'Steeling' House Votes at Low Prices for the Steel Import Quota Bill of 1999

Robert Crandall in the March 19, 1999 Wall Street Journal wrote, "On Wednesday the House passed one of the most blatantly protectionist pieces of legislation since the 1930s. Reacting to the anguished cries from the steel industry and its rapidly declining unionized workforce, the House voted to impose quotas on imported steel for three years. Crandall was referring to the "Bipartisan Steel Recovery Act" of 1999. We summarize and evaluate the congressional debate on the bill. Then we use logit analysis to explore whether campaign contributions to Representatives by the steel industry (excluding steel unions), steel unions and the steel using automobile industry had any impact on voting patterns on the bill. We also check whether in-state and out-of state contributions from the steel industry affect voting behavior differentially.