Aluminum Extrusions From the People's Republic of China: Notice of Second Amended Final Scope Ruling Pursuant to Court Decision, 32788-32789 [2017-15040]
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 136 / Tuesday, July 18, 2017 / Notices
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[FR Doc. 2017–15014 Filed 7–17–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–07–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A–570–967; C–570–968]
Aluminum Extrusions From the
People’s Republic of China: Notice of
Second Amended Final Scope Ruling
Pursuant to Court Decision
Enforcement and Compliance,
International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: On March 28, 2017, the Court
of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
(Federal Circuit) reversed the Court of
International Trade (CIT) and sustained
the Department of Commerce’s
(Department) original scope ruling in
which it found that Meridian Products
LLC’s (Meridian) refrigerator/freezer
trim kits did not satisfy the finished
goods kit exclusion under the
antidumping (AD) and countervailing
duty (CVD) orders covering aluminum
extrusions from the People’s Republic of
China (PRC). The Department is
therefore issuing a second amended
final scope ruling.
DATES: Effective July 18, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
James Terpstra, AD/CVD Operations,
Office III, Enforcement and Compliance,
U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington,
DC 20230; telephone: 202–482–3965.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
AGENCY:
Background
On December 17, 2012, the
Department issued its Final Scope
Ruling on Refrigerator Trim Kits in
which it determined that the
PO 00000
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refrigerator/freezer trim kits imported by
Meridian did not meet the scope
exclusions for ‘‘finished merchandise’’
and ‘‘finished goods kits.’’ 1 In
particular, the Department held that,
because the trim kits at issue consisted
of pieces of aluminum extrusions plus
fasteners and extraneous materials, they
did not meet either scope exclusion.
Therefore, the Department found the
products at issue to be within the scope
of the Orders.2
As discussed in detail in the Third
Remand Results,3 the CIT remanded the
Final Scope Ruling on Refrigerator Trim
Kits three times.4 In Meridian IV,5 the
CIT held that the Department’s longstanding recognition of a ‘‘fasteners’’
exception to the ‘‘finished goods kit’’
exclusion in the scope was
unreasonable, finding that ‘‘the
inclusion of ‘fasteners’ or ‘extraneous
materials’ is not determinative when
qualifying a kit consistent of multiple
parts which otherwise meets the
exclusionary requirements, as a
‘finished goods kit.’ ’’ 6 Additionally, the
CIT explained that there is nothing in
the scope language that indicates that
the parts of a finished goods kit cannot
consist entirely of aluminum
extrusions.7 The CIT explained that ‘‘to
qualify as a ‘finished goods kit’, a kit
must contain every part required to
assemble the final finished good, and it
logically follows that if a kit is imported
with all of the parts necessary to fully
assemble the kit into its final finished
form, then obviously (and necessarily)
some of those ‘parts’ may be
fasteners.’’ 8
1 The finished goods kit exclusion states: ‘‘A
finished goods kits is understood to mean a
packaged combination of parts that contains, at the
time of importation, all of the necessary parts to
fully assemble a final finished good and requires no
further finishing or fabrication, such as cutting or
punching, and is assembled ‘as is’ into a finished
product.’’ The scope further states that, ‘‘{a}n
imported product will not be considered a ‘finished
goods kit’’ and therefore excluded from the scope
of the investigation merely by including fasteners
such as screws, bolts, etc. in the packaging with an
aluminum extrusion product.’’
2 See Memorandum, ‘‘Final Scope Ruling on
Certain Refrigerator/Freezer Trim Kits, dated
December 17, 2012 (Final Scope Ruling on
Refrigerator Trim Kits) at 11. See also Aluminum
Extrusions from the People’s Republic of China:
Antidumping Duty Order, 76 FR 30650 (May 26,
2011) and Aluminum Extrusions from the People’s
Republic of China: Countervailing Duty Order, 76
FR 30653 (May 26, 2011) (Orders).
3 See Final Results of Redetermination Pursuant
to Court Remand, Meridian Products, LLC v. United
States, Court No. 13–00018, Slip. Op. 15–67 (Oct.
29, 2015) (Third Remand Results).
4 See Third Remand Results at 6–10.
5 See Meridian Products, LLC v. United States,
Court No. 13–00018, Slip. Op. 15–67 (Oct. 29, 2015)
(Meridian IV).
