[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 93 (Thursday, July 11, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1244]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               TEXTILE AND APPAREL RECOGNITION ACT (TARA)

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. HOWARD COBLE

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 11, 2002

  Mr. COBLE. Mr. Speaker, today I am pleased to join with my colleague, 
Representative John Spratt, along with 40 other original cosponsors to 
introduce the ``Textile and Apparel Recognition Act'' (TARA). This 
legislation recognizes the significant contributions the U.S. textile 
industry continues to make to our economy while also acknowledging that 
this industry is confronting a terrible crisis and deserves our 
attention.
  Though it still employs nearly half a million Americans, the textile 
industry is in a state of crisis. Since 1994, a staggering 675,000 jobs 
have been lost in textiles and apparel. Last year alone the industry 
lost nearly 150,000 jobs and 2002 appears to be more of the same. These 
negative effects are not only being felt by the many thousands of 
textile workers who have lost their jobs, but by our local communities 
and states as well. As tax revenues have fallen as a result of plant 
closings, funding for schools, water infrastructure improvements, and 
basic services, such as garbage collection, have also been negatively 
affected.
  Closed foreign markets, which persist despite trade policies that 
have opened our own markets; continuing large-scale customs fraud and 
transshipment; and currency devaluation in several textile-producing 
nations along with a strong dollar have all contributed to a prolonged 
period of industry-wide downsizing and plant closings. Those of us 
representing U.S. textile and apparel producers have seen thousands and 
thousands of jobs in our districts disappear.
  We remain encouraged by the attention this administration has given 
to the crisis confronting this important sector of our economy and 
believe that this resolution offers an opportunity to show our support 
for continued efforts in this regard. I encourage my colleagues to join 
with us in this effort by cosponsoring this resolution, and I thank the 
Speaker for yielding me this time.

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