Steel Caucus Supports Trade Enforcement Agencies
Washington, DC - Congressional Steel Caucus Co-Chairmen Conor Lamb and Frank J. Mrvan, and Co-Vice Chairmen Rick Crawford and Mike Bost, along with 29 other Members of the Congressional Steel Caucus, sent a letter to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies in support of funding for the Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) and the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC).
The letter, sent last week to Chairman Cartwright and Ranking Member Aderholt, encouraged the Subcommittee to “build on its previous efforts to protect domestic workers and businesses from unfair trade by providing adequate resources to the ITA and ITC to best ensure timely and objective responses to trade remedy complaints and investigations.”
Co-Chairman Conor Lamb stated, “Congress must do everything it can to protect jobs for our workers. Ensuring these critical agencies have strong funding will protect our workers and the steel manufacturers, as well as manufacturers in other key American industries, from undue economic harm.”
Co-Chairman Frank J. Mrvan stated, “The dedicated work of the ITA and the ITC are essential to upholding our trade laws and ensuring that American workers can compete on a level playing field. I look forward to continuing to work with the Members of the Appropriations Committee to support these agencies and domestic manufacturers.”
Co-Vice Chairman Rick Crawford stated, “The ITC and the ITA carry the huge responsibility of protecting our domestic steel industry from nefarious international actors, like China. Congress must ensure these agencies have sufficient resources to continue their important work of leveling the playing field.”
Co-Vice Chairman Mike Bost stated, “The ITA and ITC play an important role in ensuring that American steel companies can compete on a level playing field with foreign producers. As the Appropriations Committee establishes funding levels for the next year, it’s critical that the necessary funding be provided to ensure that these agencies can fulfill their very vital mission.”
The Congressional Steel Caucus is a bipartisan group of over 100 Members of Congress dedicated to supporting the health and strength of the American steel industry and its workforce.
Below is a copy of the text of the letter and signatories and pdf is attached.
As the Subcommittee begins to draft its Fiscal Year 2022 Departments of Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Appropriations bill, we are writing to encourage the Subcommittee to ensure adequate funding for the United States Department of Commerce (DOC)’s International Trade Administration (ITA) and the United States International Trade Commission (ITC) to prioritize and carry out the application of United States trade remedy laws. Your attention to this matter is greatly appreciated.
American industry and workers can more than compete and succeed in a fair market that responds to supply and demand principles. Unfortunately, our manufacturers must increasingly operate in a global market dominated by state-owned and subsidized firms. These firms operate irrespective of market conditions, often permitting them to operate at an economic loss and sell products at less than fair market value.
Anti-Dumping (AD) and Countervailing Duty (CVD) laws exist to protect United States producers and workers from economic injury resulting from unfairly traded exports. According to the ITA, the agency has experienced a surge in the number of AD and CVD petitions filed by domestic industry. The number of such petitions nearly doubled over the past five years and shows no signs of abatement.
Case initiations averaged 53 in 2018 and 2019. In 2020, ITA initiated 119 cases, which is more than any other year this decade. Eight additional cases have already been initiated in the first two months of 2021. It should be noted that ITA and ITC have found merit to claims of economic injury resulting from unfairly traded import investigations.
AD and CVD investigations are labor intensive and require a great deal of analysis, thorough investigations, and verification of evidence submitted by respondents in foreign countries. In addition, nations engaged in unfair trade practices continue efforts to circumvent legitimate AD and CVD orders that require continued vigilance and investigation by petitioners and ITA. The agency must also contend with petitions for administrative review of existing AD and CVD orders, and “sunset reviews” of existing orders.
We strongly encourage the Committee to consider these factors when establishing funding levels for Enforcement and Compliance activities at ITA to ensure the agency has adequate resources and personnel to protect American firms and workers from economic injury from unfairly traded exports.
The ITC is an independent, quasi-judicial commission responsible for investigating and making timely and objective determinations involving imports that cause injury to a domestic industry in violation of United States trade laws. Its status as an independent agency whose commissioners are equally split between the parties provides confidence to affected stakeholders that decisions and remedy recommendations made by the Commission are solely based on relevant law and are free of political interference. Among the ITC’s mission priorities are conducting AD/CVD investigations and reviews and trade involving United States intellectual property rights under Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930.
The ITC continues to experience record trade remedy investigation caseloads, as well as concomitant reviews of existing orders. According to the ITC, the agency has experienced a surge in the number of AD and CVD petitions filed by domestic industry. Only eight such petitions were filed in 2014. Since then, however, more than 100 new petitions have been filed, and there is no sign of abatement. Additionally, cases investigated by ITC are increasingly complex and include petitions involving multiple countries. The increased funding request will also allow the ITC to address its growing portfolio of mandates in the trade enforcement area, including additional responsibilities under USMCA. Without the proper funding to handle the increased and more complex workload, as reflected in the ITC’s Congressional Budget Justification, it will not have the capacity to meet the tight statutory deadlines associated with trade enforcement.
We strongly encourage the Committee to build on its previous efforts to protect domestic workers and businesses from unfair trade by providing adequate resources to the ITA and ITC to best ensure timely and objective responses to trade remedy complaints and investigations.
Sincerely,
Rep. Conor Lamb - Co-Chairman
Rep. Frank J. Mrvan - Co-Chairman
Rep. Eric A. ‘Rick’ Crawford - Co-Vice Chairman
Rep. Mike Bost - Co-Vice Chairman
Rep. James R. Baird
Rep. Troy Balderson
Rep. Larry Bucshon, M.D.
Rep. G.K. Butterfield
Rep. Jerry L. Carl
Rep. Sharice L. Davids
Rep. Warren Davidson
Rep. Rodney Davis
Rep. Peter A. DeFazio
Rep. Susan K. DelBene
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick
Rep. Paul A. Gosar, D.D.S.
Rep. Sam Graves
Rep. Michael Guest
Rep. Richard Hudson
Rep. John Katko
Rep. Robin L. Kelly
Rep. David B. McKinley, P.E.
Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks
Rep. Ralph Norman
Rep. Chellie Pingree
Rep. Terri A. Sewell
Rep. Elissa Slotkin
Rep. Pete Stauber
Rep. Haley Stevens
Rep. Steve Stivers
Rep. Michael R. Turner
Rep. Jeff Van Drew
Rep. John Yarmuth
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