Special Procedures for Considering Requests from the Public for Textile and Apparel Safeguard Actions on Imports from Australia, 25154-25157 [E6-6456]
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Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 82 / Friday, April 28, 2006 / Notices
collected; (d) ways to minimize the
burden of the collection of information
on respondents, e.g., the use of
automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
Comments submitted in response to
this notice will be summarized and/or
included in the request for OMB
approval of the information collection;
they also will become a matter of public
record.
Dated: April 24, 2006.
Gwellnar Banks,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief
Information Officer.
[FR Doc. E6–6379 Filed 4–27–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–60–P
COMMITTEE FOR THE
IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE
AGREEMENTS
Special Procedures for Considering
Requests from the Public for Textile
and Apparel Safeguard Actions on
Imports from Australia
April 25, 2006.
The Committee for the
Implementation of Textile Agreements
(the Committee).
ACTION: Notice of Procedures.
AGENCY:
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SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the
procedures the Committee will follow in
considering requests from the public for
textile and apparel safeguard actions as
provided for in Title III, Subtitle B,
Section 321 through Section 328 of the
United States-Australia Free Trade
Agreement Implementation Act.
EFFECTIVE DATE: April 28, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Requests must be submitted
to: the Chairman, Committee for the
Implementation of Textile Agreements,
Room H3100, U.S. Department of
Commerce, 14th and Constitution
Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20230.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Maria D’Andrea, Office of Textiles and
Apparel, U.S. Department of Commerce,
(202) 482-4058.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
BACKGROUND:
Title III, Subtitle B, Section 321
through Section 328 of the United
States-Australia Free Trade Agreement
Implementation Act (the ‘‘Act’’)
implements the textile and apparel
safeguard provisions, provided for in
Article 4.1 of the Agreement. The
safeguard mechanism applies when, as
a result of the elimination of a customs
duty under the Agreement, a textile or
apparel article from Australia is being
imported into the United States in such
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increased quantities, in absolute terms
or relative to the domestic market for
that article, and under such conditions
as to cause serious damage or actual
threat thereof to a U.S. industry
producing a like or directly competitive
article. In these circumstances, Article
4.1 permits the United States to increase
duties on the imported article to a level
that does not exceed the lesser of the
prevailing U.S. normal trade relations
(NTR)/most-favored-nation (MFN) duty
rate for the article or the U.S. NTR/MFN
duty rate in effect on the day before the
Agreement enters into force.
The import tariff relief is effective
beginning on the date that the
Committee determines that a textile or
apparel article from Australia, as
defined in Section 301(2) of the Act, is
being imported into the United States in
such increased quantities, in absolute
terms or relative to the domestic market
for that article, and under such
conditions as to cause serious damage,
or actual threat thereof, to a U.S.
industry producing an article that is
like, or directly competitive with, the
imported article. The maximum period
of import tariff relief, including
provisional relief, as set forth in
Sections 3 and 4 of this notice, shall be
two years. However, the Committee may
extend the period of import relief for an
additional two years if the Committee
determines that the continuation is
necessary to remedy or prevent serious
damage or actual threat thereof and to
facilitate adjustment by the domestic
industry to import competition, and that
the domestic industry is, in fact, making
a positive adjustment to import
competition. Import tariff relief may not
be imposed for an aggregate period
greater than four years. Import tariff
relief may not be applied to the same
article at the same time under these
procedures if relief previously has been
granted with respect to that article
under: (1) these provisions; (2) Subtitle
A to Title III of the Act; or (3) Chapter
1 of Title II of the Trade Act of 1974.
Authority to provide import tariff
relief with respect to an Australian
textile or apparel article will expire ten
years after duties on the article are
eliminated.
Under Article 4.1.7 of the Agreement,
if the United States provides relief to a
domestic industry under the textile and
apparel safeguard, it must provide
Australia ‘‘mutually agreed trade
liberalizing compensation in the form of
concessions having substantially
equivalent trade effects or equivalent to
the value of the additional customs
duties expected to result from the
emergency [safeguard] action.’’ Such
concessions shall be limited to textile
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and apparel products, unless the United
States and Australia agree otherwise. If
the United States and Australia are
unable to agree on trade liberalizing
compensation, Australia may increase
customs duties equivalently on U.S.
products. The obligation to provide
compensation terminates upon
termination of the safeguard relief.
Section 327 of the Act extends the
authority under Section 123 of the
Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2133), as
amended, to measures taken pursuant to
the Agreement’s textile and apparel
safeguard provisions.
In order to facilitate the
implementation of Title III, Subtitle B,
Section 321 through Section 328 of the
United States-Australia Free Trade
Agreement Implementation Act, the
Committee has determined that actions
taken under this safeguard fall within
the foreign affairs exception to the
rulemaking provision of 5 U.S.C.
553(a)(1), and this notice does not waive
that determination. These procedures
are not subject to the requirement to
provide prior notice and opportunity for
public comment, pursuant to 5 U.S.C.
553(a)(1) and 553(b)(A).
1. Requirements for Requests.
Pursuant to Section 321(a) of the Act
and Section 6 of Presidential
Proclamation 7857 of December 23,
2004, an interested party may file a
request for a textile or apparel safeguard
action with the Committee. The
Committee will review requests from an
interested party sent to the Chairman,
Committee for the Implementation of
Textile Agreements, Room 3100, U.S.
