WASHINGTON - Federal officials have taken a preliminary step toward imposing a trade safeguard that would protect domestic sock manufacturers against imports from Honduras, which have spiked as a result of the Central American Free Trade Agreement.

If finalized, the move would reinstate tariffs on socks imported from Honduras for up to three years, helping to keep domestic socks more competitive on price.

Lawmakers representing sock manufacturers, particularly Republican Rep. Robert Aderholt of Alabama, have pressed for the safeguard since agreeing to support CAFTA in a high-pressure vote two years ago.

But the administration has resisted, citing a lack of evidence that Central American imports are damaging the U.S. industry.

Friday's announcement that the government would open a review of the sock trade data for Honduras signaled a possible change in course. The Commerce Department said the decision is an early step allowing the government to more closely examine whether a safeguard is warranted. But Aderholt called it "welcome news" and said it showed that the administration realizes the U.S. sock manufacturers are getting hurt.

"The numbers don't lie," said Aderholt, whose district includes the self-proclaimed "Sock Capital of the World" in Fort Payne. "Imports have been on the rise while domestic production has declined."

Honduras accounts for about a third of all CAFTA sock imports, sending nearly 19 million dozen pairs of socks to the United States in the 12 months ending in May, according to Commerce statistics. That's up more than 50 percent over the previous 12-month period.

In overall numbers, Honduras lags far behind countries like China, which imports nearly 60 million dozen pairs, and Pakistan, which imports nearly 45 million dozen pairs. Still, U.S. sock manufacturers have warned that recent corporate decisions to relocate production in Honduras will push the country's imports far higher.

Textile experts say Southern states like Alabama and North Carolina have the most to lose.

Commerce Department spokesman Charlie Skuba said the Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements, which has representatives from several federal agencies, voted this week to initiate the safeguard process to determine whether Honduran imports "are causing or threatening to cause serious damage to the U.S. industry producing socks."

The committee will seek public comment in the coming weeks and could take months to make a final decision, he said.

Lloyd Wood, a spokesman for the American Manufacturing Trade Action Coalition, which opposed CAFTA, said the administration is likely to follow through with the safeguard. The move could spur additional negotiations with Honduras, he said.

"Where there's smoke there's fire," he said. "The government isn't going to waste its resources investigating an area where there is not evidence supporting a safeguard."

The debate over a safeguard has been brewing since 2005, when a number of textile-state lawmakers decided at the last minute to support the White House-backed CAFTA legislation after hours of arm twisting from President Bush and other Republican leaders.

Aderholt switched his position at the last minute after getting assurances from the administration that it would protect the sock industry by seeking to renegotiate tariffs on CAFTA socks and being "very pro-active" in triggering a safeguard.

The trade deal passed 217-215.

Since that time, Aderholt has expressed frustration with the lack of action from the White House, saying in the spring that his patience was wearing thin.

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