Do trade laws affect your company?
Do you want to learn more about how these laws could be changing? What
do Bush and Gore think about the importance of the international marketplace?
How can you contact and inform your legislators in Washington, DC about
the necessity of free and fair trade?
The answers to these questions, and more, will be provided at the 2000
AWPA Fall meeting, being held September 27-29 in Washington, DC.
This is a must-attend event for all US wire manufacturers who are affected
in some way by obstructionist trade practices. Among the speakers expected
to address the group are representatives from the two presidential campaigns
who will give their candidates' views on international trade, the economy,
and any market initiatives we can expect from their respective administrations.
Representing the Gore campaign, Congresswoman Ellen Tauscher (D-CA)
will outline the Democratic view on trade. Ms. Tauscher is one of the New
Democrats or "Blue Dogs" in the Congress and serves as Co-Chair of the
Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Currently serving out her
second term as the representative of California's 10th district, Ms. Tauscher
has made her mark as a moderate, fiscally responsible and bi-partisan Member
of Congress. The Congresswoman also holds the distinct honor of being one
of the first women to hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange, when
she did so for Bache Securities.
At press time, the Republican speaker had not yet been confirmed. However,
AWPA has been told by a Bush for President official that chances are good
it will be another Member of Congress.
Get a unique perspective on the international marketplace from a renowned
trade scholar and senior fellow from the Cato Institute - Brink Lindsey.
Serving as the Director of the Center for Trade Policy Studies, Mr. Lindsey
has authored numerous studies and publications on the importance of open
markets. He is also a contributing editor of Reason, and his articles have
appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Journal of Commerce, Washington Times,
Chicago Tribune, and Weekly Standard, among others. He has been called
upon to testify before Congress and has appeared on CNN, CNBC, National
Public Radio, and many other media outlets.
Especially important to wire manufacturers will be an update from the
Chicago Strategic Trade Center on the Tariff Rate Quota (TRQ) program put
into place as a result of the section 201 trade case on imported wire rod.
The Center is responsible for monitoring imports and developments associated
with the TRQ and all steel programs. It also serves as the national hub
for monitoring steel imports; conducts research on steel import patterns;
enforces import laws relating to steel; and handles antidumping and countervailing
duty cases involving steel mill products.
The event includes an afternoon of visits to your Capitol Hill legislators'
offices. Meet the lawmakers and their staff members to discuss free trade
and open markets, or any other issue that is important at your plant. As
constituents and employers in their districts and states, what you have
to say is extremely important as they work their way through this election
season.
So, register today! Check out the AWPA website (www.awpa.org) for registration
materials and other information. Questions? Call the AWPA headquarters
office at 703-971-6454. Hope to see you soon in the nation's capital!
Ferrostaal/MPS Sign Agreement
On August 1, 2000, an agreement was signed whereby Mannesmann Pipe and
Steel (MPS) transferred its Long Products activities to Ferrostaal Inc.
Included in the agreement is order backlog, accounts receivable and inventories.
Ferrostaal has assumed all obligations to be performed on or after August
1, 2000 under pending sales contracts and purchase orders.
This acquisition combines two leading traders in the Long Products global
arena. The merging of activities is expected to benefit both customers
and suppliers alike by providing some of the widest exposure to the wire
rod market available in the world today.
The Long Products Group of Ferrostaal now covers quite a wide range
of products including wire rod, reinforcing bars, structurals, merchant
bar, railroad rails and semi-finished steels. The Group is headed up by
John Foster as the Vice President. Bernd Neuenkirchen is now the Vice President
over the Wire Rod Division with Chris Stauffer and Dietrich Seraphin as
Sales and Marketing Managers. Sales Administration duties will be handled
primarily by Stephanie Justice and Erika Sarhaddi.
EPA Trying to Reach Out
In various ways, EPA has been reaching out to the business community to
develop a more cooperative and better working relationship.
Under the National Environmental Performance Track program, the agency
will reward companies that exceed minimum regulatory requirements and take
extra steps to reduce and prevent pollution. Benefits for participants
include national recognition, regulatory and administrative flexibility,
a more cooperative relationship with EPA, a reduction in both record keeping
and reporting requirements, and flexibility in meeting certain regulatory
requirements.
Another initiative includes revisions to the agency's "Self-Audit Policy"
that became effective May 11. The original policy was issued in December
1995, and its purpose was to enhance pollution protection by encouraging
regulated businesses to voluntarily discover, promptly disclose, expeditiously
correct, and prevent violations of federal environmental law. Companies
could take advantage of this policy if:
- They voluntarily discovered the violation, and disclosed it within 10
days;
- They corrected the violation within 180 days of its discovery;
- The violation had not caused actual serious harm to public health, safety
or the environment;
- The facility had not used the audit policy for the same or a similar
violation within the past 3 years;
- The facility had not been subject to two or more enforcement actions
for any environmental violations in 5 years; and
- The violation had not already been discovered by the agency.
Among the major revisions to this policy are:
- an extension of the notification period from 10 to 21 days.
- companies are not disqualified from the policy benefits in circumstances
where EPA may be contemplating or has even initiated an investigation,
as long as the company is unaware of the investigation and is otherwise
acting in good faith.
- a clarification that a discovery can be made by any employee.
Once that discovery is made, the clock starts ticking.
- EPA will extend the policy to allow for penalty mitigation
at other facilities where an investigation is ongoing.
| 2000 |
| September 27-29 |
| AWPA Fall Meeting |
| Capital Hilton, Washington, DC |
| 2001 |
| February 7-11 |
| AWPA Annual Meeting |
| Rancho Las Palmas,
Rancho Mirage, CA |
| May 14-17 |
| Interwire 2001 |
| Georgia World Congress
Center |
| Atlanta, GA |
| 2002 |
| APRIL 8-12 |
| Wire 2002 |
| Dusseldorf, Germany |
Back to Wireline Contents
American Wire Producers Association
801 North Fairfax Street, Suite 211
Alexandria, VA 22314-1757
Tel (703) 299-4434 | Fax (703) 299-9233 | E-mail info@awpa.org | Web: www.awpa.org
