For the past decade, the U.S. lumber industry has reeled under increasing imports of softwood lumber from Canada that are fueled by government subsidies to Canadian lumber mills. The key subsidy is Canada's policy of making government-owned timber available to these mills at below market prices. This policy has resulted in lumber industry layoffs and forced closing of some U.S. mills.

U.S. lumbermen, who pay market prices for timber, filed suits with the U.S. Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission this spring. The U.S. Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports protested Canada's unfair trade practices, including dumping lumber on the U.S. market, and sought countervailing duties to stem imports.

The Canadian Provincial and federal governments, together with the nation's lumber mills, mounted an aggressive public relations campaign in the U.S., alleging that restrictions on imported lumber would amount to protectionism and hurt U.S. consumers. The U.S. Coalition retained Smith & Harroff to help combat these allegations.

Our work with the Coalition has included media relation efforts to make both Canadian and U.S. reporters, especially those in the Washington bureaus, aware of the Coalition's case against Canadian subsidies. A series of desk side briefings with beat reporters leading up to a preliminary Commerce Department ruling helped condition coverage. Press conferences on Capitol Hill and at the Coalition headquarters helped to dramatize both the filings of the Coalition's cases and the success of the preliminary ruling. Smith & Harroff also designed a Coalition web site that provides reporters with up-to-date background information and current articles that dispel Canada's contention that U.S. homebuyers will be harmed by trade remedies.

THE RESULTS

While much work remains to be done with this ongoing issue, the Coalition enjoyed a significant victory in the U.S. Department of Commerce's preliminary ruling that Canada subsidizes softwood lumber, distorting the U.S. softwood lumber market and injuring U.S. sawmills and their employees.  The Department set preliminary duties at 19.31 percent, effective immediately, to offset the unfair trade practices.