Bipartisan Letter Asks for Quicker Final Determination on Softwood Lumber
Saying tariffs on Canadian lumber are adding to home building costs, Sens. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., and John Thune, R-S.D., asked Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to expedite the final determination on Canadian softwood lumber trade remedies.
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In a letter released July 19, the senators also asked U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai to prioritize negotiations for another softwood lumber agreement with Canada. The past agreement used a quota system that became more generous to imports as prices rose in the U.S., and softwood lumber prices have more than doubled since its October 2015 expiration, Menendez and Thune said.
"We also encourage the administration to prioritize a new softwood lumber agreement between the United States and Canada to provide greater market stability for the U.S. housing industry and ease the burden of housing costs for all Americans," the senators wrote.
Tai has said she doesn't want to negotiate such an agreement until Canada addresses the practices the U.S. thinks deserve countervailing duties.
The preliminary determination in the administrative review on Canadian softwood lumber found that duties should fall from 17.9% to 11.64%.