the date later in December, giving the White House about two extra weeks without raising any clear legal issue. That would put the deadline at about the end of June.
