Congress Members Seek A Halt
To Subsidized Canadian Wheat

WASHINGTON —(AP)— Members of Congress, led by the North Dakota delegation, called on the Bush administration in a letter Friday to halt what American wheat farmers say are unfair trade practices by Canada.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick is expected to announce in three weeks whether he will levy tariffs or take other action against Canada.

The decision will cap a lengthy investigation by Zoellick and the International Trade Commission based on a complaint by the North Dakota Wheat Commission, which represents 19,500 wheat farmers. That complaint states that Canada's wheat and barley farmers can sell their crops cheaper than American farmers because the Canadian government subsidizes rail shipping costs.

The letter was signed by 33 senators, including Democratic Sens. Tim Johnson and Tom Daschle of South Dakota. Nineteen members of the House of Representatives also signed the letter. Both Democrats and Republicans were on the list.

``The Canadian Wheat Board, acting in secret, effectively sets the price of Canadian exports, undercutting our producers,'' said Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., the author of the letter to Bush.

``I strongly recommend that the administration impose limits on unfair Canadian wheat imports until we can negotiate an agreement to end the wheat board's anticompetitive practices.''

Canadian officials have strongly denied that their grain producers have an unfair advantage over their American counterparts.

However, a North Dakota State University study found American farmers lose about $100 million annually because they cannot compete with the lower prices by the Canadian Wheat Board — which has a monopoly in selling Canadian barley and wheat — in overseas markets.

The ITC released a report of its inquiry into the matter late last year, with a finding that the Canadian Wheat Board was acting as an arm of the Canadian government when it subsidized shipping costs.

Senators who are pushing for action include: Sens. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., Max Baucus, D-Mont., Conrad Burns, R-Mont., Tim Johnson, D-S.D., Tom Daschle, D-S.D., Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., Larry Craig, R-Idaho, Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, Ben Nelson, D-Neb., Paul Wellstone, D-Minn., Mark Dayton, D-Minn., Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and James Inhofe, R-Okla.