De Facto Criteria for Establishing a Separate Rate in Antidumping Proceedings Involving Non-Market Economy Countries, 78676-78678 [2010-31644]
Download as PDF
78676
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 241 / Thursday, December 16, 2010 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
U.S. Census Bureau
Proposed Information Collection;
Comment Request; Current Population
Survey (CPS) Basic Demographic
Items
U.S. Census Bureau,
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
The Department of
Commerce, as part of its continuing
effort to reduce paperwork and
respondent burden, invites the general
public and other Federal agencies to
take this opportunity to comment on
proposed and/or continuing information
collections, as required by the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995,
Public Law 104–13 (44 U.S.C.
3506(c)(2)(A)).
SUMMARY:
To ensure consideration, written
comments must be submitted on or
before February 14, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments
to Diana Hynek, Departmental
Paperwork Clearance Officer,
Department of Commerce, Room 6616,
14th and Constitution Avenue, NW.,
Washington, DC 20230 (or via the
Internet at dHynek@doc.gov).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Requests for additional information or
copies of the information collection
instrument(s) and instructions should
be directed to David M. Sheldon, U.S.
Census Bureau, 7H108D, Washington,
DC 20133–8400 at (301) 763–7327 (or
via the Internet at
David.M.Sheldon@census.gov).
DATES:
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
I. Abstract
The Census Bureau plans to request
clearance from the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for the
collection of basic demographic
information on the Current Population
Survey (CPS) beginning in June 2011.
The current clearance expires May 31,
2011.
The CPS has been the source of
official government statistics on
employment and unemployment for
over 50 years. The Bureau of Labor
Statistics (BLS) and the Census Bureau
jointly sponsor the basic monthly
survey. The Census Bureau also
prepares and conducts all the field
work. At the OMB’s request, the Census
Bureau and the BLS divide the
clearance request in order to reflect the
joint sponsorship and funding of the
CPS program. The BLS submits a
separate clearance request for the
VerDate Mar<15>2010
18:00 Dec 15, 2010
Jkt 223001
portion of the CPS that collects labor
force information for the civilian noninstitutional population. Some of the
information within that portion
includes employment status, number of
hours worked, job search activities,
earnings, duration of unemployment,
and the industry and occupation
classification of the job held the
previous week. The justification that
follows is in support of the demographic
data.
The demographic information
collected in the CPS provides a unique
set of data on selected characteristics for
the civilian non-institutional
population. Some of the demographic
information we collect are age, marital
status, gender, Armed Forces status,
education, race, origin, and family
income. We use these data in
conjunction with other data,
particularly the monthly labor force
data, as well as periodic supplement
data. We also use these data
independently for internal analytic
research and for evaluation of other
surveys. In addition, we use these data
as a control to produce accurate
estimates of other personal
characteristics.
IV. Request for Comments
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether
the proposed collection of information
is necessary for the proper performance
of the functions of the agency, including
whether the information shall have
practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the
agency’s estimate of the burden
(including hours and cost) of the
proposed collection of information; (c)
ways to enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information to be
collected; and (d) ways to minimize the
burden of the collection of information
on respondents, including through 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 this information collection;
they also will become a matter of public
record.
Dated: December 10, 2010.
Glenna Mickelson,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief
Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2010–31544 Filed 12–15–10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–07–P
II. Method of Collection
The CPS basic demographic
information is collected from individual
households by both personal visit and
telephone interviews each month. All
interviews are conducted using
computer-assisted interviewing.
Households in the CPS are in sample for
four consecutive months, and for the
same four months the following year.
This is called a 4–8–4 rotation pattern;
households are in sample for four
months, in a resting period for eight
months, and then in sample again for
four months.
III. Data
OMB Control Number: 0607–0049.
Form Number: There are no forms.
We conduct all interviews on
computers.
Type of Review: Regular submission.
Affected Public: Households.
Estimated Number of Respondents:
59,000 per month.
Estimated Time per Response: 1.5265
minutes.
Estimated Total Annual Burden
Hours: 18,013.
Estimated Total Annual Cost: There is
no cost to the respondents other than
their time.
Respondent’s Obligation: Voluntary.
