The fight to repeal the “Byrd Amendment” will dramatically intensify this week, as House and Senate negotiators meet in a conference committee to frame a compromise version of the Deficit Reduction Act that can be brought back to the respective chambers for a final vote. Members will recall the version of this bill passed by the House of Representatives included a provision to repeal the Byrd Amendment, while the Senate version did not.
The focus of this fight on the Senate side revolves around Idaho. The two senators from that state – Larry Craig and Michael Crapo, both Republicans - have vowed not to vote for any final version that contains a repeal of the Byrd Amendment, since the largest private employer in that state, Micron Technologies, is a major recipient of Byrd money.
On the House side, the Idaho Congressional delegation is also a focus of our efforts. The delegation consists of two Congressmen, “Butch” Otter and Mike Simpson (again, both Republicans). Any AFI Member that has contacts in Idaho – suppliers, customers, distributors, etc. - are urged to call the offices of the Idaho Senators and Congressmen to urge their support for the Byrd Amendment repeal. SUCH CONTACTS ARE EXTREMELY VALUABLE AT THIS TIME –if you have them, please contact Bob Bauer or Jeff Levin and we will pass along the phone numbers and a quick “message” to relay.
Efforts on the House side are also focused on the thirteen Republican Representatives that voted against the House-passed version of the Deficit Reduction Act. Since that measure passed by a vote of 217-215, this group of Representatives takes on pronounced importance in case any of the Congressmen that initially voted for the House-passed version of the Deficit Reduction Act ends up voting against the compromise version that will emerge from a House-Senate conference if it continues to include the Byrd Amendment repeal provision (such as the two Idaho members). Several Congressmen in this group are from the New York metropolitan area, an area with many AFI members. Their names and phone numbers are listed below. If you have any contacts with these Congressmen, and especially if they are your Congressmen, a phone call today would be extremely helpful to these efforts. The names are as follows:
CT:
Rob Simmons (2nd District): 202-225-2076
Christopher Shays (4th District): 202-225-5541
Nancy Johnson (5th District): 202-225-4476
NJ:
Christopher Smith (4th District): 202-225-3765
NY:
John McHugh (23rd District): 202-225-4611
All you need to say is that you urge the Representative to vote for the Deficit Reduction Act, including the provision to repeal Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act, otherwise known as the Byrd Amendment (of course, give your company name, let them know that you are a member of the Association of Food Industries, and, if applicable, that you are a constituent). You may want to add that the Byrd Amendment constitutes the worst of all possible worlds: a bad law, poorly implemented.
In addition, all Members are urged to transmit the political action letter that we initially attached to a Counsel’s Report ALERT. The template for this letter is available to Members from the AFI website. Of course, feel free to contact Bob Bauer or Jeff Levin if you need a copy of the letter or an address (at this point, you should email the letter).
Each and every contact counts – every phone call, every letter. THE TIME FOR ACTION IS RIGHT NOW!!
