South and Central Asia Subcommittee Chairman Huizenga Delivers Opening Remarks at Joint Subcommittee Hearing on Aligning Commercial Diplomacy
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, House Foreign Affairs South and Central Asia Subcommittee Chairman Bill Huizenga delivered opening remarks at a subcommittee hearing titled “More Bang for the Buck: Aligning Commercial Diplomacy Between State and Commerce.”
- Remarks -
Well, thank you, my fellow chair. Glad we could be doing this together. And as chairman of the subcommittee that oversees both BIS and ITA, I have sort of a unique perspective in jurisdiction over both export controls and export promotion within the Department of Commerce.
This morning, our full committee had a hearing with Under Secretary Kessler on export controls. This afternoon, I'm pleased that we are joined by Assistant Secretary for Global Markets, Mr. Fogel and Assistant Secretary for Economic, Energy and Business Affairs, Mr. Orr, who are leading our export promotion efforts across the Departments of Commerce and State.
America first means ensuring that America's economic interests are at the forefront of U.S. foreign policy because, as we know, economic security is national security. This is critical for my home state of Michigan, which exports over $58 billion in goods to the world in 2025, including agricultural and manufactured products, automobiles and their components and chemicals, etc., etc. I'd be remiss if I didn’t throw in office furniture as well. We have the three largest office furniture makers in the world, all of which supports an estimated 230,000 jobs.
Under President Trump's leadership, we're opening new markets for American businesses. The full potential of this new market access can only be realized if State and Commerce are in lockstep. Everyone from fortune 100 companies to small and medium enterprises must get the resources, advocacy, and information they need to compete and capitalize on these global opportunities.
In Michigan alone, 89% of the thousands of companies exporting from our state are those small-and-medium-sized companies with fewer than 500 employees. Foreign commercial service is tasked with serving as America's business advocates on the ground, providing everything from business intelligence to ensuring that American businesses are fairly considered and helping companies navigate the global regulatory landscape. It's essential for our commercial diplomacy efforts that the FCS and the State Department coordinate closely to ensure 24/7, around the world support for American businesses.
A key pillar of our economic promotion strategy is the new American AI Exports program. The administration's AI Action plan lays out a two-prong approach to achieving American AI dominance. First, prevent American AI from fueling China's military modernization through export controls. Second, promote global adaptation of American AI by making it as easy as possible for our partners, allies, and emerging markets to securely build using our AI technologies.
The American AI Export program is the landmark initiative to deliver on the promoting prong of the strategy, and I was proud to support the program's codification. The foreign commercial service is the lead agency implementing the American AI Export program around the world, and this hearing provides an excellent opportunity to see how state and commerce are working together to execute the mission.
On everything from AI models to Michigan blueberries, State and Commerce must be working together to help our businesses navigate and compete in global markets. I want to thank both of our witnesses for being here today, and I look forward to your testimony as you fight for American businesses. With that, I yield back.
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