August 21: ...President Obama is readying one final push for approval of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the largest regional trade agreement ever, between the United States and 11 other Pacific Rim nations. And though the odds may be long, a presidency defined by partisan stalemate may yet secure one last legacy — only because of Mr. Obama’s delicate alliance with the Republicans who control Congress. (Source: New York Times)

August 18: ...We've come to Alaska with Earthjustice — the nation's top nonprofit public interest environmental law firm — for a crash course in climate change. We're also here to look at some of the extraordinary efforts now being made within the fashion industry — both to curb its role in climate change (which is significant) and to transform the business in a way that no one could have imagined 30 years ago. (Source: Marie Claire)

August 18: Thousands of combat helmets made for the U.S. military by prisoners and paid for by the government were defective, putting service members — including some in Afghanistan — at risk, according to a report from a watchdog agency. A litany of violations were found in the manufacturing process, including the use of unauthorized or degraded materials... (Source: NBC News)

August 17: Nothing has stopped Shirin Begum from going to work every day at a garment factory for more than 10 years — but last month's deadly attack by Islamic militants in the capital, Dhaka, could change that. ..."What will happen to us if the buyers are not going to come to Bangladesh?" says Shirin, a mother-of-two who works as a seamstress at a factory just outside Dhaka that stitches clothes for many Western retail brands. (Source: BBC)

August 22: With Amazon and Ebay having increased their efforts at bringing in Chinese sellers and with more and more Chinese manufacturers branching out and making their own products, the number of companies contacting our China lawyers about problems with counterfeit products and knockoffs has soared. If the problem involves infringing products being imported into the United States, powerful remedies are available to companies with U.S. IP rights. One of the most powerful remedies is a Section 337 case, which can block infringing products, regardless of their origin, from entering the U.S. (Source: China Law Blog)

August 19: For proponents of patent reform, 2016 has so far been decidedly a mixed bag. Election years are rarely good turf for major legislative accomplishments, simply because the amount of debate and deliberation required to pass such things is quite out of keeping with the ADD style of media coverage during elections, and with the distraction experienced by lawmakers. (Source: The American Spectator)

August 18: You’ve seen them on Instagram — tagged in a photo of one of your favorite style bloggers — and you stumble upon them regularly on websites like Vogue and Refinery29. You might even purchase from them, maybe as often as they refresh their inventory — every two or so weeks, like clockwork. (Source: Racked)

In Brief
Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (MTB) process: On August 16, AAFA submitted comments to the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) about the MTB process in response to the American Manufacturing Competitiveness Act (AMCA), which moved the MTB review process from Congress to the USITC.

See all of AAFA’s latest letters, comments, and testimony here.

Get involved! AAFA members get the most out of membership when they participate in our events and committees – join committees here. 

Congress and government agencies solicit comments on a range of issues that may affect your business – find a list of comment opportunities here. 

Member Welcome: Impactiva

The trusted leader in supply chain optimization, Impactiva services are focused in three key areas: Quality Assurance/Quality Control, Quality Management Systems, and Process Optimization. Each serves to eliminate waste, cut costs, and improve quality across your entire supply chain, from your company and trading companies to your factories and the material vendors that supply them.