[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 16538-16539]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  IN SUPPORT OF PROVIDING COTTON TARIFF RELIEF FOR HIGH-QUALITY SHIRT 
                                 MAKERS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ROB SIMMONS

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 28, 2006

  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, last year I introduced duty suspension 
legislation for high-quality woven cotton shirting fabrics that are not 
currently produced in the United States. Today, after receiving 
valuable input from the International Trade Commission, ITC, and the 
National Council of Textile Organizations, NCTO, I am happy to 
reintroduce a slightly revised version of this legislation.
  The high-quality cotton fabrics affected by this legislation are used 
in the domestic production of fine men's and boys' dress shirts. 
Unfortunately, several American companies that produce these shirts are 
being unfairly penalized by tariffs on the cotton they must import for 
this purpose. But because this type of cotton is not produced 
domestically, these tariffs protect no American interest.
  What's more, Canada has eliminated its tariffs on this type of 
imported woven shirting fabrics, and under a provision of the North 
American Free Trade Agreement, NAFTA, Canadian shirt makers can export 
large quantities of these shirts to the U.S. duty-free. This further 
puts U.S.-based shirt manufacturers at a competitive disadvantage.
  Last year, following a request for public comments by the House Ways 
and Means Committee on all tariff relief trade bills, the NCTO raised a 
concern about the scope of fabrics that could conceivably be covered by 
my original bill, H.R. 1945. In addition, the Ways and Means Committee 
requested technical comments on all tariff relief bills from the ITC.
  Because this legislation was never intended to cover other cotton 
fabrics--and to alleviate any perceived concerns about the scope of the 
bill--I have adjusted the language in the bill to specifically list the 
affected fabrics by number. This will make it perfectly clear that the 
bill only covers men's and boys' cotton shirting fabrics. In addition, 
the bill has been adjusted to reflect minor technical corrections 
suggested by the ITC.
  I am proud to say that this newly revised bill has gained the 
approval of NCTO. Therefore, it is my hope that this legislation will 
serve as a strong demonstration of continuing House support for these 
duty suspensions, which are also included in companion legislation that 
has been introduced in the Senate by Sen. Arlen Specter of 
Pennsylvania.
  I urge my colleagues to support this common-sense tariff relief 
measure that will yield positive benefits for American companies, 
workers and consumers.

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