Legal Authority: Title 13, U.S.C.,
Section 182, and Title 29, U.S.C.,
Sections 1–9.
PO 00000
Frm 00010
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
De Facto Criteria for Establishing a
Separate Rate in Antidumping
Proceedings Involving Non-Market
Economy Countries
Import Administration,
International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Request for comments.
AGENCY:
In antidumping proceedings
involving non-market economy (‘‘NME’’)
countries,1 the Department of
Commerce (‘‘the Department’’) has a
rebuttable presumption that the export
activities of all companies within the
country are subject to government
control and, thus, should be assessed a
single antidumping duty rate (i.e., the
NME-Entity rate). It is the Department’s
policy to assign to all exporters of
merchandise subject to investigation in
an NME country this single rate unless
an exporter can demonstrate that it is
sufficiently independent so as to be
entitled to a ‘‘separate rate’’ (i.e., a
SUMMARY:
1 The Department currently considers the
following countries to be non-market economy
countries—Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan
Republic, Moldova, the People’s Republic of China,
the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Socialist Republic
of Vietnam, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and
Uzbekistan.
E:\FR\FM\16DEN1.SGM
16DEN1
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 241 / Thursday, December 16, 2010 / Notices
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
dumping margin separate from the
margin assigned to the NME-Entity).
Exporters can demonstrate this
independence through the absence of
both de jure and de facto governmental
control over their export activities.
The Department is now considering
revising its current policy and practice
with respect to the de facto criteria
examined for purposes of determining
whether to grant separate rate status to
individual exporters in antidumping
proceedings involving NME countries.
Through this notice, the Department
invites the public to comment on
amending the test as discussed below.
Interested parties are invited to
comment on this proposal.
DATES: To be assured of consideration,
comments must be received no later
January 31, 2011.2
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Albert Hsu, Senior International
Economist, Office of Policy or Eugene
Degnan, Program Manager, Office 8,
Office of Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Operations, Import
Administration, U.S. Department of
Commerce, at 202–482–4491 or 202–
482–0414, respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
In proceedings involving NME
countries, the Department has a
rebuttable presumption that the export
activities of all companies within the
country are subject to government
control and, thus, should be assessed a
single antidumping duty rate (i.e., the
NME-Entity rate). It is the Department’s
policy to assign all exporters of
merchandise subject to an antidumping
investigation or review in an NME
country this single rate unless an
exporter can demonstrate that it is
sufficiently independent so as to be
entitled to a ‘‘separate rate’’ (i.e., a
dumping margin separate from the
margin assigned to the NME-Entity).
Exporters can demonstrate this
independence through the absence of
both de jure and de facto governmental
control over their export activities. The
Department analyzes each entity
exporting the subject merchandise that
applies for a separate rate under a test
first articulated in Final Determination
of Sales at Less Than Fair Value:
Sparklers from the People’s Republic of
China, 56 FR 20588 (May 6, 1991)
(‘‘Sparklers’’), as further developed in
2 The Department typically allows 30 days for
filing comments in instances such as this. However,
due to the intervening holiday season, the
Department is allowing 45 days in this particular
instance to ensure that all parties have adequate
time to comment.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
18:51 Dec 15, 2010
Jkt 223001
Final Determination of Sales at Less
Than Fair Value: Silicon Carbide from
the People’s Republic of China, 59 FR
22585 (May 2, 1994) (‘‘Silicon
Carbide’’).3 However, if the Department
determines that an exporter of NMEproduced merchandise is wholly
foreign-owned or located in a market
economy country, under current
practice a separate-rate analysis is not
necessary to determine whether it is
independent from government control.
The Department is not revisiting the
de jure criteria currently examined for
purposes of establishing a company’s
separate rate. The Department is
considering, however, the extent to
which it might incorporate additional
de facto criteria into its analysis when
assessing and verifying whether a
foreign producer/exporter in a nonmarket economy is sufficiently free of
government control to be granted
separate rate status.
