Ernst Statement on COOL Retaliation Tariffs

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) today released the following statement after the World Trade Organization (WTO) issued its official ruling on the level of retaliation tariffs Canada and Mexico are allowed to seek against the United States for the mandatory Country-of-Origin Labeling (COOL):

“Today’s ruling by the WTO sends a clear message that it is time to repeal this policy, which will negatively impact our own producers if continued.

“The WTO has repeatedly found that this mandatory COOL law fails to comply with our free trade agreements, and now Mexico and Canada have been given the go-ahead to take over $1 billion in retaliatory action against the United States.

“We’ve been putting this off for far too long and the time to act is now. The Senate must pick-up the reigns and pass a full repeal of COOL to avoid unnecessary harm to our agricultural and manufacturing sectors.

“I remain committed to ensuring that our products reach other countries without retaliation to our American producers who are the backbone of Iowa and an integral part of our economic vitality.”

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