Any Country That Has A Treaty With The U.S. May Not Be Honored
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Latest Action Seen As Ploy To Force Canada To Hold Back Lumber Sales
Challenging the constitutionality of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) dispute resolution process, known as Chapter 19, announced by special interest groups today, signals to
any country that has a treaty with the U.S. may not be honored, consumer groups
charge.
Triggering the action was the latest in a string of decisions in August
that ultimately resulted in a NAFTA Extraordinary Challenge Committee ruling
unanimously that the 27 percent duties imposed by the U.S. Commerce Department
on Canadian softwood lumber imports into the U.S. in 2002 were illegal.
Those duties, which have cost U.S. consumers nearly $5 billion in added
lumber costs for homebuilding and remodeling, based on U.S. Census data, have
priced more than 300,00 families out of qualifying for mortgages for their
first-time home. After the NAFTA defeat, the U.S. Secretary of Commerce said the U.S. would ignore the ruling, and refuse to honor its commitment as it has when it lost in all previous cases.
“We are outraged that this self-interested action by companies like
International Paper, Potlatch, Plum Creek, Sierra Pacific, Temple Inland, and
a group of southern landowners in the Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports (CFLI)
seeks to profit on the backs of consumers, and tells the world not to trust
the U.S. if you sign a treaty with our government,” said Susan Petniunas,
spokesperson for the American Consumers for Affordable Homes (ACAH), an
alliance of 16 national consumer groups and companies.
“Other than raising questions about the credibility of the U.S., this is a
clear diversion to bully Canada into some type of trade barrier aimed at
forcing continued illegal duties on U.S. lumber consumers. The coalition tried
the same thing in 1994 to make Canada feel NAFTA was being threatened.”
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled before Chapter 19 was put in place that a
bi-national panel could make decisions which are binding on the U.S.
government in a case related to the U.S.-Iranian hostage agreement.
“The U.S.-Canada FTA was negotiated by the President, approved by
Congress, signed-off as constitutional by the Justice Department when Richard
Thornburg was Attorney General, and in force since 1988,” Petniunas added.
“We clearly believe that if the case were ever heard, the Court would again
rule that it is legal and Chapter 19 is binding on the U.S. government.”
U.S. protectionists have been fighting with Canada over lumber imports for
nearly three decades. They have continually lost cases but have used them to
force Canada to negotiate protectionist deals that would set prices or quotas
on lumber imports.
ACAH opposes any border measure that would increase costs to consumers,
but does not oppose constructive negotiations to resolve the long standing
dispute. The U.S. must import a third of its lumber to meet our domestic
needs, most of it coming from Canada.
Industries that depend on lumber as an input and that oppose import
restrictions include manufacturers of value-added wood products, lumber
dealers, manufactured and on-site home builders, and remodeling contractors
and individuals. These industries employ more than 6.5 million workers, 25 to
one when compared with those in the forestry industry.
Members of ACAH include: American Homeowners Grassroots Alliance,
Catamount Pellet Fuel Corporation, CHEP International, Consumers for World
Trade, Free Trade Lumber Council, Fremont Forest Group Corporation, 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.
@ September 13, 2005