B.C. SOFTWOOD LUMBER PROPOSAL “A POSITIVE STEP”

B.C. SOFTWOOD LUMBER PROPOSAL “A POSITIVE STEP”

B.C. SOFTWOOD LUMBER PROPOSAL “A POSITIVE STEP”

   The Coalition of Fair Lumber Imports said a draft proposal by the provincial government of British Columbia is “a positive step” to resolving the U.S./Canada trade dispute over softwood lumber.
   The Washington-based coalition said it “conceptually agrees with the proposal’s format of implementing a border measure that increases as prices drop until such time as a long-term, durable, market-based solution to the softwood lumber dispute is reached.”
   “The B.C. government’s proposal recognizes that this dispute can only be permanently resolved through the sale of Canadian timber at market prices,” the coalition added.
   The coalition said the proposal comes up short in several aspects, such as tax levels which are far below those required today, full return of collected duties to Canadian companies, continuing appeals after agreements are reached, and no clarification on the role of the Canadian federal government.
   The coalition represents hundreds of large and small lumber producers in the United States, accounting for about 75 percent of U.S. lumber production and forest landowners.
   The coalition has pressed the U.S. government to investigate the Canadian softwood lumber export industry for selling lumber to U.S. importers at less than market value and promotes the use of increased import duties on Canadian timber to offset any unfair trade.
   “The coalition hopes the initiative taken by the B.C. government in raising this proposal will lead to government-to-government negotiations to resolve the softwood lumber dispute,” the coalition said Dec. 23. “The coalition remains open to a negotiated settlement which adequately addresses the unfair practices and looks forward to our government entering formal negotiations with Canada.”