U.S. Senator JD Vance Leads Legislation Increasing Online Transparency and Support of American-Made Products

U.S. Senator JD Vance (R-OH) introduced legislation to increase online transparency and support products made in the USA.

The Bipartisan Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) Online Act, sponsored by Vance and U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), would ensure that all products sold online list their country of origin to protect Americans’ right to know where the things they purchase are manufactured, as well as the promotion of American-made products for internet buyers.

Unlike in-person sales, online sales of goods do not require the disclosure of the nation of origin. According to Vance, by modernizing the USA’s labeling regulations for the e-commerce era, the Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) Online Act would promote transparency online by giving online customers the same access to seller location and country of origin information that they do in-person.

Vance said that Americans deserve to know where manufacturers make the products they buy.

“The American people deserve to know where the products they buy are made, regardless of whether they’re shopping in-store or online. Our legislation would close a legal loophole by extending current, commonsense labeling requirements to e-commerce. With this proposal, we can give American consumers the confidence that their online purchases support American workers and industry,” Vance said.

According to Baldwin, lawmakers need to fix the outdated country of origin’s labeling laws.

“I’ve heard from Made in Wisconsin businesses across the state who work hard to innovate and create new products, only to have cheaper, lower quality imitations sold online with no requirements to identify themselves as foreign-made. I am proud to join my Democratic and Republican colleagues to fix our outdated country-of-origin labeling laws to promote transparency for shoppers and boost American manufacturers, businesses, and workers,” Baldwin said.

Vance noted that the pandemic served to accelerate the annual trend of e-commerce’s growing percentage of total retail sales.

“As e-commerce grows, it will pull more sales from brick-and-mortar retail locations, making big companies bigger, while threatening small businesses and mom-and-pop stores nationwide and leaving Americans increasingly unsure about where products are made,” Vance said.

A 2022 poll conducted by the Alliance for American Manufacturing found that 81 percent of Americans would buy more American-made goods if they could and that 79 percent of Americans feel that the law should require online businesses to offer the same country-of-origin information as in-person retailers.

The Alliance for American Manufacturing, American Compass, and the Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) all support the COOL Online Act.

“By giving online shoppers information about where a product is being made and where the seller is located, consumers will be well-positioned to support the U.S. economy and create more jobs for American workers. It is long overdue that Congress close this loophole,” Scott Paul, President of the Alliance for American Manufacturing said.

“The foolish economic theory that it doesn’t matter where things are made, or whether America makes anything at all, has done great harm to the United States. Americans want to know where the things they buy come from and to buy from America when they can. That’s no less true when they shop online, and Senators Vance and Baldwin are right to insist that clear labeling provides the needed information,” Oren Cass, executive director of American Compass, said.

“By requiring this information in Internet sales, the bill will help consumers protect themselves against unsafe, counterfeit and shoddy goods, and, if they choose, to purchase products made in America. CPA urges the bill’s enactment into law,” Michael Stumo, CEO of CPA, said.

The COOL Online Act will also update the Federal Trade Commission Act to reflect the needs of the e-commerce era. The legislation aims to require manufacturers to identify the product’s nation of origin in the website’s description in a way that is both clear and noticeable, as required by the law, and to require the product listing online to include a clear statement about the nation where the product’s vendor is based.

Senators Rick Scott (R-FL), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Josh Hawley (R-MO), and Mike Braun (R-IN) are also co-sponsors of the legislation.

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Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star and The Star News Network. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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