Welch Calls for Vote on Bipartisan CANADA Act Ahead of Trump’s  August 1 Tariff Deadline

Jul 31, 2025
CANADA Actwould exempt U.S.-owned small businesses from tariffs imposed on Canada
WASHINGTON, D.C.–U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.),a member of the Senate Finance Committee, this week pushed for avote on his bipartisanCreating Access to Necessary American-Canadian Duty Adjustments (CANADA) Act,legislation to exempt United States-owned small businesses from tariffs imposed on Canada.Senate Republicans blocked the unanimous consent request and refused to support small businesses in their states.
Senator Welch took to the Senate Floor to slam the Trump Administration’s plan to increase tariffs and enact new sweeping global tariffs on August 1. Senator Welch also spoke in support of his bipartisan bill, theCANADA Act:
“This trade war is yet another example of the Trump Administration’s chaos, cruelty, and corruption: Chaos for Vermont’s small businesses, farmers, and manufacturers who don’t know what to expect day-to-day; Cruelty for America’s working families, who will pay more because of this reckless trade policy; and Corruption by President Trump himself, who has created an access economy focused on self-dealing,”said Senator Welch in his remarks. “I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support theCANADA Act, and in-turn support small businesses in their state.”
Watch Senator Welch’s floor remarkshere:
TheCANADA Actis led by Senator Welch and cosponsored by Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.). TheCANADA Actis supported by Main Street Alliance and Small Business Majority.
In 2024 alone, trade with Canada accounted for35%of Vermont’s exports,67%of its imports, and56%of its total trade. One in four businesses in Vermont relies on trade with Canada. Vermont buys more goods from Canada than the next nine largest foreign markets combined. In 2023, Vermont exported$150 millionjust in food and agricultural products to Canada.
Vermont boasts nearly82,000small businesses, which represent99%of all businesses in the state, and employ over62%of Vermont’s overall workforce—higher than the national average. Small businesses in Vermont also employ a diverse workforce, with43.8%of small businesses in the state owned by women and6%owned by veterans.
Senator Welch hasblasted Trump’s tariffsandtradewarandshared storiesfrom constituents about how President Trump’s economic policies have impacted their businesses, farms, and communities. Senator Welch is a cosponsor of a bipartisan resolution torepeal the tariffson Canada, a bipartisan bill to restore congressional tariff authority, a bill to restrict the Executive Branch’s authority to impose tariffs through theInternational Economic Emergency Powers Act, and a bill to exempt small businesses from the April 2ndglobal tariff Executive Order. Senator Welch also led a bipartisan resolution toend President Trump’s ruinous global tariffs.
In May, Senator Welch joined abipartisan delegationand traveled to Ottawa to meet with Canadian dignitaries, including Prime Minister Mark Carney, to discuss bipartisan support for a U.S.-Canada partnership and their commitment to a strong trading relationship between the United States and Canada. The Senator has hosted roundtables inStowe,Newport,St. Albans,Manchester, andvirtuallyto hear concerns and first-hand stories from Vermont and Canadian leaders impacted by the trade war.
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