Canada – Public Procurement International

Trump and Tariffs — the Procurement Exception

President Trump has announced a series of tariff initiatives, including proposed 25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico, 10% tariffs imposed on goods from China (White House fact sheet), and proposed “reciprocal” tariffs on goods from nations that impose higher tariff rates.

When foreign goods are imported for sale to the U.S. government, if proper procedures are followed, the goods generally should be free from tariffs, per longstanding U.S. regulations.

For information on U.S. agencies’ exemptions from tariffs in their procurements, see the analysis compiled here for an upcoming February 21, 2025 webinar on U.S. and EU protectionism.

Government Procurement Review (8th edition, 2020) – available online

The Government Procurement Review, one of the leading compilations of procurement laws from around the world, is now available in its 8th edition. Congratulations to the editors, Jonathan Davey and Amy Gatenby of the law firm of Addleshaw Goddard.

The volume, published annually, covers procurement law from fourteen countries and the European Union, including reviews by leading procurement practitioners from Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Germany, Greece, Italy, Mexico, Russia, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.

For further information on foreign and international sources on public procurement law, please see the research guide prepared by GW Law’s government procurement research librarian, Mary Kate Hunter.

The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA): Some Surprising Outcomes in Procurement

Article available at: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3268740

Christopher R. Yukins – George Washington University Law School

The Trump administration recently released the proposed text of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), a major regional trade agreement that, if ratified, would replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). While the government procurement chapter of the proposed USMCA was largely a copy-and-paste from the abandoned Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement (TPP), the procurement chapter of the USMCA did contain a few major surprises — including the omission of Canada. This article reviews the background to the USMCA, some of the most important elements of the agreement, and the lessons learned for future international cooperation in procurement policy and law.

This article draws in part upon a paper that Professor Yukins will present at an interdisciplinary conference in procurement at the Sorbonne University, Paris in October 2018.