WASHINGTON, D.C. - Yesterday, Congressman Michaud (D-ME), Chairman of the House Trade Working Group, and Rep. Steven LaTourette (R-OH) were joined by 41 of their congressional colleagues in sending a bipartisan letter to House Leadership urging immediate consideration of legislation to address a recent ruling by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

"If we do not address this ruling, we would lose one of the most important tools we have to make sure American manufacturers compete on a level playing field," said Michaud. "It is critical that House Leadership act immediately to preserve our ability to apply tariffs to illegally subsidized goods from China. These tariffs are critical to the coated paper industry in Maine, and it would be devastating to our paper industry if this court ruling is not addressed legislatively.

The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled on December 19, 2011 that the Department of Commerce does not have the authority to impose countervailing duties (CVDs) on goods from nonmarket economies because underlying trade remedy law does not permit them to do so. As a result, unless legislative action is taken, the current CVD orders in place on goods from China and Vietnam would be negated, including the order in place for coated paper imports from China.

"This ruling will only accelerate the offshoring of American jobs to China, and it cannot stand," said Michaud. "I am hopeful quick action by Congress will make sure we are able to fight China's cheating with all of our resources."

On September 23, 2009, paper companies and workers, including Appleton Coated LLC, NewPage Corporation, Sappi Fine Paper North America, and the United Steelworkers of America (USW), filed antidumping and CVD petitions covering imports of certain coated paper from the People's Republic of China and Indonesia. As a result of favorable preliminary and final determinations in 2010, tariffs on coated paper imports from both countries are being applied.

The full text of the letter.

February 15, 2012

Dear Speaker Boehner, Leader Pelosi, Majority Leader Cantor, and Democratic Whip Hoyer:

We write to urge you to act expeditiously to bring to the House floor legislation in response to the decision issued by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Court in GPX International Tire Corporation, et al. v. United States. This ruling would prevent the Commerce Department from applying tariffs to goods from countries including China that have been illegally subsidized. We were pleased by Ways and Means Chairman Camp's statement acknowledging the need for legislation that clarifies congressional intent that countervailing duties can be applied to goods from nonmarket economies (NMEs) under U.S. law. We ask you to bring this legislation to a vote as soon as possible. As Congress works to help the economy recover, it is particularly imperative that all trade enforcement tools remain available to the federal agencies tasked with ensuring American businesses and workers compete on a level playing field.

The United States is already at a disadvantage to China because Beijing has demonstrated a willingness to pursue national policies that violate international trade law. American manufacturers have suffered as a result. China's Five Year Plans for the clean energy and paper sectors, for example, have resulted in expansive, illegal subsidies to the explicit detriment of American companies. In the paper sector alone, China provided more than $33.1 billion in subsidies from 2002 to 2009 and during that period overtook the U.S. as the world's largest producer of paper and paper products. American companies in these and other sectors rely on the countervailing duty (CVD) orders in place to combat these illicit subsidies and help them keep their doors open.

If Congress does not respond to the Court's ruling, American manufacturers' disadvantage will increase. There are currently 24 CVD orders in place against goods from NMEs: 23 target illegally subsidized goods from China and one of them targets goods from Vietnam. These orders ensure fair global competition for more than 230 U.S. companies and their workers in more than 200 congressional districts. Prohibiting the Commerce Department from imposing proportionate countervailing duties on goods from NMEs guarantees that these and other impacted American companies will continue to be at a competitive disadvantage to their Chinese counterparts.

In 2010 our trade deficit in goods with China reached a new record of $273 billion, a milestone expected to be passed in 2011. Without a complete set of tools to combat Beijing's persistent pattern of international trade law infringement, our trade imbalance will continue to skyrocket, and the number of American jobs sent offshore will continue to increase. Given the short time-line of the appeals process, there is not much time to address this. That is why we urge you to bring to the floor immediately legislation overturning the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Court's decision so that it may be signed into law as soon as possible.

Thank you for your consideration of this letter. We look forward to working with you to ensure American companies and workers compete on a level playing field.

Sincerely,