[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Con. Res. 121 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. CON. RES. 121

  Expressing the sense of Congress that the President should take all 
    necessary measures to respond to the increase in steel imports 
resulting from the financial crises in Asia, the independent states of 
the former Soviet Union, Russia, and other areas of the world, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 29, 1998

Mr. Specter (for himself, Mr. Hollings, Mr. Moynihan, Mr. Santorum, Mr. 
Ford, Mr. D'Amato, Mr. Hatch, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. Bennett, Mr. Sessions, 
Mr. Hutchinson, Mr. Byrd, Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. Rockefeller, Mr. Coats, and 
  Mr. Levin) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
                  referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
  Expressing the sense of Congress that the President should take all 
    necessary measures to respond to the increase in steel imports 
resulting from the financial crises in Asia, the independent states of 
the former Soviet Union, Russia, and other areas of the world, and for 
                            other purposes.

Whereas the current financial crises in Asia, the independent States of the 
        former Soviet Union (as defined in section 3 of the FREEDOM Support 
        Act), Russia, and other areas of the world, involve significant 
        depreciation in the currencies of several key steel-producing and steel-
        consuming countries, along with a collapse in the domestic demand for 
        steel in the countries;
Whereas the crises have generated and will continue to generate increases in 
        United States imports of steel, both from the countries whose currencies 
        have been depreciated and from other Asian steel-producing countries 
        that are no longer able to export steel to the countries that are 
        experiencing an economic crisis;
Whereas United States imports of finished steel mill products from Asian steel-
        producing countries, such as the People's Republic of China, Japan, 
        Korea, India, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia, increased by 79 
        percent in the first 5 months of 1998;
Whereas year-to-date imports of steel from Russia now exceed the record import 
        levels of 1997, and steel imports from Russia and the Ukraine now 
        approach 2,500,000 net tons;
Whereas foreign government trade restrictions and private restraints of trade 
        distort international trade and investment patterns and result in 
        burdens on United States commerce, including absorption of a 
        disproportionate share of steel diverted from other countries;
Whereas the European Union, for example, despite also being a major economy, in 
        1997 imported only one-tenth as much finished steel products from Asian 
        steel-producing countries as the United States did and has restricted 
        imports of steel from the independent states of the former Soviet Union 
        and Russia;
Whereas the United States is simultaneously facing a substantial increase in 
        steel imports from the independent states of the former Soviet Union and 
        Russia, caused in part by the closure of Asian markets to steel imports; 
        and
Whereas there is a well recognized need for improvement in the enforcement of 
        the United States trade laws to provide an effective response to 
        situations of such increased imports: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), 
That Congress calls upon the President to--
            (1) pursue enhanced enforcement of the United States trade 
        laws with respect to the increase in steel imports into the 
        United States, using all remedies available under United States 
        laws including imposition of offsetting duties, quantitative 
        restrictions, and other appropriate remedial measures;
            (2) pursue with all methods at the President's disposal to 
        achieve a more equitable sharing of the burden of accepting 
        imports of finished steel products from Asia and the 
        independent states of the former Soviet Union;
            (3) establish a task force within the executive branch that 
        has responsibility for closely monitoring imports of steel into 
        the United States; and
            (4) report to Congress not later than January 5, 1999, with 
        a comprehensive plan for responding to the increase in steel 
        imports, including ways of limiting the deleterious effects on 
        employment, prices, and investment in the United States steel 
        industry.
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