Department of Commerce, 14th and
Constitution Avenue, N.W.,
Washington, DC 20230. Ten copies of
any such request must be provided. As
provided in Section 328 of the Act, the
Committee will protect from disclosure
any business confidential information
that is marked ‘‘business confidential’’
to the full extent permitted by law. To
the extent that business confidential
information is provided, two copies of
a non-confidential version must also be
provided, in which business
confidential information is summarized
or, if necessary, deleted. At the
conclusion of the request, an interested
party must attest that ‘‘all information
contained in the request is complete and
accurate and no false claims, statements,
or representations have been made.’’
Consistently with Section 321(a), the
Committee will review a request
initially to determine whether to
commence consideration of the request
on its merits. Within 15 working days of
receipt of a request, the Committee will
determine whether the request provides
the information necessary for the
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Committee to consider the request in
light of the considerations set forth
below. If the request does not, the
Committee will promptly notify the
requester of the reasons for this
determination and the request will not
be considered. However, the Committee
will reevaluate any request that is
resubmitted with additional
information.
Consistent with longstanding
Committee practice in considering
textile safeguard actions, the Committee
will consider an interested party to be
an entity (which may be a trade
association, firm, certified or recognized
union, or group of workers) that is
representative of either: (A) a domestic
producer or producers of an article that
is like or directly competitive with the
subject Australian textile or apparel
article; or (B) a domestic producer or
producers of a component used in the
production of an article that is like or
directly competitive with the subject
Australian textile or apparel article.
A request will only be considered if
the request includes the specific
information set forth below in support
of a claim that a textile or apparel article
from Australia is being imported into
the United States in such increased
quantities, in absolute terms or relative
to the domestic market for that article,
and under such conditions as to cause
serious damage, or actual threat thereof,
to a U.S. industry producing an article
that is like, or directly competitive with,
the imported article.
A. Product description. Name and
description of the imported article
concerned, including the category or
categories or part thereof of the U.S.
Textile and Apparel Category System
(see ‘‘Textile Correlation’’ at https://
otexa.ita.doc.gov/corr.htm) under which
such article is classified, the
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States subheading(s) under
which such article is classified, and the
name and description of the like or
directly competitive domestic article
concerned.
B. Import data. The following data, in
quantity by category unit (see ‘‘Textile
Correlation’’), on total imports of the
subject article into the United States and
imports from Australia into the United
States:
* Annual data for the most recent
three full calendar years for which
such data are available;
* Quarterly data for the most recent
year for which such data are
partially available, and quarterly
data for the same quarter(s) of the
previous year (e.g., January-March
2005, April-June 2005 and JanuaryMarch 2004, April-June 2004).
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The data should demonstrate that
imports of an Australian origin textile or
apparel article that is like or directly
competitive with the article produced
by the domestic industry concerned are
increasing rapidly in absolute terms or
relative to the domestic market for that
article.
C. Production data. The following
data, in quantity by category unit (see
‘‘Textile Correlation’’), on U.S. domestic
production of the like or directly
competitive articles of U.S. origin
indicating the nature and extent of the
serious damage or actual threat thereof:
* Annual data for the most recent
three full calendar years for which
such data are available;
* Quarterly data for the most recent
year for which such data are
partially available, and quarterly
data for the same quarter(s) of the
previous year (e.g., January-March
2005, April-June 2005 and JanuaryMarch 2004, April-June 2004).
If the like or directly competitive
article(s) of U.S. origin does not
correspond to a category or categories of
the U.S. Textile and Apparel Category
system for which production data are
available from official statistics of the
U.S. Department of Commerce (see
‘‘U.S. Imports, Production, Markets,
Import Production Ratios and Domestic
Market Shares for Textile and Apparel
Product Categories’’ at website https://
otexa.ita.doc.gov/ipbook.pdf), the
requester must provide a complete
listing of all sources from which the
data were obtained and an affirmation
that, to the best of the requester’s
knowledge, the data represent
substantially all of the domestic
production of the like or directly
competitive article(s) of U.S. origin. In
such cases, data should be reported in
the first unit of quantity in the
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States (https://www.usitc.gov/
tata/hts) for the Australian origin textile
and/or apparel article and the like or
directly competitive articles of U.S.
origin.
D. Market share data. The following
data, in quantity by category unit (see
‘‘Textile Correlation’’), on imports from
Australia as a percentage of the
domestic market (defined as the sum of
domestic production of the like or
directly competitive article and total
imports of the subject article); on total
imports as a percentage of the domestic
market; and on domestic production of
like or directly competitive articles as a
percentage of the domestic market:
* Annual data for the most recent
three full calendar years for which
such data are available;
* Quarterly data for the most recent
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year for which such data are
partially available, and quarterly
data for the same quarter(s) of the
previous year (e.g., January-March
2005, April-June 2005 and JanuaryMarch 2004, April-June 2004).