Typically, the Department considers
four factors in evaluating whether a
respondent is subject to de facto
governmental control of its export
functions. They are: (1) Whether the
export prices are set by or are subject to
the approval of a governmental agency;
(2) whether the respondent has
authority to negotiate and sign contracts
and other agreements; (3) whether the
respondent has autonomy from the
government in making decisions
regarding the selection of management;
and (4) whether the respondent retains
the proceeds of its export sales and
makes independent decisions regarding
disposition of profits or financing of
losses.4 The Department has determined
that an analysis of de facto control is
critical in determining whether
3 See also Policy Bulletin 05.1, which states:
‘‘[w]hile continuing the practice of assigning
separate rates only to exporters, all separate rates
that the Department will now assign in its NME
investigations will be specific to those producers
that supplied the exporter during the period of
investigation. Note, however, that one rate is
calculated for the exporter and all of the producers
which supplied subject merchandise to it during
the period of investigation. This practice applies
both to mandatory respondents receiving an
individually calculated separate rate as well as the
pool of non-investigated firms receiving the
weighted-average of the individually calculated
rates. This practice is referred to as the application
of ‘‘combination rates’’ because such rates apply to
specific combinations of exporters and one or more
producers. The cash-deposit rate assigned to an
exporter will apply only to merchandise both
exported by the firm in question and produced by
a firm that supplied the exporter during the period
of investigation.’’
4 See Final Determination of Sales at Less Than
Fair Value: Silicon Carbide from the People’s
Republic of China, 59 FR 22585 (May 2, 1994); see
also Notice of Final Determination of Sales at Less
Than Fair Value: Furfuryl Alcohol From the
People’s Republic of China, 60 FR 22544, 22545
(May 8, 1995).
PO 00000
Frm 00011
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
78677
exporters or producers are, in fact,
subject to a degree of governmental
control which would preclude the
Department from assigning separate
rates.
Currently, when conducting its de
facto separate rate analysis, the
Department asks of those being
considered for separate rate status
questions regarding: (1) Ownership and
whether any individual owners hold
office at any level of the NME
government; (2) export sales
negotiations and prices; (3) selection of
company management and whether any
managers held government positions; (4)
disposition of profits; and (5) affiliations
with any companies involved in the
production or sale in the home market,
third-country markets, or the United
States of merchandise which would fall
under the description of merchandise
covered by the scope of the proceeding.
The Department’s full Separate Rate
Status Application is available on the
Department’s Web site at https://
www.trade.gov/ia.
The Department’s current practice
focuses on direct government
involvement in a firm’s export activities
and, to that extent, it may not take
sufficient account of the government’s
role in the NME and how that role may
impact an exporter’s behavior with
regard to its export activities and setting
prices. For this reason, the Department
is considering modifying the de facto
criteria to look beyond direct
government control of export activities
in assessing whether an entity should be
granted separate rate status. The
Department welcomes comments on this
proposed reassessment of its current
practice. Further, the Department
invites comments and suggestions
regarding additional de facto criteria to
examine in assessing a company’s
eligibility for separate rate status.
Comments should include a description
of the criteria parties propose the
Department examine, specific questions
the Department might ask a separate rate
applicant, and the type of
documentation the Department would
expect to review, and procedures
followed, at verification.
Submission of Comments:
As specified above, to be assured of
consideration, comments must be
received no later than January 31, 2011.
All comments must be submitted
through the Federal eRulemaking Portal
at https://www.regulations.gov, Docket
No. ITA–2010–0010, unless the
commenter does not have access to the
Internet. Commenters that do not have
access to the Internet may submit the
original and two copies of each set of
comments by mail or hand delivery/
E:\FR\FM\16DEN1.SGM
16DEN1
78678
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 241 / Thursday, December 16, 2010 / Notices
courier. All comments should be
addressed to the Secretary of Commerce,
Attention: Wendy J. Frankel, Director,
Office 8, Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Operations, Room
1870, Import Administration, U.S.,
Department of Commerce, 14th Street
and Constitution Ave., NW.,
Washington, DC 20230.
The Department will consider all
comments received before the close of
the comment period. The Department
will not accept comments accompanied
by a request that part or all of the
material be treated confidentially
because of its business proprietary
nature or for any other reason. All
comments responding to this notice will
be a matter of public record and will be
available for inspection at Import
Administration’s Central Records Unit
(Room 7046 of the Herbert C. Hoover
Building) and on the Department’s Web
site at https://www.trade.gov/ia/.
