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| Another NAFTA Loss Should End Illegal Canadian Lumber Duties |
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2006/3/24
WASHINGTON, March 17 /CNW/ -- Once again a North American Free
Trade Agreement (NAFTA) bi-national panel has unanimously concluded that
countervailing duties imposed by the U.S. on Canadian softwood lumber imports
are de minimis and that the duties must be revoked. This is the sixth and
final in a series of NAFTA defeats for the U.S. position that has been issued
in the past three years.
"It is clearly time for the U.S. to honor its treaty agreement with
Canada, and to end these illegal duties that continue to harm American
consumers," Susan Petniunas, spokesperson for American Consumers for
Affordable Homes, an alliance of 17 organizations that represent more than
95 percent of lumber consumption in the U.S.
The U.S. Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports continues to call NAFTA actions
illegal and unconstitutional, yet NAFTA was approved by Congress and signed
into law by then President George Bush. "When the U.S. wins, the coalition
cheers, but when it loses, they whine and attack the dispute settlement
process imposed by NAFTA," Petniunas said.
This latest NAFTA decision reiterates the fact that the Coalition's unfair
trade allegations against lumber from Canada were without merit when they were
filed nearly five years ago, and remain baseless today. Not only have NAFTA
panels ruled that lumber from Canada did not injure U.S. lumber producers, but
they have now ruled that Canadian mills did not benefit from countervailable
subsidies. "U.S. consumers have labored under these illegal lumber duties for
far too long," Petniunas said. "ACAH calls on the Administration to respect
its international obligations under NAFTA and to revoke the unlawful duties
immediately." This panel included three U.S. members and two Canadians.
Commerce imposed antidumping and countervailing duties on Canadian
softwood lumber imports that were initially 27 percent. Currently they have
dropped to about 10 percent.
The duties were imposed after timberland owners and forestry companies,
including International Paper, Potlatch, Plum Creek, Sierra Pacific, and
Temple Inland, members of the Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports, charged that
Canadian lumber is unfairly subsidized, and being dumped at lower prices in
the U.S. Not all U.S. forestry companies support the Coalition's position or
cases.
Petniunas pointed out that the lumber duties, based on U.S. Census Bureau
data, add at least $1,000 to the cost of a new home, pricing as many as
300,000 families out of the housing market since the small amount prices them
out of a mortgage. The duties also have impacted a wide range of other
industries using Canadian softwood lumber, such as truss manufacturers,
pallets, cabinets, furniture and box springs, manufactured housing, as well as
lumber wholesalers and retailers. These industries employ more than
6.5 million workers, 25-to-1 when compared with those in the forestry
industry.
The U.S. can not produce enough lumber to meet its needs, and has to
import a third of it from Canada.
ACAH does not oppose constructive negotiations to resolve the decades long
standing dispute, but opposes any agreement that imposes a border measure that
would increase costs to consumers or add volatility to the lumber market.
More than 100 bi-partisan members of the U.S. Senate and House of
Representatives have called on the Bush Administration over the past three
years to end the duties and to not impose any export taxes, duties or quotas
on lumber that is essential to the U.S. housing market and economy.
Members of ACAH include: American Homeowners Grassroots Alliance,
Catamount Pellet Fuel Corporation, CHEP International, C. J. Hodder Lumber
Company, Consumers for World Trade, Free Trade Lumber Council, Furniture
Retailers of America, The Home Depot, International Sleep Products
Association, Manufactured Housing Association for Regulatory Reform,
Manufactured Housing Institute, National Association of Home Builders,
National Black Chamber of Commerce, National Lumber and Building Material
Dealers Association, National Retail Federation, Retail Industry Leaders
Association, and the United States Hispanic Contractors Association.
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| Source:http://www.cnw.ca |
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