May 18, 2005 Volume 5 Number 2
Byrd Amendment Brings
Sanctions
Remember the Byrd
Amendment? More formally known as the Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset
Act (CDSOA) of 2000, it is a law that funnels import taxes collected at the
border away from the general treasury and into the pockets of the very companies
who asked they be imposed in the first place. Ruled illegal three years ago
by an international trade dispute panel, Congress failed to repeal the bad
law by the deadline. The World Trade Organization (WTO) then delivered an
award to the countries who filed the complaint against the U.S. law and two
of them imposed retaliatory tariffs on U.S. exports beginning May 1. Canada
and the European Union (EU) are imposing sanctions on our exporters to the
tune of 72 cents for every dollar paid out to U.S. producers. Will the U.S.
finally comply with the ruling and repeal the Byrd Amendment? Read
on…
Canada Sues U.S. Over
Collection of Byrd Funds
CWT tips its hat to Canada for finally deciding to play hard ball with the
United States. In addition to imposing $14 million in sanctions on U.S. exports
of cigarettes, oysters, live hogs, and fish for failing to repeal the Byrd
Amendment, the government of Canada along with the Canadian lumber industry
has challenged the bad law in the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT).
Read how the suit seeks to overturn
the application of the Byrd Amendment to all Canadian goods subject to U.S.
antidumping and countervailing duties.
Capitol Hill Uptight
About China
Our legislators
are feeling threatened by China's booming economy and claim that our Asian
trading partner is engaging in unfair practices at our expense. They are right
to complain about China's failure to respect intellectual property rights
and float its currency. These practices are illegal under world trade rules.
What alarms CWT, however, are the measures they propose to bring China into
line. Read on…
CWT in the News
- On April 4th, CWT sent a blast fax to the Senate urging rejection of S. 600, an amendment that would have imposed 27.5% duties on imports from China. Read it.
- On April 15th, CWT hosted an event on the need to reform the U.S. sugar program featuring Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL), founder of the House Sugar Reform Caucus.
- On April 18th, CWT submitted a letter to the editor of the Washington Post in response to a column by Sebastian Malaby. Read it.
- On April 29th, CWT sent a letter to Amb. Portman and a letter to Sec. Gutierrez urging them to consider the interests of consumers in U.S. trade policy. Read it
- On May 3rd, CWT hosted an event on the U.S. sugar program and international trade policy featuring Congressman Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) and Evandro Didonet, Minister-counselor in charge of trade policy at the Embassy of Brazil.
- On May 9th, CWT published an editorial in the Journal of Commerce condemning the use of "zeroing," a methodology that inflates anti-dumping tariffs at the expense of consumers. Read it.
- On May 18th, CWT hosted
its 6th Annual Congressional Awards Luncheon recognizing Rep. Jim Ramstad
(R-MN) and Bill Jefferson (D-LA) for their leadership on trade in the 108th
Congress.