Department of Commerce 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

NMFS announces the end of the 2006 Pacific Whiting (whiting) Primary Season for the catcher-processor sector at 4 pm local time (l.t.) November 3, 2006, because the allocation for the catcher- processor sector is projected to have been reached by that time. This action is intended to keep the harvest of whiting within the 2006 allocation levels.

The Environmental Technologies Trade Advisory Committee (ETTAC) was established pursuant to provisions under Title IV of the Jobs Through Trade Expansion Act, 22. U.S.C. 2151, and under the Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C. App. 2. ETTAC was first chartered on May 31, 1994. ETTAC serves as an advisory body to the Environmental Trade Working Group of the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee (TPCC), reporting directly to the Secretary of Commerce in his capacity as Chairman of the TPCC. ETTAC advises on the development and administration of policies and programs to expand United States exports of environmental technologies, goods, and services and products that comply with United States environmental, safety, and related requirements. Membership in a committee operating under the Federal Advisory Committee Act must be balanced in terms of economic subsector, geographic location, and company size. Committee members serve in a representative capacity, and must be able to generally represent the views and interests of a certain subsector of the U.S. environmental industry. We are seeking senior executive-level company or environmental technologies association candidates. Members of the ETTAC have experience in exporting the full range of environmental technologies products and services including: (1) Air Pollution Control/Monitoring Equipment; (2) Analytic Services; (3) Environmental Energy Sources; (4) Environmental Engineering and Consulting Services; (5) Financial Services; (6) Process and Prevention Technologies; (7) Solid and Hazardous Waste Equipment and Management; (8) Water and Wastewater Equipment and Services. The Secretary of Commerce invites nominations to ETTAC of U.S. citizens who will represent U.S. environmental goods and services companies that trade internationally, or trade associations whose members include U.S. companies that trade internationally. Companies must be at least 51 percent beneficially-owned by U.S. persons. U.S.- based subsidiaries of foreign companies in general do not qualify for representation on the committee. Nominees will be considered based upon their ability to carry out the goals of ETTAC's enabling legislation as further articulated in its charter. ETTAC's Charter is available on the internet at https:// www.environment.ita.doc.gov. Priority will be given to a balanced representation in terms of point of view represented by various sectors, product lines, firm sizes, and geographic areas. Appointments are made without regard to political affiliation. Nominees must be U.S. citizens, representing U.S. environmental goods and services firms that trade internationally or provide services in direct support of the international trading activities of other entities. Self-nominations are accepted. If you are interested in nominating someone to become a member of ETTAC, please provide the following information (2 pages maximum): (1) Name; (2) Title; (3) Work phone; fax; and, email address; (4) Company or trade association name and address including Web site address; (5) Short bio of nominee including credentials; (6) Brief description of the company or trade association and its business activities; company size (number of employees and annual sales); and export markets served. Please, do not send company or trade association brochures or any other information. This information may be e-mailed to ellen.bohon@mail.doc.gov, or faxed to the attention of Ellen Bohon at 202-482-5665, and must be received before the deadline. Nominees selected to ETTAC will be notified. Deadline: This request will be open until November 24, 2006, from the date of publication in the Federal Register.

The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries (AA), NOAA, announces temporary restrictions consistent with the requirements of the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan's (ALWTRP) implementing regulations. These regulations apply to lobster trap/pot and anchored gillnet fishermen in an area totaling approximately 1,809 nm\2\ (6,204 km\2\), southeast of Portland, Maine, for 15 days. The purpose of this action is to provide protection to an aggregation of northern right whales (right whales).

On August 25, 2006, NMFS issued a final rule to require the use of chain mats on sea scallop dredges in the mid-Atlantic sea scallop fishery in order to help protect sea turtles. The regulation became effective on September 25, 2006. Shortly after the rule's effective date, NMFS became aware of a discrepancy between the two options in the regulation for configuring the chain mat. This emergency final rule corrects the existing regulation to ensure that the protection to sea turtles expected from the August 25, 2006 rule is achieved. This emergency final rule requires that any vessel with a sea scallop dredge and required to have a Federal Atlantic sea scallop fishery permit, regardless of dredge size or vessel permit category, present in waters south of 41[deg] 9.0' N. lat., from the shoreline to the outer boundary of the Exclusive Economic Zone must have on each dredge a chain mat composed of horizontal (tickler) and vertical (``up- and-down'') chains for the duration of the trip. The chains must be configured such that the length of each side of the square or rectangle formed by the intersecting chains is less than or equal to 14 inches (35.5 cm). Any incidental take of threatened sea turtles in sea scallop dredge gear in compliance with this gear modification requirement and all other applicable requirements will be exempted from the Endangered Species Act's prohibition against takes.

On July 31, 2006, the United States Court of International Trade (CIT) sustained the final remand redetermination made by the Department of Commerce (the Department) pursuant to the CIT's third remand of the final results of the May 1, 1999December 31, 1999 administrative review of dynamic random access memory semiconductors of one megabit or above (DRAMs) from the Republic of Korea (Korea). See Hynix Semiconductor, Inc., Hynix Semiconductor America, Inc. v. United States and Micron Technology, Inc., 442 F. Supp. 2d 1359 (Ct. Int'l Trade 2006) (Hynix IV). Because all litigation in this matter has now concluded, the Department is now issuing its amended final results in accordance with the CIT's decision.

The New England Fishery Management Council's (Council) Vessel Monitoring System (VMS)/Enforcement Committee will meet to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

NMFS is prohibiting gillnet fishing or gillnet possession in Atlantic Ocean waters west of 80[deg]00' W. long. between 29[deg]00' N. lat. (just south of New Smyrna Beach, Fla.) and 32[deg]00' N. lat. (the approximate state boundary between Georgia and South Carolina) and within 35 nautical miles of the South Carolina coast. An exemption to the prohibition on the possession of gillnet gear is provided for transiting through this area if gear is stowed in accordance with this rule. NMFS is taking this action to prevent a significant risk to the well being of endangered right whales from entanglement in gillnet gear in the core right whale calving area during the calving season.

