Gulf States Umbrella Organization

By John Mulholland

Washington Report readers are at least obliquely aware of the existence of various American businessmen's groups in major cities of the Arab states of the Gulf. In coordination with the US Chamber of Commerce and other groups that share their goals and interests, these groups sent six delegations to Washington during the past five years to present their viewpoints to members of Congress and the executive branch. Delegates are Americans whose activities affect the economies of every American state.

A big step forward in presenting overseas business issues was the creation of an umbrella organization for all of the member groups: The American Businessmen of the Gulf Arab States.

Dick Meade, already president of the American Businessmen's Group of Riyadh, was elected its first chairman. Ted Bevec and David Bosch from the Saudi Arabian eastern province group were elected vice-chairman and secretary respectively.

In turn, this writer became the umbrella group's Washington representative, with a special mandate to coordinate with the US Chamber of Commerce on those issues that affect all Americans working abroad.

Perhaps our biggest success story of the past year was our placement of an American expert to work with the Saudi Arabian Standards Organization in Riyadh to formulate standards governing all imports into the Kingdom. These standards will inevitably be adopted by the other GCC states. To get the expert in place now, we were able to raise funds through private donors and are now lobbying for federal funding of the position through the Department of Commerce.

Eliminating tax loopholes plays well in Peoria, but taxing Americans abroad can price them right out of a highly competitive market.

Rep. Bill Alexander (D-AR) has become our somewhat surprising champion for increasing tax exemptions for Americans working abroad. Eliminating tax loopholes plays well in Peoria, but taxing Americans abroad can price them right out of a highly competitive market. If they are replaced by technicians and specialists of other nationalities, those experts inevitably will steer their foreign employers to buy goods from their own countries, not the United States. In short, a tax on Americans working abroad is, in reality, a tax on American trade, something in this day and age the United States can ill afford.

John Brantley, our tax expert, now residing in Philadelphia, testified before Congress in late November on the impact of taxation of US expatriates. After five years of effort, we believe Congress is coming to grips with the seriousness of this issue.

Another issue our organization is following closely is the pending sale of tanks to Saudi Arabia. Although the Bush administration deflected opposition by virtually bribing Israel, it appears that the sale will proceed, and there will be no repeat of the "Tornado" debacle, which diverted between $30 and $60 billion in business to England for no other reason than the threat of opposition by AIPAC, Israel's Washington lobby. Henceforth, when Congress refuses to sell arms to friends for whatever reason, people back home will know the cost to their pocket book.

John Mulholland, a former president of the American Businessmen of Jeddah, is the Washington, DC representative of the American Businessmen of the Gulf Arab States.