NLBMDA Statement on the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement
[Washington DC] – The National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association (NLBMDA) released the following statement on the signing of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) today in Buenos Aires, Argentina, at the G20 Summit. USMCA is a trilateral trade deal with Mexico and Canada that will replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) if the legislatures of the three countries ratify it.
USMCA maintains NAFTA’s dispute resolution mechanism allowing for a binational arbitration process regarding countervailing duties (CVD) and anti-dumping duties (AD). These panels have been used in the past as part of the softwood lumber dispute between the U.S. and Canada. In addition, aluminum tariffs of 10 percent and steel tariffs of 25 percent remain in effect for imports from Canada and Mexico despite the new agreement.
All three countries must still ratify the trade agreement for it to take effect, which means both the House of Representatives and Senate will have to approve USMCA next year.
“NLBMDA is pleased that the U.S., Mexico, and Canada have reached an agreement and are moving forward to update NAFTA,” said NLBMDA President and CEO Jonathan Paine. “The U.S. should build on this positive momentum by resolving the softwood lumber dispute with Canada and ending the steel and aluminum tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada.”
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The National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association (NLBMDA) represents its members in the national public policy arena, with emphasis on efforts to 1) promote the industry and educate legislators and public policy personnel; and 2) assist legislative, regulatory, standard-setting and other government or private bodies in the development of laws, regulations and policies affecting lumber and building material dealers, its customers and suppliers. Founded in 1917, the association has over 6,000 members operating single or multiple lumber yards and component plants serving homebuilders, subcontractors, general contractors, and consumers in the new construction, repair and remodeling of residential and light commercial.
