U.S. HOUSE English to head steel caucus

THE VINDICATOR, YOUNGSTOWN
The caucus wants to see what kind of help it will get from the Bush administration before crafting laws.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR SHARON BUREAU
FARRELL, Pa. -- U.S. Rep. Phil English of Erie, R-21st, said he will be "leading the charge in Congress" to protect the domestic steel industry.
English has been named chairman of the Congressional Steel Caucus and he stopped at Duferco Farrell Corp. Friday to talk about the assignment.
The caucus is a bipartisan group of House members whose districts house steel manufacturers.
English succeeds U.S. Rep. Jack Quinn, R-Buffalo, who held the title for only a few months, and U.S. Rep. Ralph Regula, R-Canton, who ran the caucus for years.
Reaction: "Phil English is a perfect person to take over the reins at the Steel Caucus," Regula said. "With his membership on the Ways & amp; Means Trade Subcommittee, Phil is uniquely positioned to lead the Steel Caucus' efforts to preserve this vital industry."
English said he plans to work closely with his Senate counterpart, Arlen Specter, R-Pa., who chairs the Senate Steel caucus.
The congressman said he wasn't looking for the appointment but didn't hesitate to accept it, even though the domestic steel industry has fallen on hard times with frequent plant closings and bankruptcies.
"I'm willing to take it on because someone has to," he said.
The industry has been subject to unfair trading and dumping by foreign producers, English said.
"We haven't been able to get relief legislation through Congress," he said, claiming that the Clinton administration was not supportive and he hopes to get more from President Bush.
"We can't survive without a domestic steel industry," English said, noting he personally favors strengthening trade laws and imposing tougher quotas on imported steel.
Small companies, like Sharpsville Quality Products in Sharpsville, which recently went bankrupt and was sold, are particularly at risk, he said.
Job training: Mike Hrycyk, human resource manager at Duferco, said his company would like the government to provide training money to help improve the steel work force, particularly getting younger workers ready for jobs that will be vacated by the retirement of older workers.
English said job training is an important issue but he also said the Steel Caucus isn't proposing any particular legislation right now.
It wants to see what kind of help it will get from the Bush administration before crafting laws to give domestic steel a more level playing field, he said.
Hrycyk said the industry has been hit hard by falling prices, noting that hot band steel was selling for more than $300 a ton a year ago, but is now selling in the low-$200 range.
"We don't have fair trade in steel," English said, adding that companies like Duferco, which has poured $70 million into what was once the Sharon Steel Corp. plant and created about 540 jobs in the process, need to be protected.