CINCINNATI, OHIO – On Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown – who has been described as Congress’ “leading proponent of American manufacturing” – visited Byer Steel Group in Cincinnati to tour the facility and unveil new legislation that would help level the playing field for American manufacturers by strengthening the ability of the U.S. to crack down on unfair foreign competition resulting from violations of trade law. Byer Steel is a leading producer of steel reinforcing bar – or “rebar” – and structural steel.

“As American manufacturing continues its steady comeback, it is critical that we fully enforce our trade laws to ensure that American companies – like Byer Steel – can compete on a level playing field,” Brown said. “That’s why the Leveling the Playing Field Act is so important. We must fight back against foreign companies’ efforts to weaken our trade laws and exploit loopholes.  And that’s exactly what the Leveling the Playing Field Act does. I look forward to working with my colleagues in a bipartisan fashion to get this bill passed.”

Brown announced plans to introduce the Leveling the Playing Field Act, legislation that would ensure American companies – like Byer Steel – have the resources necessary to fight back against unfair foreign trade practices. In June, Burke Byer laid out the issues facing the domestic rebar industry. According to Byer, the U.S. rebar industry is currently operating at 60 percent capacity, with many manufacturers laying off workers and closing facilities. During today’s announcement, Byer called on the U.S. government to provide trade relief to American producers to help stabilize the industry and keep hardworking Americans on the job.

Earlier this month, Brown joined 23 U.S. Senators in a letter to ITC Chairman Meredith Broadbent to ensure the dumping and subsidization of foreign rebar does not cause further harm to domestic producers. In April, Brown and U.S. Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) joined in a letter to Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker urging the Department to continue to investigate illegal dumping and subsidies on unfairly traded imports of rebar from Turkey and Mexico. Following that letter, Commerce announced plans to enforce preliminary dumping duties on rebar imported from Mexico and Turkey.

Brown has introduced a package of key legislative proposals aimed at bolstering the competiveness of U.S. manufacturers and boosting domestic manufacturing. In September 2014, his bipartisan manufacturing jobs legislation written with U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) cleared the U.S. House of Representatives. The Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation Act (RAMI) would establish a National Network of Manufacturing Innovation (NNMI) and create thousands of high-paying, high-tech manufacturing jobs while enhancing the United States’ role as the world’s leader in advanced manufacturing.

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