# Byrd Amendment

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This article is about the 2000 amendment by Sen. Robert Byrd. For the 1971 amendment by Sen. Harry F. Byrd, see [Byrd Amendment (1971)](/source/Byrd_Amendment_(1971)).

The **Byrd Amendment** is also known as the **Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act of 2000** (CDSOA). It passed as title X of .

## Substance

The act is [American](/source/United_States) legislation closely associated with its chief sponsor, [Democratic](/source/Democratic_Party_(United_States)) [Senator](/source/United_States_Senate) [Robert Byrd](/source/Robert_Byrd) of [West Virginia](/source/West_Virginia). The act changed the disposition of funds raised from [duties](/source/Fine_(penalty)) on imports that the US government has determined to be subsidized or otherwise unfairly priced. Prior to the act, those funds were incorporated into the US budget. The Act specifies that the funds be distributed to the US companies that file pricing complaints. In short, this meant that non-US firms which sell below cost price in the US can be fined, and the [money](/source/Money) given to the US companies who made the complaint in the first place.

## Duration

Congress enacted the Byrd Amendment on October 28, 2000, and repealed it on December 21, 2005.[1][2]

## History

On July 21, 2001, the [European Commission](/source/European_Commission) and eight other countries – [Australia](/source/Australia), [Brazil](/source/Brazil), [Chile](/source/Chile), [India](/source/India), [Indonesia](/source/Indonesia), [Japan](/source/Japan), [South Korea](/source/South_Korea) and [Thailand](/source/Thailand) — filed a formal protest with the [World Trade Organization](/source/World_Trade_Organization) (WTO). The European Commission claimed that since 2000, US companies had received [$](/source/USD)1 billion in anti-dumping fees redistributed to them under the Byrd Amendment. In 2002, the WTO ruled the Byrd Amendment wholly illegal. It said that the [European Union](/source/European_Union) (EU) and the other countries could introduce measures which penalize the US for up to 72% of the monies raised and distributed through the Byrd Amendment.

On April 4, 2005,[citation needed] now with the permission of the WTO, the EU announced plans to implement limited [sanctions](/source/Trade_sanctions) on a selection of US goods, charging a 15% [levy](/source/Tax) on U.S. [paper](/source/Paper), [farm goods](/source/Farm_equipment), [textiles](/source/Textiles) and [machinery](/source/Machinery) from May 1, 2005. This was in light of the continuing failure of the United States to bring its legislation in conformity with its international obligations. Also, on May 1, Canada imposed a 15% surtax sanction on US imports of [cigarettes](/source/Cigarette), [oysters](/source/Oyster) and live [swine](/source/Pig). On September 1, 2005, the [Japanese government](/source/Japanese_government) introduced 15% retaliatory duties on U.S. [steel](/source/Steel) imports.

For years,[specify] President [George W. Bush](/source/George_W._Bush) called for the Act's repeal; however, this was met with little progress. Eventually, after growing pressure on multiple fronts, the [109th United States Congress](/source/109th_United_States_Congress) in December 2005 and January 2006 repealed the amendment.[clarification needed] The act's provisions stayed in place until October 1, 2007, and money continued to be redirected to companies during this time. For example, [American Italian Pasta Company](/source/American_Italian_Pasta_Company), in a [Form 10-Q](/source/Securities_and_Exchange_Commission_Form_10-Q) dated August 6, 2008, recognized "[dumping](/source/Dumping_(pricing_policy)) and subsidy offset payments" attributed to the Act of $2.959 million for its [fiscal year](/source/Fiscal_year) 2007 and $4.64 million for fiscal year 2008.[1]

## References

1. ["AMERICAN ITALIAN PASTA CO, Form 10-Q, Quarterly Report, - Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, Filing Date Aug 6, 2008"](http://pdf.secdatabase.com/2832/0000922907-08-000557.pdf). secdatabase.com. Retrieved May 15, 2018.

1. Blustein, Paul (December 22, 2005). ["Senators Vote to Kill Trade Bill"](https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/21/AR2005122102074.html). *Washington Post*. Retrieved October 19, 2012.

## External links

- [BBC News](/source/BBC_News): - [EU may fight against the bill](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4019967.stm) - [WTO ruling](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3615030.stm) - [Proposed European sanctions on US goods](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4396905.stm)
- [Canada authorized to sanction the United States for Byrd Amendment](http://webapps.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/minpub/Publication.asp?publication_id=382342&language=E)[dead link] from [Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada](/source/Foreign_Affairs_and_International_Trade_Canada)
- [Dispute page for DS217, the CDSOA](http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/dispu_e/cases_e/ds217_e.htm) from [World Trade Organization](/source/World_Trade_Organization)
- [A brief history of the bill](https://web.archive.org/web/20020823150001/http://ebearing.com/legislation/2000act.htm) from eBearing.com

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Byrd Amendment](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byrd_Amendment) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byrd_Amendment?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.