[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 220 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 220

   To express the sense of the Senate that the European Union should 
 cancel the sale of heavily subsidized barley to the United States and 
  ensure that restitution or other subsidies are not used for similar 
 sales and that the President, the United States Trade Representative, 
and the Secretary of Agriculture should conduct an investigation of and 
                   report on the sale and subsidies.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 30, 1998

 Mr. Dorgan (for himself, Mr. Kempthorne, Mr. Wyden, Mrs. Murray, Mr. 
  Johnson, Mr. Baucus, Mr. Craig, Mr. Burns, Mr. Smith of Oregon, Mr. 
Conrad, Mr. Gorton, Mr. Daschle, and Mr. Enzi) submitted the following 
       resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   To express the sense of the Senate that the European Union should 
 cancel the sale of heavily subsidized barley to the United States and 
  ensure that restitution or other subsidies are not used for similar 
 sales and that the President, the United States Trade Representative, 
and the Secretary of Agriculture should conduct an investigation of and 
                   report on the sale and subsidies.

Whereas, in an unprecedented sale, the European Union has entered into a 
        contract with the United States to sell heavily subsidized European 
        barley to the United States;
Whereas the sale of almost 1,400,000 bushels (30,000 metric tons) of feed barley 
        would be shipped from Finland to Stockton, California;
Whereas news of the sale has already depressed feed barley prices by at least 24 
        cents per bushel in the California feed barley market;
Whereas, since this market sets national pricing patterns for both feed and 
        malting barley, the sale would mean enormous market losses for barley 
        producers throughout the United States, at a time when United States 
        barley producers are already suffering from low prices;
Whereas the European restitution subsidies for this barley amounts to $1.11 per 
        bushel ($51 per metric ton);
Whereas the price-depressing effects of this 1 sale would adversely affect 
        market prices for at least a 9-month period as this grain moves through 
        the United States marketing system;
Whereas this shipment would be part of about 9,000,000 bushels (200,000 metric 
        tons) of European feed barley that has been approved for restitution 
        subsidies by the European Union;
Whereas the availability of the additional subsidized European barley in the 
        international market would not only continue to artificially depress 
        market prices, but also would threaten to open a new channel of imports 
        into the United States;
Whereas, as the world's largest feed grain producer and the world's largest 
        exporter of feed grains, the United States does not require imported 
        feed grains;
Whereas, at the same time that subsidized European barley is being imported into 
        the United States, some United States feed grains are prevented from 
        entering European markets under European Union food regulations;
Whereas United States barley growers are now feeling the negative impacts of the 
        sale, regardless of whether the subsidized European barley was 
        originally targeted for sale into the United States and whether the 
        subsidies comply with the letter of current World Trade Organization 
        export subsidy rules; and
Whereas the sale not only undermines the intent and the spirit of free trade 
        agreements and negotiations, but also moves away from the goals of level 
        playing fields and fairness in trade relationships: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved,

SECTION 1. SENSE OF SENATE ON EXPORT OF EUROPEAN BARLEY TO THE UNITED 
              STATES.

    It is sense of the Senate that--
            (1) the European Union should--
                    (A) take immediate steps to cancel the sale of 
                European feed barley to the United States; and
                    (B) establish procedures to ensure that restitution 
                and other subsidies are not used for sales of 
                agricultural commodities to the United States or other 
                countries of North America;
            (2) the President of the United States, the United States 
        Trade Representative, and the Secretary of Agriculture should 
        immediately investigate the sale of European feed barley to the 
        United States and prevent any future sale of European 
        agricultural commodities to the United States or other 
        countries of North America that is based on restitution or 
        other subsidies; and
            (3) not later than 60 days after approval of this 
        resolution, the United States Trade Representative and the 
        Secretary of Agriculture should report to Congress on--
                    (A) the terms and conditions of the sale of 
                European feed barley to the United States;
                    (B) the steps that have been taken to cancel the 
                sale and prevent any recurrence of similar types of 
                sales; and
                    (C) any additional authorities that are necessary 
                to carry out subparagraph (B).
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