Charbonneau Authors Resolution Urging Federal Action on Steel Industry

State Senator Ed Charbonneau
State Senator Ed Charbonneau

State Senator Ed Charbonneau has authored a resolution that he hopes will have an effect at the federal level on the U.S. steel industry.

Every Indiana Senator has signed onto Senate Resolution 68 – which is designed to encourage the state’s federal representatives in Congress to strongly enforce the nation’s trade laws.

China is said by many business experts to be overproducing the amount of steel in circulation. This trend ultimately floods U.S. markets, and impacts Indiana-based companies. The Hoosier State leads the nation in custom steel fabrication and production.

According to Charbonneau’s offices, Chinese steel production increased 20-percent between 2014 and 2015. Methods are available to stem the flow of Chinese steel production into global markets, according to Charbonneau. He says if the oversupply isn’t stopped, it will eventually begin to affect the state’s economy in a negative way.

Apart from encouraging federal representatives to take strong action to help enforce trade policies already in place, the resolution also urges the U.S. Department of Commerce to maintain China as a “non-market economy.” The designation preserves the ability of U.S. companies and workers access to trade remedy laws.