WASHINGTON - Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King and Rep. Bruce Poliquin say Canadian subsidies are hurting Maine's paper industry.
They spoke Thursday at a U.S. International Trade Commission hearing on whether subsidies given to the Port Hawkesbury Paper mill in Nova Scotia have caused harm to Maine's paper industry. The Nova Scotia mill makes so-called supercalendered paper, a paper that's often used in magazines, catalogs and directories.
Collins told the panel that Maine communities dependent on paper mills "need immediate relief from the unfair advantages afforded by illegal subsidies'' provided to Port Hawkesbury Paper.
Canadian government subsidies have long been a point of contention between the U.S. and Canada. The ITC said Canada exported nearly 1.1 metric tons of supercalendered paper to the U.S. in 2014.