In Testimony, Sessions Urges International Trade Commission To Defend Domestic Shrimp Industry And Alabama Workers
WASHINGTON—U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) submitted testimony for the record this afternoon to the International Trade Commission (ITC) in support of efforts by the U.S. and Alabama shrimp industries to end subsidized shrimp imports that are undermining U.S. workers and local industry. An excerpt from the testimony reads as follows:
To view Sessions’ testimony as a PDF, please click here.
“First and foremost for me is the economic impact of this industry on the state of Alabama. According to Alabama Seafood, the Alabama seafood industry directly employs more than 8,000 people and has an economic impact of $336 million annually, including over $135 million in generated income. More broadly, 1.23 billion pounds of seafood is harvested each year from the Gulf of Mexico, 30 percent of the nation’s seafood overall. And, more than 70 percent of U.S. shrimp come from the Gulf of Mexico, underlining the economic and cultural importance to our region.
I believe in free and fair trade. When foreign distortions of trade are not checked and corrected by legal processes such as this one, vital American middle class jobs are lost and our competitiveness is eroded. Many, including me, have documented the loss of millions of manufacturing job across the country in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, but manufacturing is not the only industry that suffers from unfair foreign competition. Our agricultural and fishery producers are also at risk. I am here to tell you today that all sectors matter in job creation. Efforts to promote fair trade in one sector inevitably benefits others.
In my state, shrimp is a way of life—from the fisherman to the docks, from the processor to the grocery store, restaurant, and family table; we all have a stake in this industry. This vital part of our local culture has been passed down for generations, and will continue to survive and ultimately thrive if you make an affirmative determination of injury at your final vote on this case on September 19, 2013.”
BACKGROUND:
The case, filed in 2012 by the Coalition of Gulf Shrimp Industries (COGSI), seeks relief from the ITC in the form of countervailing duties on frozen warm-water shrimp imported from China, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam. The Coalition of Gulf Shrimp Industries (COGSI) represents many shrimpers in Alabama.
Sessions testimony urged the ITC to consider the imposition of duties against foreign imports of warm water shrimp to level the playing field and protect the Alabama shrimp industry from harm. According to documents filed in the case, these seven countries exported over 984 million pounds of shrimp to the U.S. in 2012, worth over $3 billion. In its petition, COGSI identified numerous export subsidies in the seven countries. The subsidies include direct government grants, cheap loans, debt forgiveness, and tax breaks. One egregious example of foreign subsidies is the financing of what will likely be the world’s largest shrimp processing and export platform by the Chinese government. If the ITC finds that the domestic industry is being injured, final countervailing duties will be imposed this fall.
A final ruling from the ITC is expected on September 19, 2013.
0 comments:
Post a Comment