III

105TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. RES. 220

To express the sense of the Senate that the European Union should cancel

the sale of heavily subsidized barley to the United States and ensure

that restitution or other subsidies are not used for similar sales and

that the President, the United States Trade Representative, and the

Secretary of Agriculture should conduct an investigation of and report

on the sale and subsidies.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

APRIL 30, 1998

Mr. DORGAN (for himself, Mr. KEMPTHORNE, Mr. WYDEN, Mrs. MURRAY,

Mr. JOHNSON, Mr. BAUCUS, Mr. CRAIG, Mr. BURNS, Mr. SMITH of Oregon, Mr. CONRAD, Mr. GORTON, Mr. DASCHLE, and Mr. ENZI) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Finance

RESOLUTION

To express the sense of the Senate that the European Union

should cancel the sale of heavily subsidized barley to

the United States and ensure that restitution or other

subsidies are not used for similar sales and that the

President, the United States Trade Representative, and

the Secretary of Agriculture should conduct an investigation of and report on the sale and subsidies.

Whereas, in an unprecedented sale, the European Union has

entered into a contract with the United States to sell

heavily subsidized European barley to the United States;
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•SRES 220 IS

Whereas the sale of almost 1,400,000 bushels (30,000 metric

tons) of feed barley would be shipped from Finland to

Stockton, California;

Whereas news of the sale has already depressed feed barley

prices by at least 24 cents per bushel in the California

feed barley market;

Whereas, since this market sets national pricing patterns for

both feed and malting barley, the sale would mean enormous market losses for barley producers throughout the

United States, at a time when United States barley producers are already suffering from low prices;

Whereas the European restitution subsidies for this barley

amounts to $1.11 per bushel ($51 per metric ton);

Whereas the price-depressing effects of this 1 sale would adversely affect market prices for at least a 9-month period

as this grain moves through the United States marketing

system;

Whereas this shipment would be part of about 9,000,000

bushels (200,000 metric tons) of European feed barley

that has been approved for restitution subsidies by the

European Union;

Whereas the availability of the additional subsidized European barley in the international market would not only

continue to artificially depress market prices, but also

would threaten to open a new channel of imports into the

United States;

Whereas, as the world’s largest feed grain producer and the

world’s largest exporter of feed grains, the United States

does not require imported feed grains;

Whereas, at the same time that subsidized European barley

is being imported into the United States, some United
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States feed grains are prevented from entering European

markets under European Union food regulations;

Whereas United States barley growers are now feeling the

negative impacts of the sale, regardless of whether the

subsidized European barley was originally targeted for

sale into the United States and whether the subsidies

comply with the letter of current World Trade Organization export subsidy rules; and

Whereas the sale not only undermines the intent and the

spirit of free trade agreements and negotiations, but also

moves away from the goals of level playing fields and

fairness in trade relationships: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved,

2 SECTION 1. SENSE OF SENATE ON EXPORT OF EUROPEAN

3 BARLEY TO THE UNITED STATES.

4 It is sense of the Senate that—

5 (1) the European Union should—

6 (A) take immediate steps to cancel the sale

7 of European feed barley to the United States;

8 and

9 (B) establish procedures to ensure that

10 restitution and other subsidies are not used for

11 sales of agricultural commodities to the United

12 States or other countries of North America;

13 (2) the President of the United States, the

14 United States Trade Representative, and the Sec15 retary of Agriculture should immediately investigate

16 the sale of European feed barley to the United
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1 States and prevent any future sale of European ag2 ricultural commodities to the United States or other

3 countries of North America that is based on restitu4 tion or other subsidies; and

5 (3) not later than 60 days after approval of this

6 resolution, the United States Trade Representative

7 and the Secretary of Agriculture should report to

8 Congress on—

9 (A) the terms and conditions of the sale of

10 European feed barley to the United States;

11 (B) the steps that have been taken to can12 cel the sale and prevent any recurrence of simi13 lar types of sales; and

14 (C) any additional authorities that are nec15 essary to carry out subparagraph (B).

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