American Consumers for Trade

Send a Fax to your Representative
to End Corporate Welfare

Send your Representative a message urging him/her to co-sponsor a bill that would repeal the Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act (CDSOA), more commonly known as the Byrd Amendment. The Byrd Amendment is a consumer and tax-payer rip-off that has already cost us three-quarter of a billion dollars over the last three years. Just fill out the form then click the send button. We'll provide you a list of representatives from that state, format the letter so your name and address appear at the bottom and ensure that your message is faxed to your representative. Feel free to edit the text in any way to make your message more personal. A copy of your letter will also be sent to CWT so we can track how many people contact the House on this important issue. All of the information with an * is required.

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Message
Dear Representative, I am writing to ask you to co-sponsor H.R. 3933, a bill to repeal Section 754 of the Tariff Act of 1930: the "Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act" (CDSOA), also known as the Byrd Amendment. H.R. 3933 was introduced March 10 by Representatives Jim Ramstad and Phil Crane. This legislation must be enacted this session of Congress before the CDSOA does any more damage to the U.S. economy. Briefly, the CDSOA authorizes Customs and Border Protection to distribute antidumping and countervailing duties collected by Customs to U.S. producers and others who supported the petitions that gave rise to those duties. You should support repeal of this egregious example of corporate welfare for the following reasons: 1) The CDSOA encourages U.S. producers to file AD and CVD actions knowing full well they will be eligible for monetary distributions. In addition, the CDSOA encourages U.S. producers to expand their petitions to include products they do not even make, because they can collect money on imports that their customers must import due to their unavailability in the United States. There are many examples of petitions that are over-inclusive in this way, from ball bearings to candles to steel wire rod. Customers will face higher prices and product shortages as imports from affected countries drop or disappear altogether if the CDSOA is not repealed immediately. 2) A World Trade Organization Dispute Settlement Body panel ruled in 2002 that the provision violates our international obligations, concluding that the only way to address the trade violation is to repeal the law. The United States has already missed its final deadline for action, December 27, 2003. Now U.S. exporters will face retaliation against their exports in 2005. 3) The CDSOA benefits a few at the expense of many. In March 2004, Customs issued checks to producers and unions for FY 2003 totaling nearly $200 million. The distributions to date total more than $750 million, much of it given to companies that do not need the money. In 2003, 82 percent of the funds disbursed went to just 17 companies. One company alone got 60 percent of the total! This money comes out of the pockets of importers and other consuming industries. The expense is often passed along to retail consumers, so that they are hit twice: once in their capacity as taxpayers, and again as consumers. These are just a few of the reasons you should co-sponsor H.R. 3933. Your decision to do so will be recorded on the trade score card of Consumers for World Trade. I hope that you will contact Rep. Ramstad or Crane as soon as possible. Sincerely,