E. Additional data showing serious
damage or actual threat thereof. All
data available to the requester showing
changes in productivity, utilization of
capacity, inventories, exports, wages,
employment, domestic prices, profits,
and investment, and any other
information, relating to the existence of
serious damage, or actual threat thereof,
caused by imports from Australia to the
industry producing the like or directly
competitive article that is the subject of
the request. To the extent that such
information is not available, the
requester should provide best estimates
and the basis therefore:
* Annual data for the most recent
three full calendar years for which
such data are available;
* Quarterly data for the most recent
year for which such data are
partially available, and quarterly
data for the same quarter(s) of the
previous year (e.g., January-March
2005, April-June 2005 and JanuaryMarch 2004, April-June 2004).
2. Consideration of Requests.
Consistent with Section 321(c) of the
Act, if the Committee determines that
the request provides the information
necessary for it to be considered, the
Committee will cause to be published in
the Federal Register a notice seeking
public comments regarding the request,
which will include a summary of the
request and the date by which
comments must be received. The
Federal Register notice and the request,
with the exception of information
marked ‘‘business confidential,’’ will be
posted by the Department of
Commerce’s Office of Textiles and
Apparel (‘‘OTEXA’’) on the Internet
(https://otexa.ita.doc.gov). The comment
period shall be 30 calendar days. To the
extent business confidential information
is provided, a non-confidential version
must also be provided, in which
business confidential information is
summarized or, if necessary, deleted. At
the conclusion of its submission of such
public comments, an interested party
must attest that ‘‘all information
contained in the comments is complete
and accurate and no false claims,
statements, or representations have been
made.’’ Comments received, with the
exception of information marked
‘‘business confidential,’’ will be
available in the Department of
Commerce’s Trade Information Center
for review by the public. If a comment
alleges that there is no serious damage
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or actual threat thereof, or that the
subject imports are not the cause of the
serious damage or actual threat thereof,
the Committee will closely review any
supporting information and
documentation, such as information
about domestic production or prices of
like or directly competitive articles. In
the case of requests submitted by
entities that are not the actual producers
of a like or directly competitive article,
particular consideration will be given to
comments representing the views of
actual producers in the United States of
a like or directly competitive article.
Any interested party may submit
information to rebut, clarify, or correct
public comments submitted by any
other interested party at any time prior
to the deadline provided in this section
for submission of such public
comments. If public comments are
submitted less than 10 days before, or
on, the applicable deadline for
submission of such public comments,
an interested party may submit
information to rebut, clarify, or correct
the public comments no later than 10
days after the applicable deadline for
submission of public comments.
With respect to any request
considered by the Committee, the
Committee will make a determination
within 60 calendar days of the close of
the comment period. If the Committee is
unable to make a determination within
60 calendar days, it will cause to be
published in a notice in the Federal
Register, including the date by which it
will make a determination. If the
Committee makes a negative
determination, it will cause this
determination and the reasons therefore
to be published in the Federal Register.
3. Determination and Provision of
Relief. The Committee shall determine
whether, as a result of the reduction or
elimination of a duty under the
Agreement, an Australian textile or
apparel article is being imported into
the United States in such increased
quantities, in absolute terms or relative
to the domestic market for that article,
and under such conditions as to cause
serious damage, or actual threat thereof,
to a domestic industry producing an
article that is like, or directly
competitive with, the imported article.
In making this determination, the
Committee: (1) shall examine the effect
of increased imports on the domestic
industry as reflected in such relevant
economic factors as output,
productivity, utilization of capacity,
inventories, market share, exports,
wages, employment, domestic prices,
profits, and investment, none of which
is necessarily decisive; and (2) shall not
consider changes in technology or
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consumer preference as factors
supporting a determination of serious
damage or actual threat thereof. The
Committee, without delay, will provide
written notice of its decision to the
Government of Australia and will
consult with said party upon its request.
If a determination under this section
is affirmative, the Committee may
provide import tariff relief to a U.S.
industry to the extent necessary to
remedy or prevent the serious damage
or actual threat thereof and to facilitate
adjustment by the domestic industry to
import competition. Such relief may
consist of an increase in duties to the
lower of: (1) the NTR/MFN duty rate in
place for the textile or apparel article at
the time the relief is granted; or (2) the
NTR/MFN duty rate for that article on
the day before the Agreement enters into
force.
The import tariff relief is effective
beginning on the date that the
Committee’s affirmative determination
is published in the Federal Register.
The maximum period of import tariff
relief, including provisional relief (as set
forth in Section 4 of this notice), shall
be two years. However, the Committee
may extend the period of import relief
for a period of not more than two years
if the Committee determines that the
continuation is necessary to remedy or
prevent serious damage or actual threat
thereof and to facilitate adjustment, and
that there is evidence that the domestic
industry is making a positive
adjustment to import competition.
Import tariff relief may not be imposed
for an aggregate period greater than four
years. Import tariff relief may not be
applied to the same article at the same
time under these procedures if relief
previously has been granted with
respect to that article under: (1) these
provisions; (2) Subtitle A to Title III of
the Act; or (3) Chapter 1 of Title II of
the Trade Act of 1974.
Authority to provide import tariff
relief for a textile or apparel article from
Australia that is being imported into the
United States in such increased
quantities, in absolute terms or relative
to the domestic market for that article,
and under such conditions as to cause
serious damage or actual threat thereof
to a U.S. industry producing a like or
directly competitive article, will expire
ten years after duties on the article are
eliminated.
