ETA Urges U.S. Congress and Parliament of Canada to Ratify Trade Agreement
5-22-2019
Washington, D.C. – May 22, 2018 – The following statement is attributed to Scott Talbott, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs of the Electronic Transactions Association (ETA), regarding the need for policymakers in the U.S. Congress and the Parliament of Canada to ratify the trilateral trade agreement signed by the leaders of the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
“ETA urges the U.S. Congress and the Canadian Parliament to ratify the USMCA/CUSMA. The trilateral agreement would strengthen cross-border digital trade and advance electronic products and services that enable engagement with the digital economy. These new and modern trade rules reflect the importance of data, technology, and innovation in the North American economy. Through ratification of the trade agreement, the U.S. Congress and Canadian Parliament play an important role in ensuring that both countries continue to be world leaders of global commerce.”
Today, ETA sent letters to the Canadian Prime Minster, Ministers of Foreign Affairs, International Trade, and the Minister of Finance and the Chair and Ranking member of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means urging the ratification of the USMCA and CUSMA to boost the American and Canadian economies and bring predicable rules for all companies that use electronic payments in North America.
ETA members reach beyond the borders of the United States to power commerce in every corner of the globe. Digital technology drives global commerce and ensures payments happen on time and in the right amount. Specifically, the USMCA/CUSMA would:
- Set a new and important precedent for modern trade rules that reflect the importance of data, technology, and innovation.
- Provide strong provisions for the free flow of information across borders;
- Bar any country from requiring any sector to use or locate computing facilities in their territory as a condition for conducting business will allow companies to store their data wherever they choose;
- Enable each country to adopt flexible privacy laws to protect consumers.
About ETA
The Electronic Transactions Association (ETA) is the global trade association representing more than 500 payments and technology companies. ETA members make commerce possible by processing more than $7 trillion in purchases in North America and deploying payments innovation to merchants and consumers.
ETA Press Contact:
Laura Hubbard
202-677-7406
About ETA
The Electronic Transactions Association (ETA) is the world’s leading advocacy and trade association for the payments industry. Our members span the breadth of significant payments and fintech companies, from the largest incumbent players to the emerging disruptors in the U.S. and in more than a dozen countries around the world. ETA members make commerce possible by processing approximately $56.75 trillion annually in purchases and P2P payments worldwide and deploying payments innovation to merchants and consumers.
ETAs membership spans the breadth of the payments industry to include independent sales organizations (ISOs), payments networks, financial institutions, transaction processors, mobile payments products and services, payments technologies, and software providers (ISV) and hardware suppliers. For more information, visit electran.org.