The U.S. International Trade Commission (Commission or USITC) is seeking input for its third factfinding investigation on the automotive rules of origin (ROOs) under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and the ROOs’ impact on the U.S. economy, effect on U.S. competitiveness, and relevancy considering recent technology changes. 

The Commission instituted this investigation, USMCA Automotive Rules of Origin: Economic Impact and Operation, 2027 Report (Inv. No. 332-608), for the purpose of preparing the third of five reports required by section 202A(g)(2) of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act. The report will be transmitted to the President, the Senate Committee on Finance and the House Committee on Ways and Means no later than July 1, 2027.

As required, the USITC, an independent, nonpartisan, factfinding federal agency, will examine the USMCA automotive ROOs and their impact on the United States in an investigation and produce a report. The report will provide information on:

• The economic impact of the USMCA automotive ROOs on U.S. gross domestic product (GDP); U.S. exports and imports; U.S. aggregate employment and employment opportunities; production, investment, use of productive facilities, and profit levels in the U.S. automotive industries and other pertinent industries; wages and employment of workers in the U.S. automotive sector; and the interests of U.S. consumers
• The operation of the ROOs and their effects on the competitiveness of the United States with respect to production and trade in automotive goods, considering developments in technology, production processes, or other related matters
• Whether the ROOs are relevant in light of technological changes in the United States; and
• Other matters identified by the Commission as relevant to the economic impact of the ROOs, including prices, sales, inventories, patterns of demand, capital investment, obsolescence of equipment, and diversification of production in the United States

As part of its investigation, the Commission intends to conduct a survey and will post the associated questionnaire on its website at a later date.

The USITC is required to submit reports on the USMCA automotive ROOs every two years until 2031, for a total of five reports. The Commission’s first and second reports are posted on the Commission’s website.

Public participation

The USITC expects to hold a public hearing in connection with this investigation on October 14, 2026, at U.S. International Trade Commission Building, 500 E Street SW, Washington, DC 20436. The hearing also will be streamed online. Key dates related to the investigation are as follows:

• September 29, 2026: Deadline for filing requests to appear at the public hearing
• October 1, 2026: Deadline for filing prehearing briefs and statements
• October 6, 2026: Deadline for filing electronic copies of hearing oral statements
• October 14, 2026: Public hearing
• October 21, 2026: Deadline for filing posthearing briefs
• November 2, 2026: Deadline for filing all other written submissions 

Filings must be made through the Commission’s Electronic Document Information System (EDIS).

Interested individuals are encouraged to sign up for alerts from the USITC about Federal Register notices published with updates regarding USITC factfinding investigations like this one. 

Further information on the scope of this investigation is available in the USITC’s notice of investigation, dated February 19, 2026, which may also be obtained by contacting the Office of the Secretary.

 About USITC factfinding investigations

USITC general factfinding investigations, such as this one, cover matters related to tariffs, trade, and competitiveness and are generally conducted under section 332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930 at the request of the U.S. Trade Representative, the House Committee on Ways and Means, or the Senate Committee on Finance. The resulting reports convey the Commission’s objective findings and independent analyses on the subjects investigated. The Commission makes no recommendations on policy or other matters in its general factfinding reports. Upon completion of each investigation, the USITC submits its findings and analyses to the requester. General factfinding investigation reports are subsequently released to the public unless they are classified by the requester for national security reasons.