Dear Chairman Durbin and Ranking Member Grassley: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce opposes S. 977, the “No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels Act” (NOPEC), which your committee is scheduled to consider in a markup on May 5.
The Chamber is unalterably opposed to anti-competitive conduct in commercial markets by foreign states and their agents. However, S. 977 ignores the legal and policy complexities at play when a nation-state engages in or directs commercial conduct. Antitrust cases involving nation-state commercial activity can already be brought under existing law. The proposed legislation would prohibit the courts from carefully evaluating sovereign immunity claims.