Barbara Boxer: “in 1991 Congress enacted the Andean Trade Preference Act which provided for duty-free treatment, or reduced duties, on…”

“in 1991 Congress enacted the Andean Trade Preference Act which provided for duty-free treatment, or reduced duties, on many products, including fresh-cut flowers, imported from the four South American Andean countries of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. This legislation was proposed as a means of promoting alternatives to coca cultivation and production by offering broader access to U.S. markets for legal products. However, the impact of the ATPA on our domestic flower industry, particularly in my home State of California, has been devastating. Colombian fresh-cut flowers have been the greatest beneficiary of the ATPA. In 1992, Colombia exported $87.7 million worth of fresh cut flowers to the United States. By 1995, Colombian exports increased to over $374.4 million. This represents a 427-percent increase over that 3-year period. Domestic growers of roses and carnations have been particularly hard-hit. In 1996, Colombia exported approximately 1.7 billion roses and carnations to the United States. Colombia now controls more than 50 percent of the United States market for roses and 80 percent of the carnation market. Overall, Colombian flowers account for about 65 percent of the United States fresh-cut flower market. The preferential treatment accorded Colombian fresh-cut flowers under the ATPA has had a direct and dire impact on the United States flower industry--approximately 58 percent of which is located in California.”