Yesterday, Representative Pete Aguilar testified before the United States International Trade Commission in support of Searing Industries, a Rancho Cucamonga steel manufacturer that has been adversely impacted by unfair trade practices.

Rep. Aguilar and Richard Searing, Executive Vice President of Operations at Searing Industries, testified before the United States International Trade Commission, requesting that the commission make an affirmative decision in the case on structural tubing product imports from Korea, Turkey and Mexico. An affirmative decision would find that imported steel pipes and tubes subsidized by Korea, Mexico and Turkey create unfair competition and hurt American steel manufacturers. This decision would allow the final antidumping and countervailing duty margins be put into place, providing remedial relief to the industry and its employees.  Earlier today, the US Department of Commerce issued final affirmative antidumping and countervailing determinations against imports from all three countries.

“These unfair practices only contribute to the precipitous decline of American manufacturing in general and steel tube and steel production in particular. This is why I believe that trade must be conducted fairly and that the trade laws should provide relief to producers injured by these trade distorting practices. When trade remedies are put into place the affected industry and its employees are provided with an ability to recover and compete – and after all that is what we strive for – an open and level playing field in which to compete,” Rep. Aguilar testified. He added, “I believe in free trade in a global economy. But American manufacturers can’t be forced to compete on a playing field that’s tilted in favor of foreign competitors.”

In his testimony, Richard Searing detailed the financial hurdles Searing Industries has navigated due to unfair trade practices and stated, “It has been amazing to us that in 2014 and late 2015 we were not only getting hurt by structural tubing imports in the West Coast region at ridiculous prices, but we were also seeing imports arrive at both West Coast ports and Houston, absorbing the high truck freight costs and undercutting us in the Northern Rockies.”

Rep. Aguilar has been a leading voice on protecting businesses and workers threatened by or directly impacted by unfair foreign competition. Last year, Rep. Aguilar introduced the Displaced Jobs Relief Act, which increases authorization of funds for the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Firms program (TAA-F). The TAA-F program offers technical assistance to help businesses that have been negatively impacted by trade. The Displaced Jobs Relief Act can be read here.

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