9 senators support antidumping petition
Powell Slaughter -- Furniture Today, January 19, 2004
WASHINGTON — Nine U.S. senators have lined up on the side of U.S. manufacturers seeking duties on Chinese wood bedroom furniture.
While the petition alleging dumping by the Chinese ostensibly takes place in an atmosphere free from political influence, the politicians sent a letter dated Jan. 8 to the heads of two agencies that will rule on the issue, Commerce Secretary Donald Evans and Deanna Tanner Okun, chairman of the International Trade Commission.
Signing the letter were Sens. George Allen (R-Va.), Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.), John Edwards (D-N.C.), Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Carl Levin (D-Mich.), Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and John Warner (R-Va.).
"We greatly appreciate the bipartisan support we've gotten and the fact that it comes from a geographical cross-section, not just the Southeast where you would naturally expect it," said Doug Bassett, vice president of sales at petitioner Vaughan-Bassett. "We had around 30 congressmen sign a support letter back in the fall, as well."
The ITC ruled Jan. 9 there was a reasonable indication that U.S. manufacturers had been harmed or threatened by Chinese wood bedroom furniture imports, a decision that clears the way for a Commerce Department investigation. If Commerce finds the Chinese are dumping product, those producers could face preliminary U.S. import duties as early as April.