4. Critical Circumstances. Section
321(b) of the Act allows an interested
party filing a request for a textile or
apparel safeguard measure to allege that
‘‘critical circumstances’’ exist. Within
60 days of the filing of the request, the
Committee shall determine, on the basis
of the available information, whether
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there is clear evidence that: (1) imports
from Australia have increased as the
result of the reduction or elimination of
a customs duty under the Agreement;
(2) such imports are causing serious
damage, or actual threat thereof, to the
domestic industry producing an article
like or directly competitive with the
imported article; and (3) delay in
providing import tariff relief would
cause damage to a U.S. industry that
would be difficult to repair. If the
determination is affirmative, the
Committee shall determine the extent of
provisional relief that is necessary to
remedy or prevent the serious damage
or actual threat thereof, consistent with
Section 322(c) of the Act. Within 30
days after making an affirmative
determination, the Committee, if the
Committee considers provisional relief
to be warranted, shall provide
provisional relief for a period of up to
200 days. If the Committee provides
such provisional relief, then liquidation
of entries of the article subject to such
relief shall be suspended during the
period of such relief. Provisional relief
shall be terminated on the day on
which: (1) the Committee makes a
negative determination regarding
serious damage or actual threat thereof;
(2) relief granted pursuant to Section
322(b) of the Act takes effect; (3) a
decision by the Committee not to take
any action pursuant to Section 322(b)
becomes final; or (4) the Committee
determines that, because of changed
circumstances, such relief is no longer
warranted. Any suspension of
liquidation ordered pursuant to Section
322(c)(3) of the Act shall be terminated
on the date on which the provisional
relief is terminated. If relief is provided
pursuant to Section 322(b) of the Act,
then any entries for which liquidation
has been suspended pursuant to Section
322(c) of the Act shall be liquidated at
the lower of: (1) the rate of duty
resulting from the application of the
provisional relief; and (2) the rate of
duty applied pursuant to Section 322(b).
5. Self Initiation. The Committee
may, on its own initiative, consider
whether imports of a textile or apparel
article from Australia are being
imported into the United States in such
increased quantities, in absolute terms
or relative to the domestic market for
that article, and under such conditions
as to cause serious damage or actual
threat thereof to a U.S. industry
producing a like or directly competitive
article. In such considerations, the
Committee will follow procedures
consistent with those set forth in
Section 2 of this notice, including
causing to be published in the Federal
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Register a notice seeking public
comment regarding the action it is
considering.
6. Record Keeping and Business
Confidential Information. OTEXA will
maintain an official record for each
request on behalf of the Committee. The
official record will include all factual
information, written argument, or other
material developed by, presented to, or
obtained by OTEXA regarding the
request, as well as other material
provided to the Department of
Commerce by other government
agencies for inclusion in the official
record. The official record will include
Committee memoranda pertaining to the
request, memoranda of Committee
meetings, meetings between OTEXA
staff and the public, determinations, and
notices published in the Federal
Register. The official record will contain
material which is public, business
confidential, privileged, and classified,
but will not include pre-decisional
inter-agency or intra-agency
communications. If the Committee
decides it is appropriate to consider
materials submitted in an untimely
manner, such materials will be
maintained in the official record.
Otherwise, such material will be
returned to the submitter and will not
be maintained as part of the official
record. OTEXA will make the official
record public except for business
confidential information, privileged
information, classified information, and
other information the disclosure of
which is prohibited by U.S. law. The
public record will be available to the
public for inspection and copying in a
public reading room located in the
Department of Commerce, Trade
Information Center.
Information designated by the
submitter as business confidential will
normally be considered to be business
confidential unless it is publicly
available. The Committee will protect
from disclosure any business
confidential information that is marked
‘‘business confidential’’ to the full
extent permitted by law. To the extent
that business confidential information is
provided, two copies of a nonconfidential version must also be
provided, in which business
confidential information is summarized
or, if necessary, deleted. The Committee
will make available to the public nonconfidential versions of the request that
is being considered, non-confidential
versions of any public comments
received with respect to a request, and,
in the event consultations are requested,
the statement of the reasons and
justifications for the determination
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subsequent to the delivery of the
statement to Australia.
Philip J. Martello,
Acting Chairman, Committee for the
Implementation of Textile Agreements.
[FR Doc. E6–6456 Filed 4–27–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–DS
COMMITTEE FOR THE
IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE
AGREEMENTS
Special Procedures for Considering
Requests from the Public for Textile
and Apparel Safeguard Actions on
Imports from Central America and the
Dominican Republic
April 25, 2006.
The Committee for the
Implementation of Textile Agreements
(the Committee).
ACTION: Notice of Procedures.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the
procedures the Committee will follow in
considering requests from the public for
textile and apparel safeguard actions as
provided for in Title III, Subtitle B,
Section 321 through Section 328 of the
Dominican Republic-Central AmericaUnited States Free Trade Agreement
(‘‘CAFTA-DR’’ or the ‘‘Agreement’’)
Implementation Act.
