Office of the United States Trade Representative July 2020 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Effective August 23, 2018, the U.S. Trade Representative imposed additional duties on goods of China with an annual trade value of approximately $16 billion as part of the action in the Section 301 investigation of China's acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation. The U.S. Trade Representative initiated the exclusion process in September 2018 and, to date, has granted three sets of exclusions under the $16 billion action. The first set of exclusions was published in July 2019 and will expire in July 2020. On April 30, 2020, the U.S. Trade Representative established a process for the public to comment on whether to extend particular exclusions granted in July 2019 for up to 12 months. This notice announces the U.S. Trade Representative's determination to extend certain exclusions through December 31, 2020.

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture will convene virtual public hearings to hear firsthand from interested persons on trade distorting policies that may be causing harm to U.S. seasonal and perishable producers (namely, of fresh fruits and vegetables) and contributing to unfair pricing in the U.S. market, and to solicit feedback on how the Administration can better support these producers and redress any unfair harm.

The U.S. Trade Representative has determined that Mali has adopted an effective visa system and related procedures to prevent the unlawful transshipment of textile and apparel articles and the use of counterfeit documents in connection with the shipment of such articles, and has implemented and follows, or is making substantial progress towards implementing and following, the custom procedures required by the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Therefore, imports of eligible products from Mali qualify for the textile and apparel benefits provided under the AGOA.

Effective August 23, 2018, the U.S. Trade Representative imposed additional duties on goods of China with an annual trade value of approximately $16 billion as part of the action in the Section 301 investigation of China's acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation. The U.S. Trade Representative's determination included a decision to establish a product exclusion process, which was initiated in September 2018. Stakeholders submitted requests for the exclusion of specific products and the U.S. Trade Representative granted exclusion requests. This notice announces the U.S. Trade Representative's determination to make certain amendments to previously granted exclusions and grants an exclusion that previously was published under a different U.S. note to subchapter III of chapter 99 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS).

Effective July 6, 2018, the U.S. Trade Representative imposed additional duties on goods of China with an annual trade value of approximately $34 billion as part of the action in the Section 301 investigation of China's acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation. The U.S. Trade Representative's determination included a decision to establish a product exclusion process, which was initiated in July 2018. Stakeholders submitted requests for the exclusion of specific products and the U.S. Trade Representative has issued determinations to grant exclusion requests. This notice announces the U.S. Trade Representative's determination to make a technical amendment to a previously granted exclusion.

On August 20, 2019, at the direction of the President, the U.S. Trade Representative determined to modify the action being taken in the Section 301 investigation of China's acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation by imposing additional duties of 10 percent ad valorem on goods of China with an annual trade value of approximately $300 billion. The additional duties on products in List 1, which is set out in Annex A of that action, became effective on September 1, 2019. On August 30, 2019, at the direction of the President, the U.S. Trade Representative determined to increase the rate of the additional duty applicable to the tariff subheadings covered by the action announced in the August 20 notice from 10 to 15 percent. On January 22, 2020, the U.S. Trade Representative determined to reduce the rate from 15 to 7.5 percent. The U.S. Trade Representative initiated a product exclusion process in October 2019, and interested persons have submitted requests for the exclusion of specific products. This notice announces the U.S. Trade Representative's determination to grant certain exclusion requests, as specified in the Annex to this notice, and make certain amendments to previously announced exclusions. The U.S. Trade Representative will continue to issue decisions on pending requests on a periodic basis.

This notice amends an annex to the notice published on June 26, 2020, which requested public comments in connection with a review of the action being taken in the Section 301 investigation involving the enforcement of U.S. World Trade Organization (WTO) rights in the Large Civil Aircraft dispute. The amendment adds two products to Annex III that were inadvertently omitted.

The tariff rate quota (TRQ) for sugar containing products (SCPs) of Canada established by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA or the Agreement) will be administered using export certificates.