NAHB official attacks duties restricting Canadian lumber

The Commerce Department's preliminary rulings to impose tariffs totaling 32 percent on softwood lumber imports from Canada have drawn sharp criticism from Bobby Rayburn, vice president/ secretary of the National Association of Home Builders.

According to an NAHB news release, Rayburn, a home builder from Jackson, Miss., said, "Any way you look at it from a consumer standpoint, from an in-dustry standpoint and from an economic standpoint the Commerce Depart-ment's actions to impose preliminary countervailing and anti-dumping duties totaling 32 percent on Canadian lumber shipments into the U.S. is bad trade policy, bad economic policy and would act as a new hidden tax on American home buyers, renters and consumers.

Rayburn said that the department's decisions are inconsistent with the international agreements to which the United States is committed and expects other countries to abide by.

"This trade action is being used to try to pressure the Canadians into a negotiated settlement restricting trade, and we firmly oppose trade barriers such as ex-port taxes or quotas," he said.

Added housing costs

Rayburn said that a 32 percent lumber tariff on Canadian imports could add up to $1,500 to the cost of an average home. "This could effectively prevent an additional 450,000 American households from being able to qualify for a home mortgage," he said.

He added that higher lumber costs also translate into higher costs for renters and homeowners seeking to remodel their homes.

"From an industry perspective," Ray-burn said, "more than 6 million Amer-ican workers involved in lumber-dependent businesses, including home builders and remodelers, depend on a steady, reliable supply of softwood lumber for their livelihood. These workers outnumber U.S. lumber-producing workers by 25-to-1."

Rayburn added that enacting new trade barriers "makes absolutely no economic sense particularly in light of the current economic conditions. The U.S. economy shrank 0.4 percent in the third quarter, and would have fallen even further without the housing sector's 1.9 percent net growth. If housing were to go under, the economy would really be headed for a serious recession."

Isn't it ironic'

Rayburn added, "Isn't it a bit ironic that on the same day that Commerce moved to impose anti-dumping duties, President Bush spoke out strongly about the need for free trade?"

The president said, This nation should not stand on the sidelines when it comes to free trade. I want to make it easier for the world to trade in freedom, and I think it's good for American workers that we trade. And I know it's good for the spread of American values if we trade freely around the world.'

"The president hit the nail right on the head," Rayburn said. "There are not enough trees available to produce lumber for home building in the U.S. Therefore, Canadian lumber imports are absolutely vital for the construction of affordable homes in America. Lumber from Canada is qualitatively different from the softwood lumber produced in the southeastern U.S. and is used for different purposes. The spruce and white pine from Can-ada is more suitable for framing walls that stay straight. Southern yellow pine, the variety found in the southeastern U.S., is better suited for use as floor joists, rafters or truss components."

Rayburn noted that more than 100 members of the House and Senate have sponsored a congressional resolution calling for free trade on lumber between the United States and Canada. "It's time for the administration to follow suit and implement the president's announced philosophy by allowing lumber to be freely traded with our neighbor to the north," he said.