6 See Meridian IV, Slip Op. 15–67 at 12–13.
7 Id.
8 Id., at 14 (emphasis omitted).
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 136 / Tuesday, July 18, 2017 / Notices
In the Third Remand Results, the
Department found, in accordance with
the Court’s instructions in Meridian IV,
under respectful protest, that Meridian’s
trim kits are excluded from the scope of
the Orders as finished goods kits
because at the time of importation, the
kits contained all the parts necessary to
assemble a final finished good—a
complete trim kit.9 In Meridian V,10 the
Court sustained the Third Remand
Results in its entirety.11 Subsequently,
the Department published a First
Amended Final Scope Ruling in which
the Department found that Meridian’s
refrigerator/freezer trim kits are not
covered by the scope of the Orders.12
Consistent with the decision of the
Federal Circuit in Timken,13 as clarified
by Diamond Sawblades,14 the First
Amended Final Scope Ruling
additionally provided notice to the
public of the CIT’s final judgment in
Meridian V not in harmony with the
Department’s Final Scope Ruling on
Refrigerator Trim Kits and of the
continuation of the suspension of
liquidation of the trim kits at issue
pending a final and conclusive court
decision, if appealed.15
On March 28, 2017, the Federal
Circuit reversed the CIT and sustained
the Department’s original scope ruling
in which it found that Meridian’s
refrigerator/freezer trim kits did not
satisfy the finished goods kit exclusion
under the Orders. In Meridian VI,16 the
Federal Circuit found that the plain
language of the exclusion language,
when appropriately read as a whole,
supported the Department’s
interpretation. The Federal Circuit
further held that the Department’s prior
scope rulings, one of the 19 CFR
351.225(k)(1) sources, further supported
the Department’s interpretation. Finally,
the Federal Circuit looked to other
aspects of the scope language, including
the similar finished merchandise
exclusion, which supported the division
of products into two categories: (1)
9 See
Third Remand Results at 14.
Meridian LLC v. United States, Court No.
13–00018, Slip Op. 16–5 (CIT January 20, 2016)
(Meridian V).
11 See Meridian V, Slip Op. 16–5 at 4.
12 See Aluminum Extrusions From the People’s
Republic of China: Notice of Court Decision Not in
Harmony With Final Scope Ruling and Notice of
Amended Final Scope Ruling Pursuant to Court
Decision, 81 FR 7749 (February 16, 2016) (First
Amended Final Scope Ruling).
13 See Timken Co. v. United States, 893 F.2d 337
(Fed. Cir. 1990) (Timken).
14 See Diamond Sawblades Mfrs. Coalition v.
United States, 626 F.3d 1374 (Fed. Cir. 2010)
(Diamond Sawblades).
15 See First Amended Final Scope Ruling, 81 FR
at 7749–7750.
16 See Meridian Prods., LLC v. United States, 851
F.3d 1375 (Fed. Cir. Mar. 28, 2017) (Meridian VI).
sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES
10 See
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Products which contained only
aluminum extrusions and fasteners (not
excluded); and (C2) products which
incorporated non-aluminum extrusion
components beyond fasteners
(excluded).17
Second Amended Final Scope Ruling
Because there is now a final and
conclusive court decision which
reinstates the Department’s original
scope ruling, we are amending the First
Amended Final Scope Ruling with
respect to Meridian’s refrigerator/freezer
trim kits. Based on the Federal Circuit’s
holding in Meridian VI, Meridian’s
refrigerator/freezer trim kits are subject
to the Orders.
Accordingly, the Department will
instruct Customs and Border Protection
to continue to suspend liquidation of
Meridian’s refrigerator/freezer trim kits
until appropriate liquidation
instructions are sent. As of the date of
publication of this notice in the Federal
Register, the cash deposit rate for
entries of Meridian’s refrigerator/freezer
trim kits entries will be the applicable
cash deposit rate of the exporters of the
merchandise from the PRC to the United
States.
This notice is issued and published in
accordance with sections 516A(c)(1) and
(e)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as
amended.
Dated: July 11, 2017.
Gary Taverman,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping
and Countervailing Duty Operations,
performing the non-exclusive functions and
duties of the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2017–15040 Filed 7–17–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
RIN 0648–XF536
Marine Mammals; File No. 21018
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; receipt of application.
AGENCY:
Notice is hereby given that
Brent Stewart, Ph.D., Hubbs-SeaWorld
Research Institute, 2595 Ingraham
Street, San Diego, CA 92109 has applied
in due form for a permit to conduct
research on pinnipeds in California.
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
17 Id.,
at 1383–85.
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32789
Written, telefaxed, or email
comments must be received on or before
August 17, 2017.
ADDRESSES: The application and related
documents are available for review by
selecting ‘‘Records Open for Public
Comment’’ from the ‘‘Features’’ box on
the Applications and Permits for
Protected Species (APPS) home page,
https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov, and then
selecting File No. 21018 from the list of
available applications.
These documents are available upon
written request or by appointment in the
Permits and Conservation Division,
Office of Protected Resources, NMFS,
1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705,
Silver Spring, MD 20910; phone (301)
427–8401; fax (301) 713–0376.
