Buy America deal requires scrutiny

[CHIMO]

The "Buy America" deal between Ottawa and Washington is either "a very, very important step forward" (Prime Minister Stephen Harper), or "a bad deal" (Maude Barlow, chairperson of the Council of Canadians), or "great news for Ontario's economy" (Ontario Trade Minister Sandra Pupatello), or "too little, too late" (Liberal trade critic Scott Brison), or "so unbalanced and asymmetrical as to be shocking" (Sid Ryan, president of the Ontario Federation of Labour). Take your pick.

Behind these statements are more than just differences of opinion based on the same information. The various governments championing the deal and the interest groups opposed to it cannot even agree on the facts.

The deal purports to exempt Canadian manufacturers from Buy America clauses in U.S. infrastructure spending that require state and local governments to use only domestic suppliers. In turn, provincial and municipal governments in Canada are supposed to provide reciprocal access to American suppliers in their procurements.

But the 54-page deal is jammed with exceptions and conditions, framed in dense legalese. (A small sample: "Except as specified otherwise in this appendix, procurement in terms of U.S. coverage does not include non-contractual agreements or any form of government assistance, including cooperative agreements, grants, loans, equity infusions, guarantees, fiscal incentives and governmental provision of goods and services to persons or governmental authorities not specifically covered under U.S. annexes to this agreement.")

http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/768482--buy-america-deal-requires-scrutiny