U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy and Senate Majority Leader John Thune introduced legislation on Thursday aimed at directing federal funds to Louisiana’s crawfish industry and other agricultural sectors harmed by unfair trade practices.
The China Trade Cheating Restitution Act would require U.S. Customs and Border Protection to pay $38.5 million from interest on anti-dumping duties collected on certain Chinese imports to domestic producers affected by unlawful pricing practices, including $10.6 million designated for Louisiana crawfish producers.
Cassidy, a Republican from Louisiana, said the bill addresses what he described as China’s illegal trade actions that undercut U.S. producers. “Louisiana’s crawfish industry is more than just a business — it’s our culture,” Cassidy said in a prepared statement. “We’re standing up to China’s illegal attempts to hurt our producers, our processors, and our way of life.”
Thune, a Republican from South Dakota, said the bill also would support honey producers in his state. “The unfair practice of circumventing U.S. trade laws, which jeopardizes honey producers’ financial security, should be met with strict enforcement and increased protections,” Thune said. “South Dakota honey producers deserve a level playing field. This bipartisan legislation helps ensure fair treatment for affected domestic producers and strengthens their ability to compete globally.”
Adam Johnson of Bayou Land Seafood in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, said crawfish processors have faced challenges from imported products he called “unfairly traded”. He praised Cassidy for backing the industry.
Louisiana is the leading source of crawfish in the United States. In 2018, most U.S. crawfish farms were located in Louisiana, and the state historically produced the bulk of domestic supply.
For years, U.S. producers have raised concerns about imports of crawfish tail meat from China priced below production cost, a practice known as dumping. Dumping can depress market prices and create competitive disadvantages for domestic producers.
Federal law enacted in 2000 — the Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act, also known as the Byrd Amendment — directs that anti-dumping duties collected on imports found to be unfairly priced and the interest on those duties be distributed to U.S. producers that suffered injury. However, administrative delays have left many funds undisbursed.
The proposed legislation would require Customs and Border Protection to distribute an estimated $35.6 million in accrued late interest on antidumping duties that officials collected but did not yet distribute, and adjust the timeframe for dispersing interest to include earlier collections beginning in 2000.
Cassidy and Thune were joined in sponsoring the measure by Senators Gary Peters, Chuck Grassley and Tina Smith.
The Louisiana crawfish industry contributes significant economic activity in the state. Crawfish are commonly farmed in rotation with rice, a practice that dates to the early development of crawfish aquaculture in Louisiana and contributes revenue for farmers and processors.
