AACCLA forms its policy objectives through constant dialogue with its network of 22 AmChams in almost every country in Latin America and the Caribbean. These consultations enable AACCLA to identify the most important issues to U.S. investors and their trading partners and to lobby effectively for policies that will address these concerns. In this section you will find information on policy issues affecting trade and investment in the hemisphere.
2026 POLICY PRIORITIES
1. Trade
- Promote full implementation and strong enforcement of existing trade agreements, as well as additional trade initiatives that are comprehensive, ambitious, and commercially significant.
Proposed Actions
- Ensure AmChams are consistently informed of the ongoing developments in Washington, D.C., as it relates to the region.
- Engage with U.S. Administration officials and congressional leaders on hemispheric priorities in trade, including at AACCLA’s policymaker briefing and annual Congressional outreach.
- Leverage the administration’s focus on the Western Hemisphere by promoting trade in the region, including through business intelligence and support for AmCham trade missions and business delegations to the United States.
- Support greater U.S. government and private sector collaboration to increase U.S. participation in major projects and strategic sectors in Latin America and the Caribbean.
- Advocate against tax asymmetries that discriminate digital payments or impose higher tax burdens relative to cash or other traditional payment methods, encouraging governments to ensure competitive neutrality and equal tax treatment across all forms of payment to support financial inclusion, innovation, and fair competition.
2. Trade Facilitation
- Identify and influence trade facilitation, compliance and supply chain security measures throughout the Western Hemisphere to enhance regional and national competitiveness and security.
- Promote modernization of customs authorities and IT systems, harmonization of international standards, regulatory transparency, interoperability, digitalization, trade agreements of the future, the development of small and medium businesses, and drive the need for automation and the reduction of administrative burdens.
- Reinforce the need for seamless cross-border trade and the benefits of e-commerce.
- Encourage trade predictability and customs transparency so that changes to trade rules, tariffs, and customs procedures are conducted with adequate notice and transition periods.
Proposed actions:
- Develop and refine key messaging to governments on opportunities that connect Trade Facilitation to competitiveness and to highlight compliance and supply chain security issues. This will include a one-pager “leave behind” with key message, including the need for automation, predictability and trust in the management of data.
- Develop a one-pager/leave behind about the importance of Authorized Economic Operators (AEOs), how to leverage existent AEO programs and how to align this to a secure supply chain region.
- Provide an update on the region’s status as it pertains to National Trade Facilitation Committees.
- Seek to leverage the resources created by the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation, the World Bank, the Americas Business Dialogue, and the Memorandum of Understanding with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to drive forward WTO Trade Facilitation projects and positive trade policy development.
- Engage and collaborate with key U.S. Stakeholders, U.S. embassies, CBP, among others, on priorities in trade facilitation in the region.
- Collaborate with AmChams and AACCLA’s Chair’s Leadership Circle to facilitate field visits to share best practices with visiting government officials.
3. Digital
- Promote a healthy regulatory system that enables the free movement of data across national borders and rejects forced localization requirements and one-size-fits-all digital regulation while supporting the privacy of citizens and the national security of countries.
- Promote principles for AI policy and regulatory frameworks and examples of use cases to support AI adoption.
- Promote a modern, fit-for-purpose regulatory environment that supports the sustainable growth of the digital economy across Latin America and the Caribbean, ensuring that regulatory frameworks evolve in step with technological innovation and accurately reflect the distinct nature, architecture, and business models of different digital services and infrastructure layers.
- Promote regulatory clarity and institutional coherence, encouraging governments to ensure that oversight of digital services — where warranted — is conducted by competent authorities with appropriate technical expertise, and through horizontal, technology-neutral frameworks that accurately reflect the unique characteristics and contributions of each sector to the digital value chain.
- Support the development of clear, evidence-based distinctions between telecommunications services and other digital economy actors, including OTTs, cloud services, and IT infrastructure, drawing on international frameworks such as those developed by the ITU, OECD, and CITEL, to ensure that regulatory design is well-calibrated and proportionate to the nature of each service.
- Engage constructively with telecommunications regulators across the region to share technical and economic perspectives on the evolving digital ecosystem, contribute to evidence-based policymaking, and foster dialogue that supports coherent, forward-looking regulatory frameworks.
- Advocate for proportionate, risk-based regulatory approaches that encourage investment, competition, and innovation across the digital economy, and that recognize the distinct roles, responsibilities, and contributions of different actors, from connectivity providers to digital service platforms, in delivering value to users and society.
- Highlight the significant economic and social benefits of a well-functioning, lightly regulated digital economy, including expanded access to cloud services for governments, SMEs, and citizens; greater availability and affordability of digital services; and enhanced regional competitiveness in attracting global technology investment, as a foundation for informed, impact-driven regulatory design.
Proposed actions:
- Continue to leverage the U.S. Chamber’s Center for Global Regulatory Cooperation and policy experts to support the AmChams as needed.
- Monitor and engage on digital policies in the region through collaboration with AmChams, AACCLA’s Chair’s Leadership Circle, and joint engagement on the ground, including hosting webinars on digital policy issues.
- Develop white paper on regional Digital principles on Al, cybersecurity & data governance, following international standards.
- Share U.S. government and U.S. Chamber resources/principles on digital policy.
- Monitor and advocate for good governance in state-owned digital payment providers consistent with OECD and World Bank guidance to ensure a clear separation between regulatory and operational functions, preventing conflicts of interest, and safeguarding competitive neutrality.
- Support initiatives related to The White House’s America’s AI Action Plan and commercial diplomacy.
4. Intellectual Property
- Foster innovation, harness creativity, champion intellectual property protection, combat counterfeiting and piracy, and eliminate the grey market.
Proposed actions:
- Ensure that all advocacy related to IP utilizes and highlights the importance of innovation.
- Engage the network of AmChams as the U.S. Chamber prepares its Special 301 report submission.
- Collaborate with GIPC on a roadshow through the Americas highlighting the importance of IP.
- Support AmChams in their work with GIPC on advocacy and the development of an IP Roadmap for policymakers.
5. Rule of Law
- Promote policies to strengthen the role of law as fundamental condition for a healthy business environment.
Proposed actions:
- Continue to partner with the Chamber’s Coalition for the Rule of Law in Global Markets and leverage the Rule of Law Dashboard Report to engage governments.
- Host webinars and events with AmChams on the rule of law.
- Expand the collaboration with International Organizations, such as the World Bank/B-Ready, and other key institutional actors to highlight private sector interests in promoting the rule of law in emerging markets.
- Recognize regional Rule of Law Champions.
6. Health
- Drive meaningful policy changes that ensure better access to quality health care in the hemisphere and incentivize innovation in healthcare systems.
Proposed actions:
- Collaborate with the U.S. Chamber’s Global Initiative on Health and the Economy to disseminate policy tools including Healthy Markets for Health Investment policy framework, and digital health best practices.
- Participate and promote strategic initiatives such as the America First Global Health Strategy and Americas RISE for Health.
7. Energy
- Strengthen regional competitiveness through policies that ensure an adequate, reliable and affordable supply of fuel and power across the region; enhance regional energy interconnectivity; and improve conditions for private sector investment.
Proposed actions:
- Encourage greater regional cooperation to modernize regulatory and permitting frameworks to facilitate technology adoption and the entry of new energy solutions.
- Support public-private initiatives to increase regional connectivity.
- Contribute to bilateral cooperation on critical minerals development.
- Promote the sharing of industry best practices for energy technology.
