[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 166 (Monday, August 26, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43733-43735]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-21603]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Export Trade Certificate of Review

ACTION: Notice of issuance of an export trade certificate of review, 
Application No. 96-00003.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce has issued an Export Trade 
Certificate of Review to The Rice Millers' Association (``RMA''). This 
notice summarizes the conduct for which certification has been granted.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: W. Dawn Busby, Director, Office of 
Export Trading Company Affairs, International Trade Administration, 
(202) 482-5131. This is not a toll-free number.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title III of the Export Trading Company Act 
of 1982 (15 U.S.C. 4001-21) authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to 
issue Export Trade Certificates of Review. The regulations implementing 
Title III are found at 15 CFR Part 325 (1993).
    The Office of Export Trading Company Affairs (``OETCA'') is issuing 
this notice pursuant to 15 CFR 325.6(b), which requires the Department 
of Commerce to publish a summary of a Certificate in the Federal 
Register. Under Section 305(a) of the Act and 15 CFR 325.11(a), any 
person aggrieved by the Secretary's determination may, within 30 days 
of the date of this notice, bring an action in any appropriate district 
court of the United States to set aside the determination on the ground 
that the determination is erroneous.

Description of Certified Conduct

 Export Trade

1. Products
    Semi-milled and wholly milled rice, whether or not polished or 
glazed (Harmonized Tariff Schedule 1006.30) (referred to as ``milled 
rice'') and husked (brown) rice (Harmonized Tariff Schedule 1006.20).

Export Markets

    For purposes of administering the European Union's tariff rate 
quota: The countries of the European Union.
    For purposes of Export Trade Activity and Method of Operation 3: 
All parts of the world except the United States (the 50 states of the 
United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 
Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific 
Islands).