Any questions concerning file
formatting, document conversion,
access on the Internet, or other
electronic filing issues should be
addressed to Andrew Lee Beller, Import
Administration Webmaster, at (202)
482–0866, e-mail address: webmastersupport@ita.doc.gov.
Dated: December 10, 2010.
Ronald K. Lorentzen,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2010–31644 Filed 12–15–10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
Proposed Methodology for
Respondent Selection in Antidumping
Proceedings; Request for Comment
Import Administration,
International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce
(‘‘the Department’’) seeks public
comment on its proposed methodology
for respondent selection and related
issues.
AGENCY:
To be assured of consideration,
comments must be received no later
than January 18, 2011.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Albert Hsu, Senior Economist, Office of
Policy, Import Administration, U.S.
Department of Commerce, 14th Street
and Constitution Avenue, NW.,
Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202)
482–4491.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
DATES:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
18:00 Dec 15, 2010
Jkt 223001
Background
When the number of producers/
exporters (‘‘companies’’) involved in an
antidumping investigation or review is
so large that the Department finds it
impracticable to examine each company
individually, the Department has
statutory authority to limit its
examination to (1) a sample of
exporters, producers, or types of
products that is statistically valid based
on the information available to the
administering authority at the time of
selection, or (2) exporters and producers
accounting for the largest volume of
subject merchandise from the exporting
country that can be reasonably
examined (see sections 777A(c)(2)(A)
and (B) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as
amended (‘‘the Act’’)). The Department
has, to date, used the second option in
virtually every one of its proceedings. A
consequence of this practice is that
companies under investigation or
review with relatively smaller import
volumes have typically not been
selected by the Department for
individual examination.
Sampling companies with varying
import volumes under section
777A(c)(2)(A) of the Act is one way to
remedy this problem. If the Department
were to select respondents on the basis
of a sample, the statute requires that the
sample be ‘‘statistically valid.’’ The
Department has interpreted this
requirement as referring to the manner
in which the Department selects
respondents and not to the size of the
sample or precision of the sample
results. See Brake Rotors From the
People’s Republic of China: Final
Results and Partial Rescission of the
2004/2005 Administrative Review and
Notice of Rescission of 2004/2005 New
Shipper Review 71 FR 66304 (Nov. 14,
2006), and accompanying Issues and
Decision Memorandum at Comment 1A.
Therefore, to ensure the statistical
validity of the samples, in the
methodology described below, the
Department proposes to employ a
sampling technique that (1) is random,
(2) is stratified, and (3) uses probabilityproportional-to-size (‘‘PPS’’) samples.
Random selection ensures that every
company has a chance of being selected
as a respondent and captures potential
variability across the population.
Stratification by import volume ensures
the participation of companies of
different import volume in the
investigation or review, given the small
samples that would be used. Finally,
PPS samples ensure that the probability
of each company being chosen as a
respondent is proportional to its share
of imports in its respective stratum.
PO 00000
Frm 00012
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Proposed Methodology
1.1 When To Sample
Given the benefits of sampling
described above, where possible, the
Department proposes to use sampling to
select respondents rather than limiting
its examination to companies
accounting for the largest import
volume that can be reasonably
examined. However, the Department
will, in general, forgo sampling under
the following circumstances: (1) If, due
to resource constraints, the Department
is unable to examine at least three
companies, (2) when the largest
companies by import volume account
for at least 75 percent of total imports,
or (3) when characteristics of the
underlying population make it highly
likely that results obtained from the
largest possible sample, given resource
constraints, would be unreasonable to
represent the population.
To make a determination under (3)
above, for a segment of a proceeding in
which the Department intends to apply
sampling for respondent selection, the
Department proposes to announce a tenday period for interested parties to
comment on the existence of significant
variation in company characteristics
that are likely to have a substantial
effect on the variation in dumping
margins of the companies in the
population in question. The comments
can take into account sampled company
margins from previous segments of the
proceeding, if such data exist, that may
indicate significant variation in the
individual margins of sampled
companies. If the Department receives
any comment, there will be a five-day
rebuttal period before the Department
announces its decision on the
respondent selection method for that
segment of the proceeding. If the
Department does not find that selecting
respondents through sampling is
appropriate for that particular segment
based on information and comments on
the record at the time of respondent
selection, the Department will choose as
respondents those companies
accounting for the largest import
volume that can be reasonably
examined, in accordance with section
777A(c)(2)(B) of the Act.
