Request for Comments and Notice of Public Hearing Concerning China's Compliance with WTO Commitments, 44714-44715 [05-15365]

Download as PDF 44714 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 148 / Wednesday, August 3, 2005 / Notices forth in Sections A, B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such statements. A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement of the Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change 1. Purpose The purpose of the proposed rule change is to extend for one year the pilot program establishing Exchange fees for Principal (‘‘P’’) Orders and Principal Acting as Agent (‘‘P/A’’) Orders executed on the Exchange that are submitted through Linkage. The fees currently are effective for a pilot program set to expire on July 31, 2005, and this proposal would extend such fees through July 31, 2006. The two fees the Exchange charges for P and P/A orders are: The basic execution fee for trading on the Exchange; and a $.05 comparison fee, each per contract side. These are the same fees that all PCX Option Trading Permit Holders pay for non-customer transactions executed on the Exchange. The Exchange does not charge for the execution of Satisfaction Orders sent through Linkage and is not proposing to charge for such orders. 2. Statutory Basis The Exchange believes that the proposal is consistent with Section 6(b) of the Act,4 in general, and Section 6(b)(4) of the Act 5 in particular, in that the proposed rule change provides for the equitable allocation of dues, fees and other charges among its members and other persons using its facilities for the purpose of executing P/A Orders or P Orders that are routed to the Exchange from other market centers. B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement on Burden on Competition The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule change will impose any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement on Comments on the Proposed Rule Change Received From Members, Participants or Others The Exchange has neither solicited nor received written comments on the proposed rule change. III. Solicitation of Comments Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule 4 15 5 15 U.S.C. 78f(b). U.S.C. 78f(b)(4). VerDate jul<14>2003 15:22 Aug 02, 2005 Jkt 205001 change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods: 6(b) of the Act 7 and the rules and regulations thereunder. The Commission finds that the proposed rule change is consistent with Section Electronic Comments 6(b)(4) of the Act,8 which requires that • Use the Commission’s Internet the rules of the Exchange provide for the comment form (https://www.sec.gov/ equitable allocation of reasonable dues, rules/sro.shtml); or fees and other charges among its • Send an e-mail to rulemembers and other persons using its comments@sec.gov. Please include File facilities. The Commission believes that Number SR–PCX–2005–86 on the the extension of the Linkage fee pilot subject line. until July 31, 2006 will give the Exchange and the Commission further Paper Comments opportunity to evaluate whether such • Send paper comments in triplicate fees are appropriate. to Jonathan G. Katz, Secretary, The Commission finds good cause Securities and Exchange Commission, pursuant to Section 19(b)(2) of the Act,9 100 F Street, NE., Washington, DC for approving the proposed rule change 20549–9303. All submissions should prior to the thirtieth day after refer to File Number SR–PCX–2005–86. This file number should be included on publication of notice thereof in the the subject line if e-mail is used. To help Federal Register. The Commission believes that granting accelerated the Commission process and review approval of the proposed rule change your comments more efficiently, please will preserve the Exchange’s existing use only one method. The Commission pilot program for Linkage fees without will post all comments on the interruption as the Exchange and the Commission’s Internet Web site (https:// www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml). Copies of Commission further consider the appropriateness of Linkage fees. the submission, all subsequent amendments, all written statements V. Conclusion with respect to the proposed rule It is therefore ordered, pursuant to change that are filed with the Section 19(b)(2) of the Act,10 that the Commission, and all written proposed rule change (SR–PCX–2005– communications relating to the 86) is hereby approved on an proposed rule change between the Commission and any person, other than accelerated basis for a pilot period to expire on July 31, 2006. those that may be withheld from the For the Commission, by the Division of public in accordance with the Market Regulation, pursuant to delegated provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be authority.11 available for inspection and copying in Margaret H. McFarland, the Commission’s Public Reference Room. Copies of such filing also will be Deputy Secretary. available for inspection and copying at [FR Doc. E5–4126 Filed 8–2–05; 8:45 am] the principal office of the Exchange. All BILLING CODE 8010–01–P comments received will be posted without change; the Commission does not edit personal identifying OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES information from submissions. You TRADE REPRESENTATIVE should submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. All Request for Comments and Notice of submissions should refer to File Public Hearing Concerning China’s Number SR–PCX–2005–86 and should Compliance with WTO Commitments be submitted on or before August 24, AGENCY: Office of the United States 2005. Trade Representative. IV. Commission’s Findings and Order ACTION: Request for comments and Granting Accelerated Approval of the notice of public hearing concerning Proposed Rule Change China’s compliance with its WTO After careful consideration, the commitments. Commission finds that the proposed SUMMARY: The interagency Trade Policy rule change is consistent with the Staff Committee (TPSC) will convene a requirements of the Act and the rules and regulations thereunder applicable to public hearing and seek public comment to assist the Office of the a national securities exchange,6 and, in particular, the requirements of Section 7 15.U.S.C. 6 In approving this proposal, the Commission has considered the proposed rule’s impact on efficiency, competition, and capital formation. 15 U.S.C. 78c(f). PO 00000 Frm 00162 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 78f(b). U.S.C. 78f(b)(4). 9 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2). 