Lead-Zinc Producers Association records, 1963-1981

The materials in this section reflect the office files of the Lead-Zinc Producers Association. Boxes 1-3 contains subject files, which are in alphabetical order. These files are a combination of topics associated with metals, especially lead and zinc, and also subjects of interest in the 1970's. The rest of the section, boxes 4-12, contains company reports, United States, regional, and foreign brochures, speeches by industry executives, documents pertaining to the national stockpile, company and government press releases, news clippings, and miscellaneous files.

The files in this section are a compilation of statistics and surveys from various organizations including the American Bureau of Metal Statistics and Lead Industries Association and government agencies, such as the United States Bureau of Mines. The surveys and statistics cover a variety of topics concerning lead and zinc, such as imports, consumption, and mine and smelter production. Many of the documents in this section came out of binders from the LZPA office. Whenever evident and possible the original order was maintained. As a result, the Mineral Industries Survey, boxes 1-3, Lead Industry Association, box 12, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), box 13, and Zinc Institute, box 14, are organized by subject, and within each subject heading the data is in chronological order. The remainder of the section, the American Bureau of Metal Statistics, boxes 4-10, is arranged by date only.

The import and export section of the collection has three divisions. Boxes 1-3 contain subject files on a variety of topics associated with trade issues. There are legislative bills and acts as well as other government documents. This section also contains correspondence, press releases, and news clippings that correspond with the import/export subjects. The files in this section are in alphabetical order. Boxes 4-5 of the section contain files on the Multilateral Trade Negotiations (MTN). These negotiations were attended by Mr. Bodner in various European countries between 1974-1978. The purpose of the MTN was to gather industry executives in order to discuss topics such as tariffs, subsides, incentives, and countervailing duties. The MTN files contain correspondence, reports, press releases and news clippings. The last box in the section involves antidumping legislation. The majority of these files contain Congressional Register and Federal Register documents as well as press releases, United States International Trade Commission (USITC) investigation notices, and news clippings about domestic pricing and quality of certain foreign products.

The material in this section is associated with two government cases in which the Lead-Zinc Producers Association was actively involved. The first case dealt with Primary Lead Metal from Canada and Australia and was discussed during sessions of the U.S. Tariff Commission (USTC) in 1973-1974. The second case took place in the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) and occurred during 1975-1976. In both cases the LZPA was concerned that the domestic lead industry was damaged by unfair prices. The claim by domestic lead producers was that foreign competitors, especially Canada and Australia, were selling their products in America for less money than in their own country, hence the use of the word "dumping". This section is comprised of statistical data, testimony and statements made by industry executives, reports and briefs from the USTC and USITC investigations, as well as press releases and news clippings. All documents are in chronological order. Correspondence begins this section and press releases and news clippings are combined at the end of the files.

The files in this section relate to the Zinc Escape Clause legislative case of 1978, which addressed the suspension of duties and tariffs on unalloyed and unwrought zinc. This request was made by zinc advocates in order to protect the industry from economic depression. The investigation and hearings took place in 1976-1978, during which time, two petitions were submitted to the United States International Commission (USITC) by the Lead-Zinc Producers Association (LZPA). The first was for the suspension of duties on unalloyed, unwrought zinc and the second request was for expansion of the investigation to include other forms of zinc. The majority of the files in this section deal with the USITC testimony and briefs. The section is arranged in chronological order and is concluded by press releases and news clippings.

The International Lead-Zinc Study Group (ILZSG) was made up of experts in the field of metal production and research. Lead Zinc Producers Association (LZPA) members attended the Study Group, often held in Geneva, Switzerland, from 1972 to 1978. The majority of the materials in this section are comprised of reports from the various committees, such as the Statistical, Standing, and Economic Committees. Correspondence, agendas, attendance lists, press releases, and news clippings are included chronologically with the various reports in this section.

This section contains miscellaneous reports, articles, and journals arranged in chronological order. The reports and articles include environmental considerations, lead and zinc industry concerns and improvements such as, innovative scientific mineral processes, and economic issues, such as tax systems, investments, and supply/demand economics. The journals include the Japan Metal Journal, the Mining Activity Digest, and the Official Journal of the European Communities.