FTC: Made In The USA Comments Concerning Earl F. Hilliard--P894219

EARL F. HILLIARD
COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE

CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES

House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515-0107
June 2, 1997

Hon. Robert Pitofsky
Chairman
Federal Trade Commission
Pennsylvania Avenue at Sixth Street, Northwest
Washington, DC 20580

Dear Mr. Pitofsky:

Enclosed you will find a letter addressed to me from Mr. Stewart Burkhalter, President of Alabama AFL-CIO. He has written to me concerning the FTC proposed opening of the label, "Made in U.S.A." to allow more foreign use of the term.

We have encountered foreign use of the label already - sewn into garments made in low-wage nations and illegally sold in the United States by unscrupulous retailers, including some of the largest in the nation. Also, retailers have been found to be selling foreign-made goods while advertising them as American-made. The solution is not to open up the label to increased abuse, but to enforce the present restrictions.

American workers are already being badly injured by the unfair exportation of their jobs by their employers. We must never collaborate with such an offense to the American people. I specifically call upon you to see to it that the traditional use of the label is maintained, and is rigorously enforced.

Please in inform me of your position on this matter, and on progress toward protection of American workers. If there is anything else that I can do to be of assistance to you, please do not hesitate to contact me or my staff.

Sincerely,

Earl F. Hilliard

Earl F. Hilliard

Member of Congress

EFH/fjz

Alabama AFL-CIO
297 WEST VALLEY AVENUE BIRMINGHAM, AL 35209-4891 TELEPHONE: 205-942-5260 FAX: 205-945-8207

STEWART BURKHALTER
President

BILLY TINDLE
Secretary-Treasurer

SALLY RODGERS
Executive Vice President

May 27, 1997

Congressman Earl Hilliard
1314 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D. C. 20515

Dear Congressman Hilliard:

Working men and women and consumers need your help. The Federal Trade Commission is proposing to no longer restrict use of the "Made in U.S.A." label to products and advertisements for merchandise with "all or virtually all" U.S. parts and labor. Instead, the agency announced, it will permit use of the label for products which either are:

• "Last substantially transformed" in the U.S. and have at least 75% U.S. manufacturing costs, or;
• Without regard to U.S. manufacturing costs, both the products "and all significant parts and components" were "last substantially transformed" here.

The new guidelines would make the "Made in U.S.A." label a fraud on the American public and open the door even wider to the export of U.S. jobs.

Congress has a watchdog function over the FTC and the FTC must be called to task by you and the other members of Congress.

Sincerely,

D.S. Burkhalter
President

md

OPEIU-18