Key Republicans in Congress are urging the European Union to reverse strict new environmental and human rights requirements that could cost US businesses billions of dollars more annually, The Post has learned.
In a letter sent Thursday to the EU’s US ambassador, Energy and Commerce Chair Brett Guthrie of Kentucky, Financial Services Chair French Hill of Arkansas and Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan of Ohio took aim at the EU’s new Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, or CSDDD.
“The compliance requirements are onerous and extraterritorial and appear to be designed to deliberately harm American companies,” a copy of the letter obtained by The Post stated, ripping the new rules’ “invasive checks on a company’s supply chains.”
The letter cited a recent study from the Hudson Institute, a conservative think tank based in Washington, DC, that found the CSDDD would lead to “measurable initial compliance costs of between $637 billion and $1.093 trillion.”
The study noted that these costs are comparable to what US firms currently pay in environmental and financial regulations combined.
Annual recurring costs for US businesses would “range from $57 million to $8 billion,” which balloons to “recurring annual costs [that] range from $6 billion to $43 billion” if implicit costs are included, according to the same study.
“The EU’s CSDDD is yet another example in a concerning pattern of anti-competitive and anti-American business regulations,” Guthrie said in a statement.
“The Western world benefits from a strong Europe, but unfortunately, rather than pursuing freer markets and innovation, EU regulators continue to prefer heavy-handed government intervention,” Guthrie added.
“This course has hindered the European economy for the past two decades, and now the EU seeks to apply that same model outside of its borders.”
The House members are asking the EU to remove the CSDDD regulations for all non-EU businesses – saying they are currently considering legislative action to provide relief to US companies harmed by the harsh requirements.
“The costs and burdens associated with CSDDD compliance could lead to American companies drastically limiting or even divesting their European business.”
In an October 2025 letter to senior Trump admin officials, several advocacy groups – including the National Association of Manufacturers and the US Chamber of Commerce – warned of the potential ripple effects from the more stringent environmental regulations.
“American businesses could be forced to respond to protect their interests. They would face difficult decisions about their EU investments and their exposure to the law’s mandated penalties for perceived lack of compliance,” the advocacy groups wrote.
“Economic growth would slow, supply chains would suffer, and transatlantic commerce and relations would only worsen. Neither the EU nor US would benefit from that scenario,” they said, adding that it would harm small and large businesses alike, along with local suppliers.
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