Warner, Kaine Press Chinese Drywall Manufacturer To Take Care Of Virginia Consumers

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine joined a group of five Senators to write a letter urging a Chinese drywall manufacturer to pay for the damage caused by its product in the United States, including in many Virginia homes.

The letter presses Taishan Gypsum, one of the major Chinese drywall companies, to settle with builders and homeowners in the wake of a recent federal appeals court ruling affirming U.S. jurisdiction in the matter. Taishan Gypsum has already been ordered by a federal appeals court to pay $2.7 million to seven Hampton Roads homeowners for damages resulting from the company's drywall, a small portion of the approximately 300 Virginia families who are suing Taishan Gypsum.

“On behalf of thousands of Americans that continue to deal with the effects of problem Chinese drywall, we again write to urge you to reach a fair and just settlement,” the Senators wrote.

The bipartisan group of lawmakers also included Sens. Nelson (D-FL), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), David Vitter (R-LA), and Mark Pryor (D-AR).

The letter calls on Taishan Gypsum to pay for defective drywall replacement, among other costs incurred by homeowners.   So far, one other Chinese company, Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin, has created a fund to pay for repairing about 5,200 properties largely in Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama. 

Full text of the letter follows:

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