10 Id. 11 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 8 15 E:\FR\FM\03AUN1.SGM 03AUN1 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 148 / Wednesday, August 3, 2005 / Notices United States Trade Representative (USTR) in the preparation of its annual report to the Congress on China’s compliance with the commitments made in connection with its accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). DATES: Persons wishing to testify orally at the hearing must provide written notification of their intention, as well as a copy of their testimony, by noon, Thursday, September 1, 2005. Written comments are due by noon, Tuesday, September 6, 2005. A hearing will be held in Washington, DC, on Wednesday, September 14, 2005. ADDRESSES: Submissions by electronic mail: FR0437@USTR.EOP.GOV. Submissions by facsimile: Gloria Blue, Executive Secretary, Trade Policy Staff Committee, Office of the United States Trade Representative, (202) 395–6143. The public is strongly encouraged to submit documents electronically rather than by facsimile. (See requirements for submissions below.) FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For procedural questions concerning written comments or participation in the public hearing, contact Gloria Blue, (202) 395– 3475. All other questions should be directed to Terrence J. McCartin, Senior Director of Monitoring and Enforcement for China, (202) 395–3900, or Stephen S. Kho, Associate General Counsel, (202) 395–3582. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 1. Background China became a member of the WTO on December 11, 2001. In accordance with section 421 of the U.S.-China Relations Act of 2000 (Pub. L. 106–286), USTR is required to submit, by December 11 of each year, a report to Congress on China’s compliance with commitments made in connection with its accession to the WTO, including both multilateral commitments and any bilateral commitments made to the United States. In accordance with section 421, and to assist it in preparing this year’s report, the TPSC is hereby soliciting public comment. Last year’s report is available on USTR’s Internet Web site (at https://www.ustr.gov/ World_Regions/North_Asia/China/ Section_Index.html). The terms of China’s accession to the WTO are contained in the Protocol on the Accession of the People’s Republic of China (including its annexes) (Protocol), the Report of the Working Party on the Accession of China (Working Party Report), and the WTO Agreement. The Protocol and Working Party Report can be found on the Department of Commerce Web page, VerDate jul<14>2003 15:22 Aug 02, 2005 Jkt 205001 https://www.mac.doc.gov/China/ WTOAccessionPackage.htm, or on the WTO Web site, https:// docsonline.wto.org (document symbols: WT/L/432, WT/MIN(01)/3, WT/ MIN(01)/3/Add.1, WT/MIN(01)/3/ Add.2). 2. Public Comment and Hearing USTR invites written comments and/ or oral testimony of interested persons on China’s compliance with commitments made in connection with its accession to the WTO, including, but not limited to, commitments in the following areas: (a) Trading rights; (b) import regulation (e.g., tariffs, tariff-rate quotas, quotas, import licenses); (c) export regulation; (d) internal policies affecting trade (e.g., subsidies, standards and technical regulations, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, government procurement, trade-related investment measures, taxes and charges levied on imports and exports); (e) intellectual property rights (including intellectual property rights enforcement); (f) services; (g) rule of law issues (e.g., transparency, judicial review, uniform administration of laws and regulations) and status of legal reform; and (h) other WTO commitments. Persons submitting written comments should identify the commitments discussed therein by listing one or more of these categories on the first page of the comments. Written comments must be received no later than noon, Tuesday, September 6, 2005. A hearing will be held on Wednesday, September 14, 2005, in Room 1, 1724 F Street, NW., Washington, DC 20508. If necessary, the hearing will continue on the next day. Persons wishing to testify orally at the hearing must provide written notification of their intention by noon, Thursday, September 1, 2005. The notification should include: (1) the name, address, and telephone number of the person presenting the testimony; and (2) a short (one or two paragraph) summary of the presentation, including the commitments at issue and, as applicable, the product(s) (with HTSUS numbers), service sector(s), or other subjects to be discussed. A copy of the testimony must accompany the notification. Remarks at the hearing should be limited to no more than five minutes to allow for possible questions from the TPSC. All documents should be submitted in accordance with the instructions in section 3 below. 3. Requirements for Submissions In order to facilitate prompt processing of submissions, USTR PO 00000 Frm 00163 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 44715 strongly urges and prefers electronic (email) submissions in response to this notice. In the event that an e-mail submission is impossible, submissions should be made by facsimile. Persons making submissions by email should use the following subject line: ‘‘China WTO’’ followed by (as appropriate) ‘‘Written Comments,’’ ‘‘Notice of Testimony,’’ or ‘‘Testimony.’’ Documents should be submitted as either Adobe PDF, WordPerfect, MSWord, or text (.TXT) files. Supporting documentation submitted as spreadsheets are acceptable as Quattro Pro or Excel. For any document containing business confidential information submitted electronically, the file name of the business confidential version should begin with the characters ‘‘BC-’’, and the file name of the public version should begin with the characters ‘‘P-’’. The ‘‘P-’’ or ‘‘BC-’’ should be followed by the name of the submitter. Persons who make submissions by e-mail should not provide separate cover letters; information that might appear in a cover letter should be included in the submission itself. Similarly, to the extent possible, any attachments to the submission should be included in the same file as the submission itself, and not as separate files. Written comments, notices of testimony, and testimony will be placed in a file open to public inspection pursuant to 15 CFR 2003.5, except confidential business information exempt from public inspection in accordance with 15 CFR 2003.6. Confidential business information submitted in accordance with 15 CFR 2003.6 must be clearly marked ‘‘BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL’’ at the top of each page, including any cover letter or cover page, and must be accompanied by a nonconfidential summary of the confidential information. All public documents and nonconfidential summaries shall be available for public inspection in the USTR Reading Room. The USTR Reading Room is open to the public, by appointment only, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. An appointment to review the file may be made by calling (202) 395–6186. Appointments must be scheduled at least 48 hours in advance. General information concerning USTR may be obtained by accessing its Internet Web site (https://www.ustr.gov). Carmen Suro-Bredie, Chairman, Trade Policy Staff Committee. [FR Doc. 05–15365 Filed 8–2–05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3190–W5–P E:\FR\FM\03AUN1.SGM 03AUN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 148 (Wednesday, August 3, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44714-44715]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-15365]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE


