Public Citizen Expert to Testify at USTR Section 301 Hearing on Brazil Today
Sham Investigation Seeks to Undermine Brazil’s Laws to Rein in the Power of Big Tech Companies
WASHINGTON — Public Citizen’s Melinda St. Louis will testify today in a hearing before the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) regarding the Section 301 Investigation of Brazil.
St. Louis will argue that the Section 301 investigation against Brazil related to social media regulation and data privacy is a bald-faced power grab on behalf of Big Tech. Moreover, misuse of this important tool threatens the legitimacy of genuine investigations carried out by the USTR to support U.S. jobs and industries.
The tariffs that Trump has enacted via emergency declaration have now been rejected by two courts, with the Supreme Court set to make the final decision. If those tariffs are eventually thrown out, the Trump administration may further misuse tools like Section 301 to establish new tariffs.
The hearing will take place at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, September 3, at the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), in Room 101 at 500 E St SW, Washington, D.C.
RESOURCES:
- Written Testimony for Sept. 3, 2025 Hearing
- Comment Submission in Collaboration With Data Privacy Brazil, Aug.18, 2025
- “Trump’s Bizarre, Authoritarian, Big, Tech-Friendly Tariffs on Brazil” in Common Dreams, July 11, 2025
- “Trump’s Emergency Declaration on Brazil Is a Shameless Power Grab,” Public Citizen Statement from July 30, 2025
BACKGROUND:
In early July, President Trump sent a letter to Brazilian President Lula de Silva threatening to apply tariffs of 50% on Brazilian imports to the US, starting on August 1, citing a nonexistent U.S. trade deficit, alleged censorship of U.S tech firms, and a “witch hunt” against Jair Bolsonaro. Days after a rejection response to these claims by Lula, the USTR opened a 301 investigation into Brazil’s trade practices.
The false “national emergency” based on the domestic judicial proceedings against former Brazilian President Bolsonaro and the sham Section 301 investigation of Brazil’s regulation of its digital ecosystem on behalf of Big Tech is a clear fig leaf to implement politically motivated trade sanctions against Brazil.