Statements On Introduced Bills And Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

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By Mr. HARKIN:

S. 2149. A bill to suspend temporarily the duty on orthotoluidine.

Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, the legislation I am introducing would suspend temporarily, through the end of 2011, the import duty on ortho-Ðtoluidine, a chemical compound used by several U.S. companies in manufacturing an important agricultural herbicide used for crops including corn, soybeans, peanuts, and cotton. One of the manufacturing plants is a facility in Muscatine, IA, that employs 500 workers. Other U.S. companies use the compound in manufacturing dyestuffs, pigments, optical brighteners, and pharmaceuticals. This legislation is drafted and intended for inclusion in the miscellaneous tariff bill being assembled by the Committee on Finance.

Currently, there is only one U.S. manufacturer of orthotoluidine, and that company has already announced plans to end production of the compound by the end of this year. Manufacturers in the U.S. will soon have no choice but to import this ingredient and to pay a duty of 6.5 percent unless it is suspended. Suspending this duty will help to control U.S. production costs, keep jobs at home, and enhance the competitiveness of U.S. businesses, workers, farmers, and the communities in which they are located.

I encourage my colleagues to support this legislation.

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