BYRD STANDS BY AMENDMENT
SHRUGS OFF REBUKE ‘ Incentive for ... trading partners to play by the rules’
WASHINGTON •
Sen. Robert Bryd yesterday defended his controversial bill that funnels foreign import duties to U. S. companies.
Even in the wake of a stinging rebuke on Monday from the Government Accountability Office, an independent U.S. government agency, the Democratic West Virginian senator insisted the amendment named after him is saving American jobs and will eventually bring the United States’ trading partners, including Canada, in line.
“ The Byrd Amendment serves as an incentive for foreign trading partners to play by the rules,” he said. “If foreign trading partners follow the rules that they negotiate with the United States, there are no negative consequences and no funds go to American companies.”
The GAO’s 110- page government report showed that the 2000 Byrd Amendment, more formally known as the Continued Dumping and Offset Act, has done little to improve the trade position of the United States.
In addition, the report said that nearly half of US$1-billion collected and redistributed has gone to half a dozen U.S. companies, mostly those that make ballbearings and candles.
The World Trade Organization ruled three years ago that the amendment is illegal under global trading rules, but so far Congress has shown little interest in repealing the law. The WTO ruling gave Canada, Mexico, Japan and the European Union the right to retaliate against the United States.
Canada and other U.S. trading partners have called for the amendment’s repeal.
If the amendment is not repealed, much of the $5-billion already collected from Canadian softwood lumber companies in the current dispute could be handed over to the U.S. industry as early as 2007. So far, however, only about $20-million has been collected from Canadian steel and lumber companies.
Mr. Byrd said the GAO report, in fact, supports his contention that money collected for foreign companies found to be dumping low-priced products in the U. S. market has helped troubled U.S. industries.
“One thing that is abundantly clear is that the Byrd Amendment is vitally important to a wide range of American industries and workers,” Mr. Byrd said.
Jim Peterson, Canada’s Trade Minister, pressed the United States to honour a ruling in August by a special panel under the North American Free Trade Agreement that appears to support Ottawa’s case that Canadian lumber is not being illegally dumped in the U.S. market.
“I addressed the fact that the U.S. legal position is untenable on a number of counts,” Mr. Peterson said after meeting late yesterday with David Wilkins, the U.S. ambassador to Canada, in Ottawa.
Mr. Peterson said the U.S. government is being pressured by the U. S. Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports to ignore important trade rulings and hinted there could be spillovers into other areas such as energy.
“ The U. S. is attempting to subject Canada to double jeopardy,” he said. “NAFTA rules are NAFTA rules, and you can’t just make them up or ignore them as you go along. The U. S. must not allow a special- interest group to put the NAFTA, which is so critical in areas like energy security and goods and services, at risk.”
He also said Ottawa plans to bring its complaints to an Oct. 6 NAFTA meeting in Mexico about the U. S. refusal to comply with the panel ruling.
Ottawa has no intention of resuming negotiations before the Mexico meeting.
“ We’ve always said we’d go back to the table when it is in Canada’s best interest,” he said. “We have seen little in terms of a reasonable U. S. position other than saying, ‘ Let's negotiate.’ ”
The United States has countered that a subsequent ruling from the WTO found Canadian lumber was being illegally dumped in the U.S. market, justify the duties of about 22%.