Young, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Strengthen American Leadership in Digital Trade

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) led U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), and Michael Bennet (D-Co.) in introducing the Digital Trade Promotion Act, legislation to strengthen America’s global leadership in digital trade.

From the buying and selling of goods in online marketplaces to the digital services that enable smart manufacturing and modern agricultural practices, digital trade has quickly become a driving force in our everyday economy. While the United States has historically led the development of rules and standards for digital trade, other countries, including foreign adversaries and even some allies, are advancing their own digital trade policies that would undermine American businesses and workers.

The Digital Trade Promotion Act would empower the president to negotiate and enforce digital trade agreements with trusted partners and allies, thereby bolstering opportunities for businesses and workers, strengthening our economic security, and ensuring that American values power the digital world.    

“China and other strategic competitors are pushing digital regimes that create new barriers and tilt the field against U.S. companies and workers. To ensure American workers, businesses, and consumers can succeed in the digital age, we must cement U.S. leadership in the global digital economy,” said Senator Young. “Negotiating more digital trade agreements with partners and allies will strengthen our economic security, spur more opportunities for Hoosiers, and secure America’s competitive edge.”

“From farmers in Sussex to fintech startups in New Castle County, digital tools help every entrepreneur compete around the world. I’m proud to introduce the bipartisan Digital Trade Promotion Act to help businesses big and small compete on a level playing field and ensure the global rules of the road are rooted in American values of openness, transparency, and fairness,” said Senator Coons.

“Advancing the digital trade of goods and services positively impacts everyone across our state – from farmers and manufacturers to small businesses and consumers,” said Senator Moran. “This legislation allows for greater executive authority to promote trade deals involving digital products and services, reducing digital trade barriers while allowing Congress to exercise necessary oversight of any agreement in order to make certain the American people are prioritized.”

“The United States’ digital sector is the envy of the world, but we cannot allow China to write the rules of the road for the next generation of emerging technology,” said Senator Bennet. “This legislation will ensure the U.S. can work closely with our allies and partners to establish a strong international framework for innovation and consumer protection in the digital age.”

More specifically, the Digital Trade Promotion Act would:

• Reaffirm that digital trade is critical to U.S. growth, jobs, competitiveness, and leadership, and that the United States should lead in setting high-standard rules with like-minded partners.
• Authorize the president, through the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), to negotiate, enter, and enforce digital trade agreements with trusted partners that meet specified rule-of-law, openness, and intellectual property protections.
• Require that any digital trade agreement cover all sectors and include key negotiating priorities: nondiscrimination for digital goods and services, bans on discriminatory digital taxes and data localization, free cross-border data flows, strong protections for source code and algorithms, interoperable privacy and consumer protections, AI and emerging-tech cooperation, cybersecurity cooperation, and support for open, voluntary international standards.
• Establish congressional oversight with advance notice, consultation during negotiations, a pre-signing report, and a defined review window in which Congress can block an agreement.
• Direct USTR to monitor partner compliance on an ongoing basis and gives the President tools to respond to violations, including suspending or withdrawing agreement benefits, negotiating corrective and compensatory arrangements, or taking other actions to push partners back into compliance.

Legislative text can be found here. A one-pager on the bill can be found here.