Request for Comments and Notice of Public Hearing Concerning 
China's Compliance with WTO Commitments

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.

ACTION: Request for comments and notice of public hearing concerning 
China's compliance with its WTO commitments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The interagency Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) will 
convene a public hearing and seek public comment to assist the Office 
of the

[[Page 44715]]

United States Trade Representative (USTR) in the preparation of its 
annual report to the Congress on China's compliance with the 
commitments made in connection with its accession to the World Trade 
Organization (WTO).

DATES: Persons wishing to testify orally at the hearing must provide 
written notification of their intention, as well as a copy of their 
testimony, by noon, Thursday, September 1, 2005. Written comments are 
due by noon, Tuesday, September 6, 2005. A hearing will be held in 
Washington, DC, on Wednesday, September 14, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Submissions by electronic mail: FR0437@USTR.EOP.GOV.
    Submissions by facsimile: Gloria Blue, Executive Secretary, Trade 
Policy Staff Committee, Office of the United States Trade 
Representative, (202) 395-6143.
    The public is strongly encouraged to submit documents 
electronically rather than by facsimile.
    (See requirements for submissions below.)

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For procedural questions concerning 
written comments or participation in the public hearing, contact Gloria 
Blue, (202) 395-3475. All other questions should be directed to 
Terrence J. McCartin, Senior Director of Monitoring and Enforcement for 
China, (202) 395-3900, or Stephen S. Kho, Associate General Counsel, 
(202) 395-3582.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

1. Background

    China became a member of the WTO on December 11, 2001. In 
accordance with section 421 of the U.S.-China Relations Act of 2000 
(Pub. L. 106-286), USTR is required to submit, by December 11 of each 
year, a report to Congress on China's compliance with commitments made 
in connection with its accession to the WTO, including both 
multilateral commitments and any bilateral commitments made to the 
United States. In accordance with section 421, and to assist it in 
preparing this year's report, the TPSC is hereby soliciting public 
comment. Last year's report is available on USTR's Internet Web site 
(at https://www.ustr.gov/World_Regions/North_Asia/China/Section_
Index.html).
    The terms of China's accession to the WTO are contained in the 
Protocol on the Accession of the People's Republic of China (including 
its annexes) (Protocol), the Report of the Working Party on the 
Accession of China (Working Party Report), and the WTO Agreement. The 
Protocol and Working Party Report can be found on the Department of 
Commerce Web page, https://www.mac.doc.gov/China/
WTOAccessionPackage.htm, or on the WTO Web site, https://
docsonline.wto.org (document symbols: WT/L/432, WT/MIN(01)/3, WT/
MIN(01)/3/Add.1, WT/MIN(01)/3/Add.2).

