WYRZ.org 98.9 WYRZ – The Voice of Hendricks County
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly released the following statement today after reports that the United States government reached an agreement with China to end Chinese subsidies on steel exports. Donnelly has continuously fought for Indiana’s steel communities, including earlier this week when he spoke out on the Senate floor about the crisis facing the domestic steel industry.
Donnelly said, “Our domestic steel industry continues to be in a crisis, harming communities across Indiana. While I took note of today’s developments, China has time and again gone back on its word and has consistently played by its own rules. I hope the Chinese government will live up to its commitment to stop illegally subsidizing steel, but until they do, I will continue to press the Obama Administration to utilize all its tools to enforce our trade laws and hold China accountable for its actions.”
Illegally traded imports are flooding U.S. markets and putting the domestic steel industry into crisis. Last week, Donnelly spoke out on U.S. Steel’s announcement that it was laying off more Hoosier workers and last month, Donnelly called on President Obama to prioritize enforcement against illegally-dumped steel and use all available tools and resources to combat illegal trade. In last month’s letter to the President, Donnelly wrote, in part, “The status quo is not acceptable when facilities are closing and steelworkers are losing jobs…It is crucial that you use every tool in your toolbox to combat illegal trade because communities in Indiana are relying on it.”
In 2015, Donnelly helped the Senate pass bipartisan Trade Enforcement legislation to help crack down on foreign currency manipulation and strengthen enforcement of trade laws. Now, he is pushing to make sure the federal government fully enforces the new laws passed by Congress. In addition to his most recent efforts, Donnelly has testified in-person at the International Trade Commission on behalf of the Hoosier steel industry and written numerous letters on trade enforcement cases in support of applying tariffs on unfairly traded steel products.
