U.S. senator's bill would give lumber duties to American companies

[Khephra]

VANCOUVER (CP) - A powerful U.S. senator is set to introduce legislation next week to pay American lumber companies the more than $3 billion in softwood lumber duties the Americans have collected, The Canadian Press has learned.

The bill - to be introduced as early as Monday - comes despite the fact the softwood lumber dispute remains mired in trade litigation and the World Trade Organization has found such a move violates international rules.

Sources say Sen. Max Baucus, Democrat of Montana, plans to introduce the bill to "liquidate" the duties.

The money has been held until the outcome of the various trade litigations. If Canada wins on all fronts, the money is supposed be returned to the Canadian companies that paid it.

http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=a8e90f45-a4b3-4a36-8f1d-6886b0c6c4fc

[Nicholas_J]

1. Bush is trying all sort of methods

To get around the efforts of the WTO to prevent the U.S. from illegally provide supports to U.S industries, When the U.S. put tariff on U.S. Steel. BUsh removend them when the E.U,. decided to place taroiffs and other import restrictions on 23 classes ofAmerican products, and thme Bush removed the tariffs. Later they simply provided other tax breaks to make up for the loss of the tariffs. Now they are asssiting American Lumber companies by giving them another landfall that beleongs to the American people, not the lumber companies. THe tariffs places on Canadian Lumber have been based on claims that Canadia Lumber companies are asdsited by the Canadian Government. WHen you look closely at the claims, they arebasecd totally on the fact that Canadian have national health reducing the expenbses of Candian Lumber Companies. So because Canada has National health their lumber companies have reduced expenses>as Kerry pointed out during the campaigns, a some sort of national health would reduce the cost to all businesses. This silution is to give businesses the money that should be going to the public becasue the are paying for it everytime they purchase something made with Canadian wood.

[mulethree]

3. Where can I find that?

"WHen you look closely at the claims, they arebasecd totally on the fact that Canadian have national health reducing the expenbses of Candian Lumber Companies"

Evidently this has been going on for 20 years and the first 4 US attempts didn't work. But from what I see they were based on Canadian governments having too-cheap fees for logging trees off public lands. And not allowing logs to be exported, only sawn lumber.

[goforit]

2. Why is softwood lumber taboo?