EFFECTIVE DATE: April 28, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Requests must be submitted
to: the Chairman, Committee for the
Implementation of Textile Agreements,
Room H3100, U.S. Department of
Commerce, 14th and Constitution
Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20230.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Maria D’Andrea, Office of Textiles and
Apparel, U.S. Department of Commerce,
(202) 482-4058.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Title III, Subtitle B, Section 321
through Section 328 of the CAFTA-DR
Implementation Act (the ‘‘Act’’)
implements the textile and apparel
safeguard provisions, provided for in
Article 3.23 of the Agreement. The
safeguard mechanism applies when, as
a result of the elimination of a customs
duty under the Agreement, a textile or
apparel article from Costa Rica, the
Dominican Republic, El Salvador,
Guatemala, Honduras, or Nicaragua
(‘‘Agreement country’’), is being
imported into the United States in such
increased quantities, in absolute terms
or relative to the domestic market for
that article, and under such conditions
as to cause serious damage or actual
threat thereof to a U.S. industry
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producing a like or directly competitive
article. In these circumstances, Article
3.23 permits the United States to
increase duties on the imported article
from the specified Agreement country to
a level that does not exceed the lesser
of the prevailing U.S. normal trade
relations (NTR)/most- favored-nation
(MFN) duty rate for the article or the
U.S. NTR (MFN) duty rate in effect on
the day before the Agreement enters into
force.
The import tariff relief is effective
beginning on the date that the
Committee determines that a ‘‘CAFTADR textile or apparel article,’’ as defined
in Section 301(2) of the Act, of a
specified Agreement country is being
imported into the United States in such
increased quantities, in absolute terms
or relative to the domestic market for
that article, and under such conditions
as to cause serious damage, or actual
threat thereof, to a U.S. industry
producing an article that is like, or
directly competitive with, the imported
article. The maximum period of import
tariff relief shall be three years.
However, if the initial period for import
relief is less than three years, the
Committee may extend the period of
import relief to the maximum three-year
period if the Committee determines that
the continuation is necessary to remedy
or prevent serious damage or actual
threat thereof and to facilitate
adjustment by the domestic industry to
import competition, and that the
domestic industry is, in fact, making a
positive adjustment to import
competition. Import tariff relief may not
be applied to the same article at the
same time under these procedures if
relief previously has been granted with
respect to that article under: (1) these
provisions; (2) Subtitle A to Title III of
the Act; or (3) Chapter 1 of Title II of
the Trade Act of 1974.
Authority to provide import tariff
relief with respect to a CAFTA-DR
textile or apparel article will expire five
years after the date on which the
Agreement enters into force.
Under Article 3.23.6 of the
Agreement, if the United States provides
relief to a domestic industry under the
textile and apparel safeguard, it must
provide the country whose good is
subject to the measure ‘‘mutually agreed
trade liberalizing compensation in the
form of concessions having substantially
equivalent trade effects or equivalent to
the value of the additional customs
duties expected to result from the textile
safeguard measure.’’ Such concessions
shall be limited to textile and apparel
products, unless the United States and
the specified Agreement country agree
otherwise. If the United States and the
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[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 82 (Friday, April 28, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25154-25157]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-6456]
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COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS
Special Procedures for Considering Requests from the Public for
Textile and Apparel Safeguard Actions on Imports from Australia
April 25, 2006.
AGENCY: The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (the
Committee).
ACTION: Notice of Procedures.
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SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the procedures the Committee will
follow in considering requests from the public for textile and apparel
safeguard actions as provided for in Title III, Subtitle B, Section 321
through Section 328 of the United States-Australia Free Trade Agreement
Implementation Act.
EFFECTIVE DATE: April 28, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Requests must be submitted to: the Chairman, Committee for
the Implementation of Textile Agreements, Room H3100, U.S. Department
of Commerce, 14th and Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C.
20230.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Maria D'Andrea, Office of Textiles and
Apparel, U.S. Department of Commerce, (202) 482-4058.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
BACKGROUND:
Title III, Subtitle B, Section 321 through Section 328 of the
United States-Australia Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (the
``Act'') implements the textile and apparel safeguard provisions,
provided for in Article 4.1 of the Agreement. The safeguard mechanism
applies when, as a result of the elimination of a customs duty under
the Agreement, a textile or apparel article from Australia is being
imported into the United States in such increased quantities, in
absolute terms or relative to the domestic market for that article, and
under such conditions as to cause serious damage or actual threat
thereof to a U.S. industry producing a like or directly competitive
article. In these circumstances, Article 4.1 permits the United States
to increase duties on the imported article to a level that does not
exceed the lesser of the prevailing U.S. normal trade relations (NTR)/
most-favored-nation (MFN) duty rate for the article or the U.S. NTR/MFN
duty rate in effect on the day before the Agreement enters into force.
The import tariff relief is effective beginning on the date that
the Committee determines that a textile or apparel article from
Australia, as defined in Section 301(2) of the Act, is being imported
into the United States in such increased quantities, in absolute terms
or relative to the domestic market for that article, and under such
conditions as to cause serious damage, or actual threat thereof, to a
U.S. industry producing an article that is like, or directly
competitive with, the imported article. The maximum period of import
tariff relief, including provisional relief, as set forth in Sections 3
and 4 of this notice, shall be two years. However, the Committee may
extend the period of import relief for an additional two years if the
Committee determines that the continuation is necessary to remedy or
prevent serious damage or actual threat thereof and to facilitate
adjustment by the domestic industry to import competition, and that the
domestic industry is, in fact, making a positive adjustment to import
competition. Import tariff relief may not be imposed for an aggregate
period greater than four years. Import tariff relief may not be applied
to the same article at the same time under these procedures if relief
previously has been granted with respect to that article under: (1)
these provisions; (2) Subtitle A to Title III of the Act; or (3)
Chapter 1 of Title II of the Trade Act of 1974.
