(The Journal of Commerce)
The Consuming
Industries Trade Action Coalition (CITAC) today renewed its call for Congress to repeal the Byrd Amendment, following announcements by the European Union, Canada and other governments that U.S. products will
be subject to retaliatory tariffs beginning May 1.
Byrd, ruled illegal by the World Trade Organization more than two years ago, allows U.S. producers to receive anti-dumping and countervailing duties
collected by the U.S. government from foreign competitors.
The EU will impose a 15 per cent duty on various types of paper, clothing fabrics, footwear, and machinery -- amounting to tariffs worth
approximately $28 million -- and Canada will impose like duties on cigarettes, oysters and live swine worth $14 million.
Both governments said they will review the products each year against
fluctuating Byrd disbursements.
"The more than $40 million dollar retaliation announced today is yet another reason that now is the time to repeal the Byrd Amendment," said Steve Alexander,
CITAC executive director and president of lobbying firm The CMR Group. "The most important reason why the Byrd Amendment needs to be repealed is because it is hurting the U.S. economy and U.S.
consumers. It encourages the abusive filing and perpetuation of trade cases. With other trading partners likely to soon join Canada and the EU in retaliating against U.S. exports, Congress should move
swiftly to repeal the law."
According to Alexander, U.S. producers of steel, lumber, candles, pasta, seafood, ball bearings and other products have reaped over $1 billion in Byrd handouts from
the federal government at the expense of American consuming industries over the past several years. In 2004 alone, $284 million was doled out in Byrd monies. The Office of Management and Budget estimated
that the federal government would save $1.6 billion by repealing the Byrd Amendment and having funds stay in the U.S. treasury rather than be redistributed to a narrow group of U.S. companies. |
