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For Immediate Release WEIRTON, W.VA. – Weirton Steel Corp. today urged the Bush administration to deny a request to expedite the review of the steel import tariff program. Last week, seven members of the U.S. House introduced a resolution requesting the administration hold the review next March, six months ahead of the scheduled review. On Thursday, four additional members co-sponsored the resolution which is being offered to support small businesses that claim financial and job losses because of the tariffs. President Bush imposed the tariffs last March for a 36-month period. Federal regulations call for a review of the tariff program midway through the process. The review has been set for September 2003. The U.S. International Trade Commission will conduct hearings to determine whether or not the tariff program benefits the domestic steel industry. If it decides the program has not helped U.S. steelmakers, the tariffs will be terminated. "We sent a letter today to U.S. Commerce Secretary Donald Evans asking the administration to ignore the resolution and proceed with the midterm review as scheduled," said John H. Walker, Weirton Steel president and chief executive officer. "The tariffs have been in place for only seven months and we're just now beginning to see improvements. A review only one year into the three-year tariff program as proposed by the resolution makes no sense." Walker said the resolution was driven by steel-consuming companies and organizations that represent them. "These steel users became spoiled by unfairly low-priced steel imports. Now that the tariffs are in place, prices are beginning to return to their normal pre-crisis ranges. These companies claim the higher prices are costing them jobs and money," Walker noted. "Before the start of the steel import crisis five years ago, these companies were paying normal prices for steel, maintaining a work force, shipping products and making money. Today, prices have not even reached normal levels but yet they complain to Congress." Lately, Congress has been besieged by steel-consuming companies and various organizations that represent them to have the tariffs removed or reduced. For example, on Oct. 1, the Motor Equipment Manufacturing Association (MEMA), which represents auto products manufacturers, lobbied Congress on the alleged ill-effects of tariffs on their members. MEMA's offices are located in Washington, D.C., Japan, Mexico and Brazil. "Congress has received a lot of misinformation about this issue. We're working closely with the American Iron and Steel Institute to ensure Congress receives the facts about the tariff program," Walker said. "While tariffs are helping the U.S. steel industry return to normal, let's not forget that unfair steel imports helped put 35 domestic steel mills into bankruptcy and cost thousands of steelworkers their livelihoods. All we're trying to do is survive. These steel-consuming companies managed quite well with the prices before the crisis began. Therefore, it stands to reason they can continue to move forward." The House members co-sponsoring the resolution include: Stephanie Tubbs Jones, D-Ohio; David Hobson, R-Ohio; Dave Camp, Peter Hoekstra and Mike Rogers, all R-Mich.; Philip Crane and Donald Manzullo, both R-Ill.; Mike Pence, R-Ind.; Calvin Dooley, D-Calif.; Bob Riley, R-Ala.; and William Jefferson, D-La. Weirton Steel is the seventh largest U.S. integrated steel producer.
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