Department of Commerce March 8, 2022 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In 2021, four observed mortalities or serious injuries (M&SI) of false killer whales occurred incidental to the Hawaii deep-set longline fishery within the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) around Hawaii on January 18, 2021, March 26, 2021, April 17, 2021, and November 19, 2021. These M&SI met the established annual trigger of four observed M&SI for closing the Southern Exclusion Zone (SEZ) to deep-set longline fishing under the False Killer Whale Take Reduction Plan (Plan) regulations. In accordance with the Plan regulations a closure of the SEZ is required through the end of the fishing year. Because the injury determination for the fourth interaction meeting the trigger was not available until January 2022, the timeframe for closing the SEZ in 2021 had passed, and the SEZ was not closed. In accordance with the Plan regulations, the requirements for closure of the SEZ were met in 2021, therefore, if the trigger is met in 2022, the process for closure of the SEZ will follow the procedures described in the Plan regulations.

In response to Belarus's substantial enabling of the Russian Federation's (Russia)'s further invasion of Ukraine, this rule is adding new license requirements and review policies for Belarus to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to render Belarus subject to the same sanctions that were imposed on Russia under the EAR effective February 24, 2022. These new sanctions impose new Commerce Control List (CCL)-based license requirements for Belarus; revise the two foreign ``direct product'' rules (FDP rules) that are specific to Russia and Russian `military end users' to make them also applicable to Belarus and Belarusian `military end users;' specify a license review policy of denial applicable to all of the license requirements on Belarus that are being added in this rule, with certain limited exceptions; significantly restrict the use of EAR license exceptions; expand the existing `military end use' and `military end user' control scope to include Belarus for all items ``subject to the EAR'' other than food and medicine designated EAR99; and add two new Belarusian entities to the Entity List as `military end users.' This rule also imposes a license requirement for nuclear nonproliferation items for exports and reexports to Belarus and removes Belarus from Country Group A:4 under the EAR. In addition, for Belarus and Russia, this rule amends the availability of License Exceptions AVS and ENC and includes clarifying guidance on the availability of CCD.

The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that Reliance Industries Limited (Reliance), a producer/exporter of fine denier polyester staple fiber (fine denier PSF) from India, received countervailable subsidies that are above de minimis during the period of review, January 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020.

On February 2, 2022, the Department of Commerce (Commerce) published its preliminary determination in the less-than-fair-value investigation of urea ammonium nitrate solutions (UAN) from the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (Trinidad) in the Federal Register. Commerce is amending this preliminary determination to correct a significant ministerial error.