Export Trade Activities and Methods of Operation

    1. RMA will administer a system for allocating the U.S. share of 
the European Union (EU) tariff rate quotas (``TRQs'') for milled rice 
and brown rice (roughly 38,000 tons of milled rice and 8,000 tons of 
brown rice) agreed to as compensation to the United States for the EU 
enlargement, to include Austria, Finland and Sweden, as follows:
    A. RMA shall establish a special tariff rate quota (hereinafter 
referred to as ``Quota A'') for the balance of calendar year 1996 and 
for calendar year 1997 for those RMA Members which can document exports 
of milled rice or brown rice to Austria, Finland and Sweden during the 
period 1990-1993. For the balance of 1996 and for 1997, RMA shall 
annually award a Member a milled rice and brown rice Quota A amount 
equal to 100 percent of the annual average quantity of U.S. milled rice 
and brown rice that the Member documents that it exported to Austria, 
Finland and Sweden during the period 1990-1993.
    (i) RMA Members receiving a milled rice or brown rice Quota A 
allocation during 1996 or 1997 shall not be eligible to receive a 
milled rice or brown rice Quota B allocation during that period unless 
the Member declines the milled rice or brown rice Quota A allocation 
during that period.
    B. For any particular time period, RMA shall establish a tariff 
rate quota allocation (hereinafter referred to as ``Quota B'') for 
milled rice and brown rice allocation equal to the EU milled rice and 
brown rice tariff rate quota remaining after deducting the milled rice 
and brown rice Quota A quantity, if any, for that particular time 
period.
    (i) RMA shall allocate an amount of Quota B milled rice and brown 
rice available for a given period to eligible RMA Members based on the 
Member's proportional share of milled rice and brown rice exports to 
the EU for a previous period duly registered with RMA by a date certain 
during the period the quota is being allocated, as determined by RMA. A 
Member can only receive an allocation not exceeding the tonnage it has 
actually exported during the previous period.
    2. RMA shall assess a fee to pay for administration of all matters 
related to establishing, operating and auditing RMA export trade 
certificate of review operations and for certain market development 
activities.
    3. RMA and/or its Member shall use those funds remaining after 
payment of its administrative expenses to carry out market development 
activities. Such activities shall be of the types approved by RMA that 
are comparable to those funded under the Department of Agriculture's 
market access program with primary emphasis on rice market development 
activities in the European Union.
    4. RMA and/or its Members may:
    (i) provide for an administrative structure to implement the 
foregoing tariff rate quota system, relating to the U.S.-EU 
Compensation Agreement and EU regulations,
    (ii) exchange and discuss information regarding the structure and 
method for implementing the foregoing tariff rate quota system, 
relating to the U.S.-EU Compensation Agreement and EU regulations,
    (iii) discuss the type of information needed regarding past 
transactions and exports that are necessary for implementing the 
foregoing tariff rate quota system, relating to the U.S.-EU 
Compensation Agreement and EU regulations,
    (iv) exchange and discuss information about U.S. and foreign 
legislation and regulations affecting the foregoing tariff rate quota 
system, relating to the U.S.-EU Compensation Agreement and EU 
regulations,
    (v) discuss and establish the fees to be assessed upon Members to 
pay for administrative expenses and market promotion activities,
    (vi) discuss and provide for the market promotion activities to be 
undertaken with the fees remaining after payment of administrative 
expenses,
    (vii) otherwise exchange and discuss information as necessary to 
implement the foregoing activities and take the necessary action to 
implement the allocation system for the foregoing tariff rate quota, 
relating to the U.S.-EU Compensation Agreement and EU regulations,
    (viii) meet to engage in the activities described above, and
    (ix) announce the total TRQ amounts available under Quota A and 
Quota B prior to or at the beginning of the 1996 and 1997 allocation 
periods.
    5. In allocating quotas among Members, a Neutral Third Party, as 
hereinafter defined, will (i) receive information from the Members as 
to the Members' sales and exports of milled rice and brown rice to the 
EU as is necessary to calculate the share each Member will receive, and 
(ii) make the TRQ allocations.
    (i) A Neutral Third Party means an individual, partnership, 
corporation (for profit or non-profit), or any representative thereof 
which is not engaged in the production, milling, distribution, or sale 
of milled or brown rice.
    (ii) The Neutral Third Party may not disclose the information 
obtained from each Member to any other Member or any other person, 
except to another Neutral Third Party who must have access to the 
information in order to administer the quota allocation. The Neutral 
Third Party may disclose the total rice exports to the EU during the

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period used for calculating the allocation. After the last allocation 
for each year, the Neutral Third Party may also disclose to the Members 
the allocation that each Member received in each allocation period 
during that allocation year.

Terms and Conditions of Certificate

    1. Except as expressly authorized in Export Trade Activity and 
Methods of Operation 4(iii), in engaging in Export Trade Activities and 
Methods of Operation, neither RMA nor any Member shall intentionally 
disclose, directly or indirectly, to any other Member (including parent 
companies, subsidiaries, or other entities related to any Member not 
named as a Member) any information that is about its or any other 
Member's costs, production, inventories, domestic prices, domestic 
sales, capacity to produce Products for domestic sale, domestic orders, 
terms of domestic marketing or sale, or U.S. business plans, 
strategies, or methods, unless (1) such information is already 
generally available to the trade or public; or (2) the information 
disclosed is a necessary term or condition (e.g., price, time required 
to fill an order, etc.) of an actual or potential bona fide export sale 
and the disclosure is limited to the prospective purchaser.
    2. RMA and its Members will comply with requests made by the 
Secretary of Commerce on behalf of the Secretary or the Attorney 
General for information or documents relevant to conduct under the 
Certificate. The Secretary of Commerce will request such information or 
documents when either the Attorney General or the Secretary of Commerce 
believes that the information or documents are required to determine 
that the Export Trade, Export Trade Activities and Methods of Operation 
of a person protected by this Certificate of Review continue to comply 
with the standards of section 303(a) of the Act.