Written comments on this application
should be submitted to the Chief,
Permits and Conservation Division, at
the address listed above. Comments may
also be submitted by facsimile to (301)
713–0376, or by email to
NMFS.Pr1Comments@noaa.gov. Please
include the File No. in the subject line
of the email comment.
Those individuals requesting a public
hearing should submit a written request
to the Chief, Permits and Conservation
Division at the address listed above. The
request should set forth the specific
reasons why a hearing on this
application would be appropriate.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sara
Young or Carrie Hubard, (301) 427–
8401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
subject permit is requested under the
authority of the Marine Mammal
Protection Act of 1972, as amended
(MMPA; 16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) and the
regulations governing the taking and
importing of marine mammals (50 CFR
part 216).
The applicant requests a five-year
permit to study three species of
pinnipeds in California. The objectives
of the research are to continue long-term
research on the comparative ecology,
demography, community ecology,
foraging patterns, pathology and
phenology of California pinnipeds and
to further characterize the resource and
habitats used by each species, including
patterns of spatial and temporal
similarities and differences California
sea lions (Zalophus californianus),
northern elephant seals (Mirounga
angustirostris), and harbor seals (Phoca
vitulina) would be captured and
sampled at several sites including San
Nicolas Island, San Miguel Island, Santa
Rosa Island, Santa Cruz Island, Piedras
Blancas, Cape San Martin, and Gorda.
Some animals would only receive a
flipper tag or a dye mark. Other animals
DATES:
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 136 (Tuesday, July 18, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32788-32789]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-15040]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-570-967; C-570-968]
Aluminum Extrusions From the People's Republic of China: Notice
of Second Amended Final Scope Ruling Pursuant to Court Decision
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: On March 28, 2017, the Court of Appeals for the Federal
Circuit (Federal Circuit) reversed the Court of International Trade
(CIT) and sustained the Department of Commerce's (Department) original
scope ruling in which it found that Meridian Products LLC's (Meridian)
refrigerator/freezer trim kits did not satisfy the finished goods kit
exclusion under the antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD)
orders covering aluminum extrusions from the People's Republic of China
(PRC). The Department is therefore issuing a second amended final scope
ruling.
DATES: Effective July 18, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James Terpstra, AD/CVD Operations,
Office III, Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce,
1401 Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone: 202-482-
3965.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On December 17, 2012, the Department issued its Final Scope Ruling
on Refrigerator Trim Kits in which it determined that the refrigerator/
freezer trim kits imported by Meridian did not meet the scope
exclusions for ``finished merchandise'' and ``finished goods kits.''
\1\ In particular, the Department held that, because the trim kits at
issue consisted of pieces of aluminum extrusions plus fasteners and
extraneous materials, they did not meet either scope exclusion.
Therefore, the Department found the products at issue to be within the
scope of the Orders.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The finished goods kit exclusion states: ``A finished goods
kits is understood to mean a packaged combination of parts that
contains, at the time of importation, all of the necessary parts to
fully assemble a final finished good and requires no further
finishing or fabrication, such as cutting or punching, and is
assembled `as is' into a finished product.'' The scope further
states that, ``{a{time} n imported product will not be considered a
`finished goods kit'' and therefore excluded from the scope of the
investigation merely by including fasteners such as screws, bolts,
etc. in the packaging with an aluminum extrusion product.''
\2\ See Memorandum, ``Final Scope Ruling on Certain
Refrigerator/Freezer Trim Kits, dated December 17, 2012 (Final Scope
Ruling on Refrigerator Trim Kits) at 11. See also Aluminum
Extrusions from the People's Republic of China: Antidumping Duty
Order, 76 FR 30650 (May 26, 2011) and Aluminum Extrusions from the
People's Republic of China: Countervailing Duty Order, 76 FR 30653
(May 26, 2011) (Orders).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
As discussed in detail in the Third Remand Results,\3\ the CIT
remanded the Final Scope Ruling on Refrigerator Trim Kits three
times.\4\ In Meridian IV,\5\ the CIT held that the Department's long-
standing recognition of a ``fasteners'' exception to the ``finished
goods kit'' exclusion in the scope was unreasonable, finding that ``the
inclusion of `fasteners' or `extraneous materials' is not determinative
when qualifying a kit consistent of multiple parts which otherwise
meets the exclusionary requirements, as a `finished goods kit.' '' \6\
Additionally, the CIT explained that there is nothing in the scope
language that indicates that the parts of a finished goods kit cannot
consist entirely of aluminum extrusions.\7\ The CIT explained that ``to
qualify as a `finished goods kit', a kit must contain every part
required to assemble the final finished good, and it logically follows
that if a kit is imported with all of the parts necessary to fully
assemble the kit into its final finished form, then obviously (and
necessarily) some of those `parts' may be fasteners.'' \8\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ See Final Results of Redetermination Pursuant to Court
Remand, Meridian Products, LLC v. United States, Court No. 13-00018,
Slip. Op. 15-67 (Oct. 29, 2015) (Third Remand Results).