Authority to provide import tariff relief with respect to an
Australian textile or apparel article will expire ten years after
duties on the article are eliminated.
Under Article 4.1.7 of the Agreement, if the United States provides
relief to a domestic industry under the textile and apparel safeguard,
it must provide Australia ``mutually agreed trade liberalizing
compensation in the form of concessions having substantially equivalent
trade effects or equivalent to the value of the additional customs
duties expected to result from the emergency [safeguard] action.'' Such
concessions shall be limited to textile and apparel products, unless
the United States and Australia agree otherwise. If the United States
and Australia are unable to agree on trade liberalizing compensation,
Australia may increase customs duties equivalently on U.S. products.
The obligation to provide compensation terminates upon termination of
the safeguard relief. Section 327 of the Act extends the authority
under Section 123 of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2133), as
amended, to measures taken pursuant to the Agreement's textile and
apparel safeguard provisions.
In order to facilitate the implementation of Title III, Subtitle B,
Section 321 through Section 328 of the United States-Australia Free
Trade Agreement Implementation Act, the Committee has determined that
actions taken under this safeguard fall within the foreign affairs
exception to the rulemaking provision of 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1), and this
notice does not waive that determination. These procedures are not
subject to the requirement to provide prior notice and opportunity for
public comment, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1) and 553(b)(A).
1. Requirements for Requests. Pursuant to Section 321(a) of the Act
and Section 6 of Presidential Proclamation 7857 of December 23, 2004,
an interested party may file a request for a textile or apparel
safeguard action with the Committee. The Committee will review requests
from an interested party sent to the Chairman, Committee for the
Implementation of Textile Agreements, Room 3100, U.S. Department of
Commerce, 14th and Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20230. Ten
copies of any such request must be provided. As provided in Section 328
of the Act, the Committee will protect from disclosure any business
confidential information that is marked ``business confidential'' to
the full extent permitted by law. To the extent that business
confidential information is provided, two copies of a non-confidential
version must also be provided, in which business confidential
information is summarized or, if necessary, deleted. At the conclusion
of the request, an interested party must attest that ``all information
contained in the request is complete and accurate and no false claims,
statements, or representations have been made.'' Consistently with
Section 321(a), the Committee will review a request initially to
determine whether to commence consideration of the request on its
merits. Within 15 working days of receipt of a request, the Committee
will determine whether the request provides the information necessary
for the
[[Page 25155]]
Committee to consider the request in light of the considerations set
forth below. If the request does not, the Committee will promptly
notify the requester of the reasons for this determination and the
request will not be considered. However, the Committee will reevaluate
any request that is resubmitted with additional information.
Consistent with longstanding Committee practice in considering
textile safeguard actions, the Committee will consider an interested
party to be an entity (which may be a trade association, firm,
certified or recognized union, or group of workers) that is
representative of either: (A) a domestic producer or producers of an
article that is like or directly competitive with the subject
Australian textile or apparel article; or (B) a domestic producer or
producers of a component used in the production of an article that is
like or directly competitive with the subject Australian textile or
apparel article.
A request will only be considered if the request includes the
specific information set forth below in support of a claim that a
textile or apparel article from Australia is being imported into the
United States in such increased quantities, in absolute terms or
relative to the domestic market for that article, and under such
conditions as to cause serious damage, or actual threat thereof, to a
U.S. industry producing an article that is like, or directly
competitive with, the imported article.
A. Product description. Name and description of the imported
article concerned, including the category or categories or part thereof
of the U.S. Textile and Apparel Category System (see ``Textile
Correlation'' at https://otexa.ita.doc.gov/corr.htm) under which such
article is classified, the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United
States subheading(s) under which such article is classified, and the
name and description of the like or directly competitive domestic
article concerned.
B. Import data. The following data, in quantity by category unit
(see ``Textile Correlation''), on total imports of the subject article
into the United States and imports from Australia into the United
States:
* Annual data for the most recent three full calendar years for
which such data are available;
* Quarterly data for the most recent year for which such data are
partially available, and quarterly data for the same quarter(s) of the
previous year (e.g., January-March 2005, April-June 2005 and January-
March 2004, April-June 2004).
The data should demonstrate that imports of an Australian origin
textile or apparel article that is like or directly competitive with
the article produced by the domestic industry concerned are increasing
rapidly in absolute terms or relative to the domestic market for that
article.
C. Production data. The following data, in quantity by category
unit (see ``Textile Correlation''), on U.S. domestic production of the
like or directly competitive articles of U.S. origin indicating the
nature and extent of the serious damage or actual threat thereof:
* Annual data for the most recent three full calendar years for
which such data are available;
* Quarterly data for the most recent year for which such data are
partially available, and quarterly data for the same quarter(s) of the
previous year (e.g., January-March 2005, April-June 2005 and January-
March 2004, April-June 2004).
If the like or directly competitive article(s) of U.S. origin does
not correspond to a category or categories of the U.S. Textile and
Apparel Category system for which production data are available from
official statistics of the U.S. Department of Commerce (see ``U.S.