1.2 Definition of Population
Currently, the Department generally
chooses companies for individual
examination based on import volumes
reported in case-specific Customs and
Border Protection (‘‘CBP’’) import data. It
also assigns an antidumping duty rate to
all other companies that are not selected
for individual examination. The
Department currently does not require
E:\FR\FM\16DEN1.SGM
16DEN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 241 (Thursday, December 16, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 78676-78678]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-31644]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
De Facto Criteria for Establishing a Separate Rate in Antidumping
Proceedings Involving Non-Market Economy Countries
AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In antidumping proceedings involving non-market economy
(``NME'') countries,\1\ the Department of Commerce (``the Department'')
has a rebuttable presumption that the export activities of all
companies within the country are subject to government control and,
thus, should be assessed a single antidumping duty rate (i.e., the NME-
Entity rate). It is the Department's policy to assign to all exporters
of merchandise subject to investigation in an NME country this single
rate unless an exporter can demonstrate that it is sufficiently
independent so as to be entitled to a ``separate rate'' (i.e., a
[[Page 78677]]
dumping margin separate from the margin assigned to the NME-Entity).
Exporters can demonstrate this independence through the absence of both
de jure and de facto governmental control over their export activities.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The Department currently considers the following countries
to be non-market economy countries--Armenia, Belarus, Georgia,
Kyrgyzstan Republic, Moldova, the People's Republic of China, the
Republic of Azerbaijan, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,
Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Department is now considering revising its current policy and
practice with respect to the de facto criteria examined for purposes of
determining whether to grant separate rate status to individual
exporters in antidumping proceedings involving NME countries. Through
this notice, the Department invites the public to comment on amending
the test as discussed below. Interested parties are invited to comment
on this proposal.
DATES: To be assured of consideration, comments must be received no
later January 31, 2011.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ The Department typically allows 30 days for filing comments
in instances such as this. However, due to the intervening holiday
season, the Department is allowing 45 days in this particular
instance to ensure that all parties have adequate time to comment.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Albert Hsu, Senior International
Economist, Office of Policy or Eugene Degnan, Program Manager, Office
8, Office of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Operations, Import
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, at 202-482-4491 or 202-
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
482-0414, respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
In proceedings involving NME countries, the Department has a
rebuttable presumption that the export activities of all companies
within the country are subject to government control and, thus, should
be assessed a single antidumping duty rate (i.e., the NME-Entity rate).
It is the Department's policy to assign all exporters of merchandise
subject to an antidumping investigation or review in an NME country
this single rate unless an exporter can demonstrate that it is
sufficiently independent so as to be entitled to a ``separate rate''
(i.e., a dumping margin separate from the margin assigned to the NME-
Entity). Exporters can demonstrate this independence through the
absence of both de jure and de facto governmental control over their
export activities. The Department analyzes each entity exporting the
subject merchandise that applies for a separate rate under a test first
articulated in Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value:
Sparklers from the People's Republic of China, 56 FR 20588 (May 6,
1991) (``Sparklers''), as further developed in Final Determination of
Sales at Less Than Fair Value: Silicon Carbide from the People's
Republic of China, 59 FR 22585 (May 2, 1994) (``Silicon Carbide'').\3\
However, if the Department determines that an exporter of NME-produced
merchandise is wholly foreign-owned or located in a market economy
country, under current practice a separate-rate analysis is not
necessary to determine whether it is independent from government
control.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ See also Policy Bulletin 05.1, which states: ``[w]hile
continuing the practice of assigning separate rates only to
exporters, all separate rates that the Department will now assign in
its NME investigations will be specific to those producers that
supplied the exporter during the period of investigation. Note,
however, that one rate is calculated for the exporter and all of the
producers which supplied subject merchandise to it during the period
of investigation. This practice applies both to mandatory
respondents receiving an individually calculated separate rate as
well as the pool of non-investigated firms receiving the weighted-
average of the individually calculated rates. This practice is
referred to as the application of ``combination rates'' because such
rates apply to specific combinations of exporters and one or more
producers. The cash-deposit rate assigned to an exporter will apply
only to merchandise both exported by the firm in question and
produced by a firm that supplied the exporter during the period of
investigation.''