2. Public Comment and Hearing

    USTR invites written comments and/or oral testimony of interested 
persons on China's compliance with commitments made in connection with 
its accession to the WTO, including, but not limited to, commitments in 
the following areas: (a) Trading rights; (b) import regulation (e.g., 
tariffs, tariff-rate quotas, quotas, import licenses); (c) export 
regulation; (d) internal policies affecting trade (e.g., subsidies, 
standards and technical regulations, sanitary and phytosanitary 
measures, government procurement, trade-related investment measures, 
taxes and charges levied on imports and exports); (e) intellectual 
property rights (including intellectual property rights enforcement); 
(f) services; (g) rule of law issues (e.g., transparency, judicial 
review, uniform administration of laws and regulations) and status of 
legal reform; and (h) other WTO commitments. Persons submitting written 
comments should identify the commitments discussed therein by listing 
one or more of these categories on the first page of the comments.
    Written comments must be received no later than noon, Tuesday, 
September 6, 2005.
    A hearing will be held on Wednesday, September 14, 2005, in Room 1, 
1724 F Street, NW., Washington, DC 20508. If necessary, the hearing 
will continue on the next day.
    Persons wishing to testify orally at the hearing must provide 
written notification of their intention by noon, Thursday, September 1, 
2005. The notification should include: (1) the name, address, and 
telephone number of the person presenting the testimony; and (2) a 
short (one or two paragraph) summary of the presentation, including the 
commitments at issue and, as applicable, the product(s) (with HTSUS 
numbers), service sector(s), or other subjects to be discussed. A copy 
of the testimony must accompany the notification. Remarks at the 
hearing should be limited to no more than five minutes to allow for 
possible questions from the TPSC.
    All documents should be submitted in accordance with the 
instructions in section 3 below.

3. Requirements for Submissions

    In order to facilitate prompt processing of submissions, USTR 
strongly urges and prefers electronic (e-mail) submissions in response 
to this notice. In the event that an e-mail submission is impossible, 
submissions should be made by facsimile.
    Persons making submissions by e-mail should use the following 
subject line: ``China WTO'' followed by (as appropriate) ``Written 
Comments,'' ``Notice of Testimony,'' or ``Testimony.'' Documents should 
be submitted as either Adobe PDF, WordPerfect, MSWord, or text (.TXT) 
files. Supporting documentation submitted as spreadsheets are 
acceptable as Quattro Pro or Excel. For any document containing 
business confidential information submitted electronically, the file 
name of the business confidential version should begin with the 
characters ``BC-'', and the file name of the public version should 
begin with the characters ``P-''. The ``P-'' or ``BC-'' should be 
followed by the name of the submitter. Persons who make submissions by 
e-mail should not provide separate cover letters; information that 
might appear in a cover letter should be included in the submission 
itself. Similarly, to the extent possible, any attachments to the 
submission should be included in the same file as the submission 
itself, and not as separate files.
    Written comments, notices of testimony, and testimony will be 
placed in a file open to public inspection pursuant to 15 CFR 2003.5, 
except confidential business information exempt from public inspection 
in accordance with 15 CFR 2003.6. Confidential business information 
submitted in accordance with 15 CFR 2003.6 must be clearly marked 
``BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL'' at the top of each page, including any cover 
letter or cover page, and must be accompanied by a nonconfidential 
summary of the confidential information. All public documents and 
nonconfidential summaries shall be available for public inspection in 
the USTR Reading Room. The USTR Reading Room is open to the public, by 
appointment only, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Monday 
through Friday. An appointment to review the file may be made by 
calling (202) 395-6186. Appointments must be scheduled at least 48 
hours in advance.
    General information concerning USTR may be obtained by accessing 
its Internet Web site (https://www.ustr.gov).

Carmen Suro-Bredie,
Chairman, Trade Policy Staff Committee.
[FR Doc. 05-15365 Filed 8-2-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3190-W5-P

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.