Imports, Production, Markets, Import Production Ratios and Domestic
Market Shares for Textile and Apparel Product Categories'' at website
https://otexa.ita.doc.gov/ipbook.pdf), the requester must provide a
complete listing of all sources from which the data were obtained and
an affirmation that, to the best of the requester's knowledge, the data
represent substantially all of the domestic production of the like or
directly competitive article(s) of U.S. origin. In such cases, data
should be reported in the first unit of quantity in the Harmonized
Tariff Schedule of the United States (https://www.usitc.gov/tata/hts)
for the Australian origin textile and/or apparel article and the like
or directly competitive articles of U.S. origin.
D. Market share data. The following data, in quantity by category
unit (see ``Textile Correlation''), on imports from Australia as a
percentage of the domestic market (defined as the sum of domestic
production of the like or directly competitive article and total
imports of the subject article); on total imports as a percentage of
the domestic market; and on domestic production of like or directly
competitive articles as a percentage of the domestic market:
* Annual data for the most recent three full calendar years for
which such data are available;
* Quarterly data for the most recent year for which such data are
partially available, and quarterly data for the same quarter(s) of the
previous year (e.g., January-March 2005, April-June 2005 and January-
March 2004, April-June 2004).
E. Additional data showing serious damage or actual threat thereof.
All data available to the requester showing changes in productivity,
utilization of capacity, inventories, exports, wages, employment,
domestic prices, profits, and investment, and any other information,
relating to the existence of serious damage, or actual threat thereof,
caused by imports from Australia to the industry producing the like or
directly competitive article that is the subject of the request. To the
extent that such information is not available, the requester should
provide best estimates and the basis therefore:
* Annual data for the most recent three full calendar years for
which such data are available;
* Quarterly data for the most recent year for which such data are
partially available, and quarterly data for the same quarter(s) of the
previous year (e.g., January-March 2005, April-June 2005 and January-
March 2004, April-June 2004).
2. Consideration of Requests. Consistent with Section 321(c) of the
Act, if the Committee determines that the request provides the
information necessary for it to be considered, the Committee will cause
to be published in the Federal Register a notice seeking public
comments regarding the request, which will include a summary of the
request and the date by which comments must be received. The Federal
Register notice and the request, with the exception of information
marked ``business confidential,'' will be posted by the Department of
Commerce's Office of Textiles and Apparel (``OTEXA'') on the Internet
(https://otexa.ita.doc.gov). The comment period shall be 30 calendar
days. To the extent business confidential information is provided, a
non-confidential version must also be provided, in which business
confidential information is summarized or, if necessary, deleted. At
the conclusion of its submission of such public comments, an interested
party must attest that ``all information contained in the comments is
complete and accurate and no false claims, statements, or
representations have been made.'' Comments received, with the exception
of information marked ``business confidential,'' will be available in
the Department of Commerce's Trade Information Center for review by the
public. If a comment alleges that there is no serious damage
[[Page 25156]]
or actual threat thereof, or that the subject imports are not the cause
of the serious damage or actual threat thereof, the Committee will
closely review any supporting information and documentation, such as
information about domestic production or prices of like or directly
competitive articles. In the case of requests submitted by entities
that are not the actual producers of a like or directly competitive
article, particular consideration will be given to comments
representing the views of actual producers in the United States of a
like or directly competitive article.
Any interested party may submit information to rebut, clarify, or
correct public comments submitted by any other interested party at any
time prior to the deadline provided in this section for submission of
such public comments. If public comments are submitted less than 10
days before, or on, the applicable deadline for submission of such
public comments, an interested party may submit information to rebut,
clarify, or correct the public comments no later than 10 days after the
applicable deadline for submission of public comments.
With respect to any request considered by the Committee, the
Committee will make a determination within 60 calendar days of the
close of the comment period. If the Committee is unable to make a
determination within 60 calendar days, it will cause to be published in
a notice in the Federal Register, including the date by which it will
make a determination. If the Committee makes a negative determination,
it will cause this determination and the reasons therefore to be
published in the Federal Register.
3. Determination and Provision of Relief. The Committee shall
determine whether, as a result of the reduction or elimination of a
duty under the Agreement, an Australian textile or apparel article is
being imported into the United States in such increased quantities, in
absolute terms or relative to the domestic market for that article, and
under such conditions as to cause serious damage, or actual threat
thereof, to a domestic industry producing an article that is like, or
directly competitive with, the imported article. In making this
determination, the Committee: (1) shall examine the effect of increased
imports on the domestic industry as reflected in such relevant economic
factors as output, productivity, utilization of capacity, inventories,
market share, exports, wages, employment, domestic prices, profits, and
investment, none of which is necessarily decisive; and (2) shall not
consider changes in technology or consumer preference as factors
supporting a determination of serious damage or actual threat thereof.
The Committee, without delay, will provide written notice of its
decision to the Government of Australia and will consult with said
party upon its request.
If a determination under this section is affirmative, the Committee
may provide import tariff relief to a U.S. industry to the extent
necessary to remedy or prevent the serious damage or actual threat
thereof and to facilitate adjustment by the domestic industry to import
competition. Such relief may consist of an increase in duties to the
lower of: (1) the NTR/MFN duty rate in place for the textile or apparel
article at the time the relief is granted; or (2) the NTR/MFN duty rate
for that article on the day before the Agreement enters into force.