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Department is not revisiting the de jure criteria currently
examined for purposes of establishing a company's separate rate. The
Department is considering, however, the extent to which it might
incorporate additional de facto criteria into its analysis when
assessing and verifying whether a foreign producer/exporter in a non-
market economy is sufficiently free of government control to be granted
separate rate status.
Typically, the Department considers four factors in evaluating
whether a respondent is subject to de facto governmental control of its
export functions. They are: (1) Whether the export prices are set by or
are subject to the approval of a governmental agency; (2) whether the
respondent has authority to negotiate and sign contracts and other
agreements; (3) whether the respondent has autonomy from the government
in making decisions regarding the selection of management; and (4)
whether the respondent retains the proceeds of its export sales and
makes independent decisions regarding disposition of profits or
financing of losses.\4\ The Department has determined that an analysis
of de facto control is critical in determining whether exporters or
producers are, in fact, subject to a degree of governmental control
which would preclude the Department from assigning separate rates.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ See Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value:
Silicon Carbide from the People's Republic of China, 59 FR 22585
(May 2, 1994); see also Notice of Final Determination of Sales at
Less Than Fair Value: Furfuryl Alcohol From the People's Republic of
China, 60 FR 22544, 22545 (May 8, 1995).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Currently, when conducting its de facto separate rate analysis, the
Department asks of those being considered for separate rate status
questions regarding: (1) Ownership and whether any individual owners
hold office at any level of the NME government; (2) export sales
negotiations and prices; (3) selection of company management and
whether any managers held government positions; (4) disposition of
profits; and (5) affiliations with any companies involved in the
production or sale in the home market, third-country markets, or the
United States of merchandise which would fall under the description of
merchandise covered by the scope of the proceeding. The Department's
full Separate Rate Status Application is available on the Department's
Web site at https://www.trade.gov/ia.
The Department's current practice focuses on direct government
involvement in a firm's export activities and, to that extent, it may
not take sufficient account of the government's role in the NME and how
that role may impact an exporter's behavior with regard to its export
activities and setting prices. For this reason, the Department is
considering modifying the de facto criteria to look beyond direct
government control of export activities in assessing whether an entity
should be granted separate rate status. The Department welcomes
comments on this proposed reassessment of its current practice.
Further, the Department invites comments and suggestions regarding
additional de facto criteria to examine in assessing a company's
eligibility for separate rate status. Comments should include a
description of the criteria parties propose the Department examine,
specific questions the Department might ask a separate rate applicant,
and the type of documentation the Department would expect to review,
and procedures followed, at verification.
Submission of Comments:
As specified above, to be assured of consideration, comments must
be received no later than January 31, 2011. All comments must be
submitted through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov, Docket No. ITA-2010-0010, unless the commenter
does not have access to the Internet. Commenters that do not have
access to the Internet may submit the original and two copies of each
set of comments by mail or hand delivery/
[[Page 78678]]
courier. All comments should be addressed to the Secretary of Commerce,
Attention: Wendy J. Frankel, Director, Office 8, Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Operations, Room 1870, Import Administration, U.S.,
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Ave., NW.,
Washington, DC 20230.
The Department will consider all comments received before the close
of the comment period. The Department will not accept comments
accompanied by a request that part or all of the material be treated
confidentially because of its business proprietary nature or for any
other reason. All comments responding to this notice will be a matter
of public record and will be available for inspection at Import
Administration's Central Records Unit (Room 7046 of the Herbert C.
Hoover Building) and on the Department's Web site at https://www.trade.gov/ia/.
Any questions concerning file formatting, document conversion,
access on the Internet, or other electronic filing issues should be
addressed to Andrew Lee Beller, Import Administration Webmaster, at
(202) 482-0866, e-mail address: webmaster-support@ita.doc.gov.
Dated: December 10, 2010.
Ronald K. Lorentzen,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 2010-31644 Filed 12-15-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P