Oral Testimony USTR Section 301 Excess Capacity Hearing John Mlynczak, President & CEO, NAMM

USTR Section 301 Excess Capacity Hearing

Dockets: USTR-2026-0067, USTR-2026-0068

NAMM Oral Testimony

"Good morning. My name is John Mlynczak, and I am the President and CEO of the National

Association of Music Merchants, a 125-year-old trade association representing more than

10,000 musical instrument manufacturers, retailers, and professionals across all 50 states

and in 92 countries. The United States is the single largest market for music products in the

world, representing $9 billion of the $19.5 billion global music products industry.

Ambassador Greer states that “American workers can compete with anyone else in the world,

in this market and beyond, so long as they have a level playing field”. American companies

already design and build some of the finest professional-level musical instruments in the

world. However, the recent tariffs have weakened the ability for U.S. manufacturers and

retailers to compete with anyone else in the world. Tariffs are tilting the playing field against

American manufacturers, American retailers, and the American children and families who

depend on affordable instruments.

American music product manufacturers rely on highly specialized materials and components

sourced from all over the world. The metals, woods, magnets, and all parts used to make

musical products have very specific frequencies at which they must perform. These materials

are sourced from a long-established and interdependent global supply chain, developed over

centuries and rooted in genuine centers of expertise that simply cannot be replicated

domestically.

Tariffs have increased the cost of these materials and components which has in turn

increased the cost of American manufacturing. Competitors abroad are paying less for the

exact same materials and components that are not tariffed by their countries.

Musical instruments are also unique because they have cultural legacies dating back

centuries. Orchestral strings, bows, pianos, woodwinds, brass, drums and percussion, all

have legacies from Europe, China, and Japan. These instruments are produced with

generations of accumulated human and global cultural expertise that does not exist

domestically and cannot be replicated in the U.S.

With 44% of all global musical products sold in the U.S., there is not enough domestic

capacity to meet the demand. Many companies that manufacture professional instruments in

the U.S. also rely on overseas production to meet the demand of entry- and mid-level

students and musicians, creating American brand and retailer loyalty from the first touch.

American companies have successfully partnered with suppliers and producers in Japan,

Mexico, Indonesia, Taiwan, Vietnam, China, and others, to create a network of competitive,

high-quality, and affordable products for all levels of musicians. Tariffs will not shift

purchases to U.S.-made beginner instruments. Instead, they will price beginners out of the

market, which will hurt the American students, retailers, and manufacturers that depend on

today’s students becoming tomorrow's customers.

When the Administration speaks of protecting American manufacturing, we ask that they

consider how the entire pipeline empowers American consumers and future musicians. The

American professional instrument market is only as strong as the student market that feeds it.

49% of American students, around 25 million children, participate in music education in

American schools. No other country in the world comes close to this level of music program

participation. And every professional musician in America began as a student on an

affordable, entry-level instrument, which then feeds the pipeline for American-made

professional instruments.

Unfortunately, entry-level student instruments are most impacted by tariffs: in 2025, U.S.

imports of wind instruments fell 27%. Piano imports fell 20%. These are not just statistics.

They are empty music rooms. These are students who may never pick up an instrument, and

who will never, ten years from now, walk into an American music store to buy a professional

instrument made in the United States.

American manufacturers face higher production costs and are selling less abroad. American

schools face higher prices and are buying fewer instruments. American musicians are paying

more for the products they depend on for their livelihood. Respectfully, that is precisely the

inverse of what a level playing field looks like.

The tariff policies were not designed with our industry in mind and are producing

consequences which directly harm American businesses, musicians, and children. Musical

instruments are not a national security risk. There is no strategic manufacturing sector at

stake. What is at stake is American music education and the long-term success of the

American-led global music products industry, as well as America’s position as the leading

exporter of popular music and culture.

NAMM respectfully urges USTR to include an exclusion process for musical instruments and

related products under HTS Chapter 92 if any tariff actions result from these investigations.

Ambassador Greer said the goal of this trade program is to deliver for the American people.

Music education, music making, and industry-leading American companies are already

delivering for the American people. Please help us continue to deliver without the harmful

burden that tariffs are causing our music makers. Thank you."