Definitions

    ``Members'' means a mill member of the Rice Millers' Association 
who has been certified as a ``Member'' within the meaning of Section 
325.1(1) of the Regulations and is listed in Attachment I. Members must 
sign the Operating Agreement of the Rice Millers' Association Export 
Trade Certificate of Review in order to participate in the certified 
activities. Any RMA mill member who is not a Member listed in 
Attachment I may join RMA's export trade certificate of review by 
requesting that RMA file for an amended certificate and by signing the 
Operating Agreement. Any U.S. rice milling company who is not a member 
of RMA and who wishes to participate in the activities covered by this 
certificate, may join RMA's membership and then request that RMA file 
for an amended certificate. A Member may withdraw from coverage under 
this certificate at any time by giving written notice to RMA, a copy of 
which RMA will promptly transmit to the Secretary of Commerce and the 
Attorney General.

Protection Provided by Certificate

    This Certificate protects RMA, its Members, and directors, 
officers, and employees acting on behalf of RMA and its Members from 
private treble damage actions and government criminal and civil suits 
under U.S. federal and state antitrust laws for the export conduct 
specified in the Certificate and carried out during its effective 
period in compliance with its terms and conditions.

Effective Period of Certificate

    This Certificate continues in effect from the effective date 
indicated below until it is relinquished, modified, or revoked as 
provided in the Act and the Regulations.

Other Conduct

    Nothing in this Certificate prohibits RMA and its Members from 
engaging in conduct not specified in this Certificate, but such conduct 
is subject to the normal application of the antitrust laws.

Disclaimer

    The issuance of this Certificate of Review to RMA by the Secretary 
of Commerce with the concurrence of the Attorney General under the 
provisions of the Act does not constitute, explicitly or implicitly, an 
endorsement or opinion by the Secretary of Commerce or by the Attorney 
General concerning either (a) the viability or quality of the business 
plans of RMA or its Members or (b) the legality of such business plans 
of RMA or its Members under the laws of the United States (other than 
as provided in the Act) or under the laws of any foreign country.
    The application of this Certificate to conduct in export trade 
where the United States Government is the buyer or where the United 
States Government bears more than half the cost of the transaction is 
subject to the limitations set forth in Section V.(D.) of the 
``Guidelines for the Issuance of Export Trade Certificates of Review 
(Second Edition),'' 50 Fed. Reg. 1786 (January 11, 1985).
    In accordance with the authority granted under the Act and 
Regulations, this Certificate of Review is hereby granted to RMA.
    A copy of each certificate will be kept in the International Trade 
Administration's Freedom of Information Records Inspection Facility, 
Room 4102, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution 
Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20230.

    Dated: August 20, 1996.
W. Dawn Busby,
Director, Office of Export Trading Company Affairs.

Attachment I

Affiliated Rice Milling, Inc., Alvin, Texas
American Rice, Inc., Houston, Texas
Brinkley Rice Milling Company, Brinkley, Arkansas
Broussard Rice Mill, Inc., Mermentau, Louisiana
Busch Agricultural Resources, Inc., St. Louis, Missouri
Cargill, Incorporated, for the activities of its division
Cargill Rice Milling, Greenville, Mississippi
Louis Dreyfus Corporation, Wilton, Connecticut
El Campo Rice Milling Company, Louise, Texas
Farmers' Rice Cooperative, Sacramento, California
Farmers Rice Milling Company, Inc., Lake Charles, Louisiana
Gulf Rice Milling, Inc., Houston, Texas
Liberty Rice Mill, Inc., Kaplan, Louisiana
Producers Rice Mill, Inc., Stuttgart, Arkansas
The Rice Company, Roseville, California
Riceland Foods, Inc., Stuttgart, Arkansas
RiceTec, Inc., Alvin, Texas
Riviana Foods Inc., Houston, Texas
Supreme Rice Mill, Inc., Crowley, Louisiana
Uncle Ben's, Inc., Houston, Texas

[FR Doc. 96-21603 Filed 8-23-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DR-P