\4\ See Third Remand Results at 6-10.
\5\ See Meridian Products, LLC v. United States, Court No. 13-
00018, Slip. Op. 15-67 (Oct. 29, 2015) (Meridian IV).
\6\ See Meridian IV, Slip Op. 15-67 at 12-13.
\7\ Id.
\8\ Id., at 14 (emphasis omitted).
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[[Page 32789]]
In the Third Remand Results, the Department found, in accordance
with the Court's instructions in Meridian IV, under respectful protest,
that Meridian's trim kits are excluded from the scope of the Orders as
finished goods kits because at the time of importation, the kits
contained all the parts necessary to assemble a final finished good--a
complete trim kit.\9\ In Meridian V,\10\ the Court sustained the Third
Remand Results in its entirety.\11\ Subsequently, the Department
published a First Amended Final Scope Ruling in which the Department
found that Meridian's refrigerator/freezer trim kits are not covered by
the scope of the Orders.\12\ Consistent with the decision of the
Federal Circuit in Timken,\13\ as clarified by Diamond Sawblades,\14\
the First Amended Final Scope Ruling additionally provided notice to
the public of the CIT's final judgment in Meridian V not in harmony
with the Department's Final Scope Ruling on Refrigerator Trim Kits and
of the continuation of the suspension of liquidation of the trim kits
at issue pending a final and conclusive court decision, if
appealed.\15\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ See Third Remand Results at 14.
\10\ See Meridian LLC v. United States, Court No. 13-00018, Slip
Op. 16-5 (CIT January 20, 2016) (Meridian V).
\11\ See Meridian V, Slip Op. 16-5 at 4.
\12\ See Aluminum Extrusions From the People's Republic of
China: Notice of Court Decision Not in Harmony With Final Scope
Ruling and Notice of Amended Final Scope Ruling Pursuant to Court
Decision, 81 FR 7749 (February 16, 2016) (First Amended Final Scope
Ruling).
\13\ See Timken Co. v. United States, 893 F.2d 337 (Fed. Cir.
1990) (Timken).
\14\ See Diamond Sawblades Mfrs. Coalition v. United States, 626
F.3d 1374 (Fed. Cir. 2010) (Diamond Sawblades).
\15\ See First Amended Final Scope Ruling, 81 FR at 7749-7750.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
On March 28, 2017, the Federal Circuit reversed the CIT and
sustained the Department's original scope ruling in which it found that
Meridian's refrigerator/freezer trim kits did not satisfy the finished
goods kit exclusion under the Orders. In Meridian VI,\16\ the Federal
Circuit found that the plain language of the exclusion language, when
appropriately read as a whole, supported the Department's
interpretation. The Federal Circuit further held that the Department's
prior scope rulings, one of the 19 CFR 351.225(k)(1) sources, further
supported the Department's interpretation. Finally, the Federal Circuit
looked to other aspects of the scope language, including the similar
finished merchandise exclusion, which supported the division of
products into two categories: (1) Products which contained only
aluminum extrusions and fasteners (not excluded); and (C2) products
which incorporated non-aluminum extrusion components beyond fasteners
(excluded).\17\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\16\ See Meridian Prods., LLC v. United States, 851 F.3d 1375
(Fed. Cir. Mar. 28, 2017) (Meridian VI).
\17\ Id., at 1383-85.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Second Amended Final Scope Ruling
Because there is now a final and conclusive court decision which
reinstates the Department's original scope ruling, we are amending the
First Amended Final Scope Ruling with respect to Meridian's
refrigerator/freezer trim kits. Based on the Federal Circuit's holding
in Meridian VI, Meridian's refrigerator/freezer trim kits are subject
to the Orders.
Accordingly, the Department will instruct Customs and Border
Protection to continue to suspend liquidation of Meridian's
refrigerator/freezer trim kits until appropriate liquidation
instructions are sent. As of the date of publication of this notice in
the Federal Register, the cash deposit rate for entries of Meridian's
refrigerator/freezer trim kits entries will be the applicable cash
deposit rate of the exporters of the merchandise from the PRC to the
United States.
This notice is issued and published in accordance with sections
516A(c)(1) and (e)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended.
Dated: July 11, 2017.
Gary Taverman,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty
Operations, performing the non-exclusive functions and duties of the
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2017-15040 Filed 7-17-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
