Fighting back over softwood
Ottawa mulls its options in lumber dispute
“We hope we don’t have to act,” said one source, speaking on condition of anonymity in order to discuss matters not yet made public. “We hope this dispute can be resolved.”
The course of action being reviewed by the Canadian government is similar to the process used in the U.S. that slapped a 20-percent duty on northern lumber. It involves a request to the Canada Border Services Agency to study illegal subsidies in Oregon, a process that would take several months.
The government says it has zeroed in on nine programs in Oregon that assist businesses, primarily in lumber.
They include: The Oregon Underproductive Forestland Tax Credit, the Oregon Forest Resource Trust, the Oregon Tree Farm Program, the Pacific Forest Trust, property tax exemptions for standing timber, a small winery tax exemption program and other tax credits.
“It’s a real thing. Our officials have already been looking at this,” said one government official familiar with the plan. ”Wyden has been a chief proponent for years of the baseless and unfounded claims against the Canadian softwood lumber industry.”
Another official said there’s no intention of changing the low-drama, co-operative posture Trudeau has taken toward the White House: ”This is not about the president. This is about the state... The strategy (with Trump) is still one of positive engagement...
”(But) we still have to respond to these issues as they come.”