Congresswoman Louise Slaughter says there's legislation that addresses our growing trade deficit for goods and services, which has gone from $70 billion in 1993 to $500 billion last year.
"All the trade bills that we have ever gone into, all the trade agreements we've gone into, never advantaged, or even was fair to the American manufacturer or the American worker," she said.
Slaughter toured PGM in Rochester, a precision machining corporation, telling workers there that the "Trade Deficit Reduction Act" would change the way the United States approaches international trade and make it benefit our workers and manufacturers.
"Once a country, even it's among the TPP which has 12 countries, that reaches an incredible imbalance of trade with us, that trade will be suspended, and that enforcer will make sure trade is brought back into balance before we resume it."
That enforcer of the trade agreement, she says, will be in the Labor Department.
Corporate Vice President at PGM, Todd Hockenberger, says fair trade helps everyone be more competitive.
"Our companies can compete with anybody, because we have highly skilled people, and they're some of the best in the world. So if we can make it fair, it's only going to make us better," he said.
Executive Director of the Rochester Technology and Manufacturing Association, Kevin Kelley, says the bill is a good start toward reaching the goal of balanced trade.