The import tariff relief is effective beginning on the date that
the Committee's affirmative determination is published in the Federal
Register. The maximum period of import tariff relief, including
provisional relief (as set forth in Section 4 of this notice), shall be
two years. However, the Committee may extend the period of import
relief for a period of not more than two years if the Committee
determines that the continuation is necessary to remedy or prevent
serious damage or actual threat thereof and to facilitate adjustment,
and that there is evidence that the domestic industry is making a
positive adjustment to import competition. Import tariff relief may not
be imposed for an aggregate period greater than four years. Import
tariff relief may not be applied to the same article at the same time
under these procedures if relief previously has been granted with
respect to that article under: (1) these provisions; (2) Subtitle A to
Title III of the Act; or (3) Chapter 1 of Title II of the Trade Act of
1974.
Authority to provide import tariff relief for a textile or apparel
article from Australia that is being imported into the United States in
such increased quantities, in absolute terms or relative to the
domestic market for that article, and under such conditions as to cause
serious damage or actual threat thereof to a U.S. industry producing a
like or directly competitive article, will expire ten years after
duties on the article are eliminated.
4. Critical Circumstances. Section 321(b) of the Act allows an
interested party filing a request for a textile or apparel safeguard
measure to allege that ``critical circumstances'' exist. Within 60 days
of the filing of the request, the Committee shall determine, on the
basis of the available information, whether there is clear evidence
that: (1) imports from Australia have increased as the result of the
reduction or elimination of a customs duty under the Agreement; (2)
such imports are causing serious damage, or actual threat thereof, to
the domestic industry producing an article like or directly competitive
with the imported article; and (3) delay in providing import tariff
relief would cause damage to a U.S. industry that would be difficult to
repair. If the determination is affirmative, the Committee shall
determine the extent of provisional relief that is necessary to remedy
or prevent the serious damage or actual threat thereof, consistent with
Section 322(c) of the Act. Within 30 days after making an affirmative
determination, the Committee, if the Committee considers provisional
relief to be warranted, shall provide provisional relief for a period
of up to 200 days. If the Committee provides such provisional relief,
then liquidation of entries of the article subject to such relief shall
be suspended during the period of such relief. Provisional relief shall
be terminated on the day on which: (1) the Committee makes a negative
determination regarding serious damage or actual threat thereof; (2)
relief granted pursuant to Section 322(b) of the Act takes effect; (3)
a decision by the Committee not to take any action pursuant to Section
322(b) becomes final; or (4) the Committee determines that, because of
changed circumstances, such relief is no longer warranted. Any
suspension of liquidation ordered pursuant to Section 322(c)(3) of the
Act shall be terminated on the date on which the provisional relief is
terminated. If relief is provided pursuant to Section 322(b) of the
Act, then any entries for which liquidation has been suspended pursuant
to Section 322(c) of the Act shall be liquidated at the lower of: (1)
the rate of duty resulting from the application of the provisional
relief; and (2) the rate of duty applied pursuant to Section 322(b).
5. Self Initiation. The Committee may, on its own initiative,
consider whether imports of a textile or apparel article from Australia
are being imported into the United States in such increased quantities,
in absolute terms or relative to the domestic market for that article,
and under such conditions as to cause serious damage or actual threat
thereof to a U.S. industry producing a like or directly competitive
article. In such considerations, the Committee will follow procedures
consistent with those set forth in Section 2 of this notice, including
causing to be published in the Federal
[[Page 25157]]
Register a notice seeking public comment regarding the action it is
considering.
6. Record Keeping and Business Confidential Information. OTEXA will
maintain an official record for each request on behalf of the
Committee. The official record will include all factual information,
written argument, or other material developed by, presented to, or
obtained by OTEXA regarding the request, as well as other material
provided to the Department of Commerce by other government agencies for
inclusion in the official record. The official record will include
Committee memoranda pertaining to the request, memoranda of Committee
meetings, meetings between OTEXA staff and the public, determinations,
and notices published in the Federal Register. The official record will
contain material which is public, business confidential, privileged,
and classified, but will not include pre-decisional inter-agency or
intra-agency communications. If the Committee decides it is appropriate
to consider materials submitted in an untimely manner, such materials
will be maintained in the official record. Otherwise, such material
will be returned to the submitter and will not be maintained as part of
the official record. OTEXA will make the official record public except
for business confidential information, privileged information,
classified information, and other information the disclosure of which
is prohibited by U.S. law. The public record will be available to the
public for inspection and copying in a public reading room located in
the Department of Commerce, Trade Information Center.
Information designated by the submitter as business confidential
will normally be considered to be business confidential unless it is
publicly available. The Committee will protect from disclosure any
business confidential information that is marked ``business
confidential'' to the full extent permitted by law. To the extent that
business confidential information is provided, two copies of a non-
confidential version must also be provided, in which business
confidential information is summarized or, if necessary, deleted. The
Committee will make available to the public non-confidential versions
of the request that is being considered, non-confidential versions of
any public comments received with respect to a request, and, in the
event consultations are requested, the statement of the reasons and
justifications for the determination subsequent to the delivery of the
statement to Australia.
Philip J. Martello,
Acting Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile
Agreements.
[FR Doc. E6-6456 Filed 4-27-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS
