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ITC lifts tariffs on imported newsprint
Aug 30, 2018 7:15 am
The Daily Freeman and the Associated Press are reporting the U.S. International Trade Commission August 29, blocked tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on imported newsprint. The commission found that American producers were not harmed by imports from Canadian paper mills. The newspaper industry had complained that the rising cost of newsprint made it harder to operate. The commission heard testimony in July that the tariffs were actually harming the paper industry they were supposed to protect. The higher prices had caused publishers to reduce the number of pages in their papers, and also led newspapers to cut staffing and the number of local events they covered. U.S. Senator Charles Schumer, Democrat of New York, celebrated the decision in a tweet: “ITC made exactly the right decision to completely eliminate them. I will remain vigilant to make sure that they never return.” U.S. Rep. John Faso, Republican of Kinderhook, also hailed the decision. “People across upstate New York depend on local newspapers to know what is going on in their communities,” he said. “These tariffs threatened to cause irreversible damage to local newspapers, which already operate under thin margins...This is a good day for the people of upstate New York and the hardworking employees of local newspapers.” The Commerce Department imposed the tariffs in response to a complaint from a paper producer in Washington state. The company can appeal the commission's ruling. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.