Notice is hereby given that NMFS has issued Permit 1045 Modification 1 to Dr. Michael H. Fawcett (M. Fawcett) in Bodega, CA; and Permit 1046 Modification 2 to the National Park Service (NPS) in Point Reyes, CA. This notice is relevant to federally endangered Central California Coast coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch), threatened California Coastal Chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha), threatened Northern California steelhead (O. mykiss), and threatened Central California Coast steelhead (O. mykiss).

On May 8, 2006, the Department of Commerce (``the Department'') published the preliminary results of the 2004/2005 administrative and new shipper reviews of the antidumping duty order on brake rotors from the People's Republic of China (PRC). See Brake Rotors From the People's Republic of China: Preliminary Results and Partial Rescission of the 2004/2005 Administrative Review and Preliminary Notice of Intent to Rescind the 2004/2005 New Shipper Review, 71 FR 26736 (May 8, 2006) (``Preliminary Results/Intent to Rescind''). At that time, we invited interested parties to comment on our preliminary results and preliminary notice of intent to rescind the new shipper review. Based on our analysis of the comments received, we have made certain changes to our calculations. The final dumping margins for these reviews are listed in the ``Final Results of Review'' section below.

On September 20, 2006, the Department of Commerce (the ``Department'') received a request on behalf of the petitioners, the American Furniture Manufacturers Committee for Legal Trade and its individual members (the ``AFMC''), for a changed circumstances review and a request to revoke, in part, the antidumping duty (``AD'') order on wooden bedroom furniture from the People's Republic of China with respect to cheval style mirrored jewelry cabinets. In its September 20, 2006, submission, AFMC stated that it no longer has any interest in seeking antidumping relief from imports of such cheval style mirrored jewelry cabinets with respect to the subject merchandise defined in the ``Scope of the Order'' section below. Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.

The Department of Commerce (the Department) hereby publishes a list of scope rulings completed between July 1, 2006, and September 30, 2006. In conjunction with this list, the Department is also publishing a list of requests for scope rulings and anticircumvention determinations pending as of September 30, 2006. We intend to publish future lists after the close of the next calendar quarter.

On July 7, 2006, the Department of Commerce (the Department) published the preliminary results in the countervailing duty (CVD) administrative review of certain in-shell roasted pistachios from Iran. The Department has now completed this administrative review in accordance with section 751(a) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Based on information received since the preliminary results and our analysis of the comments received, the Department has not revised the net subsidy rate for Tehran Negah Nima Trading Company, Inc., trading as Nima Trading Company (Nima), the respondent company in this proceeding. The final net subsidy rate for the reviewed company is listed below in the section entitled ``Final Results of Review.''

The Caribbean Fishery Management Council (Council) and its Administrative Committee will hold meetings.

On July 12, 2006, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) affirmed the decision of the Court of International Trade (CIT) to sustain the Department of Commerce's (the Department's) remand redetermination in the 1999-2000 antidumping duty administrative review of certain cased pencils (pencils) from the People's Republic of China (PRC). In its redetermination, the Department assigned Guangdong Provincial Stationery & Sporting Goods Import & Export Corp. (Guangdong) a cash deposit rate of 13.91 percent, rather than the PRC-wide rate assigned to the company in the contested administrative review. As there is now a final and conclusive court decision in this case, the Department is amending the final results of the 1999-2000 antidumping duty administrative review of pencils from the PRC.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is seeking public comments on the impact that implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention, through the Chemical Weapons Convention Implementation Act and the Chemical Weapons Convention Regulations, has had on commercial activities involving ``Schedule 1'' chemicals through calendar year 2006. This notice of inquiry is part of an effort to collect information to assist BIS in its preparation of the annual certification required under Condition 9 of Senate Resolution 75, April 24, 1997, in which the Senate gave its advice and consent to the ratification of the Chemical Weapons Convention.

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.

In response to requests from United States Steel Corporation (petitioner), and Nucor Corporation (Nucor), the Department of Commerce (the Department) is conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on certain hot-rolled carbon steel flat products (hot-rolled steel) from Thailand. This administrative review covers imports of subject merchandise produced and exported by Nakornthai Strip Mill Public Co., Ltd. (NSM), Sahaviriya Steel Industries Public Co., Ltd. (SSI), and G Steel Public Co., Ltd. (G Steel). We preliminarily determine that sales of subject merchandise by NSM have been made at not less than normal value (NV). In addition, we are preliminarily rescinding this review with respect to G Steel because it reported, and we confirmed, that it did not make shipments of subject merchandise to the United States during the period of review (POR). See Partial Rescission of Administrative Review below. Further, on April 28, 2006, the Department rescinded this review with respect to SSI in accordance with 19 CFR 351.213(d)(1) because petitioner and Nucor withdrew their requests for administrative review within the 90-day deadline and no other party requested a review of SSI. See Partial Rescission of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review: Certain Hot- Rolled Carbon Steel Flat Products from Thailand, 71 FR 25148 (April 28, 2006). If these preliminary results are adopted in our final results, we will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to assess antidumping duties on appropriate entries based on the difference between the export price (EP) and the NV. Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.

Notice is hereby given that NMFS, Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC), 166 Water Street, Woods Hole, MA 02543-1026, has been issued a permit to take loggerhead (Caretta caretta), leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempii), green (Chelonia mydas), hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), and olive ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea) sea turtles for purposes of scientific research.