by STEVE PASIERB, president and CEO, The Toy Association
The Toy Association is continuing to aggressively fight the threat of tariffs that could potentially be as much as 25 percent on toys imported from China. Working together with member companies represented on our Federal Government Affairs Committee and the Association’s Board Executive Committee, we have been in touch with the White House, United States Trade Representative (USTR) and other administration officials as they finalize their decision—which could be announced at any moment—to make it crystal clear that tariffs on toys would cause significant harm to U.S. consumers and to quality American jobs in the toy sector.
In addition to contacting congressional offices, we’ve activated an industry-wide grassroots network and are fully engaged with an anti-tariff coalition of more than 50 associations and corporate members. Hundreds of Toy Association members have joined our grassroots efforts, sending letters to their legislators urging them to dissuade the president from placing tariffs on toys. Now is the time to be heard!
We are also paying close attention to talk in Washington about the potential of new sources to fuel tax cuts, rightfully worried that this might rekindle talk of a Border Adjustment Tax (BAT). Successfully pushing back on the BAT was a major accomplishment for The Toy Association in 2017. Rest assured that we are fighting both the tariff issue and any other potential form of taxes on toys with every ounce of our being.
We understand that the overwhelming majority of the Association’s members are small businesses, many of them family-owned, and toy factories in China aren’t government-controlled. Key toy industry operations such as design, research and development, marketing, and other key functions, representing 65 percent of total manufacturing costs, are performed right here in the United States. Economic studies show that the U.S. toy industry directly or indirectly employs more than 680,000 American workers in these and related functions. The viability of these American jobs would be undermined by tariffs. Children and families would be negatively impacted as not all toy companies can simply absorb significant tariffs without raising prices.
Once the tariff list is made public, we will be in touch with members to discuss next steps during the comment period. Even if toys are not targeted, it’s clear that an education effort for legislators is needed to help make sure we’re never included in the future. Be on the lookout for member alerts via email and for updates in Toy News Tuesday. If your company has a government affairs function or a senior person who can join our Federal Government Affairs Committee calls, please make certain they join to receive critical updates and developments on this issue—contact Samantha Slosberg for call notices and updates. We’re dedicated to protecting your business!
