[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 205 (Thursday, October 23, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 55185-55196]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-28257]


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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

19 CFR Parts 201 and 207


Notice of Proposed Amendments to Rules of Practice and Procedure

AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice of Proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: The United States International Trade Commission (the 
Commission) proposes to amend its Rules of Practice and Procedure 
concerning antidumping and countervailing duty investigations and 
reviews in 19 CFR parts 201 and 207. The proposed amendments will 
establish procedures for five-year reviews of antidumping and 
countervailing duty orders and suspension agreements that the 
Commission will begin to conduct in 1998 pursuant to the provisions of 
section 751(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act).

DATES: To be assured of consideration, written comments must be 
received not later than December 22, 1997. Rebuttal comments must be 
received not later than January 21, 1998.

ADDRESSES: A signed original and 14 copies of each set of comments, 
along with a cover letter, should be submitted to the Secretary, U.S. 
International Trade Commission, 500 E Street, SW, Washington, D.C. 
20436.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marc A. Bernstein, Office of General 
Counsel, U.S. International Trade Commission (telephone: 202-205-3087, 
e-mail: [email protected]), or Vera A. Libeau, Office of 
Investigations, U.S. International Trade Commission (telephone 202-205-
3176, e-mail: [email protected]). Hearing-impaired individuals are 
advised that information on this matter can be obtained by contacting 
the Commission's TDD terminal on 202-205-1810.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA) fundamentally revised the 
Act by requiring that antidumping and countervailing duty orders and 
suspension agreements be revoked after five years unless revocation 
would be likely to lead to a continuation or recurrence of (1) dumping 
or a countervailable subsidy, and (2) material injury to the domestic 
industry. The URAA assigns to the Commission the responsibility of 
determining whether revocation of an antidumping or countervailing duty 
order, or termination of a suspension agreement, is likely to lead to 
the continuation or recurrence of material injury. The URAA requires 
that the Department of Commerce (Commerce) begin initiating five-year 
reviews in July 1998, that all five-year reviews of ``transition 
orders''--those antidumping and countervailing duty orders and 
suspension agreements in effect on January 1, 1995, when the United 
States acceded to the Uruguay Round Agreements--be initiated by 
December 31, 1999, and that all reviews of transition orders be 
completed by June 30, 2001. The URAA further requires that Commerce 
initiate a five-year review of each order or agreement that is not a 
``transition order'' no later than 30 days before the fifth anniversary 
of publication of the order or agreement in the Federal Register.
    This notice proposes new procedures for five-year reviews. As 
described below, some of the proposed procedures will be reflected in 
changes to the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure. Other 
proposed procedures, such as scheduling, relate to internal agency 
practices and do not require regulations. Nevertheless, this notice 
describes several of these proposals and invites public comment on all 
proposed regulations and procedures.
    The Commission has determined that these proposed regulations do 
not meet the criteria described in section 3(f) of the Executive Order 
12866 (58 FR 51735, Oct. 4, 1993) (EO) and thus do not constitute a 
significant regulatory

[[Page 55186]]

action for purposes of the EO. The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 
601 note) is inapplicable to this rulemaking, because it is not one for 
which a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) is required under 5 U.S.C. 
553(b) or any other statute. Although the Commission has chosen to 
publish an NOPR, these proposed regulations are ``agency rules of 
procedure and practice,'' and thus are exempt from the notice 
requirement imposed by 5 U.S.C. 553(b).
    The draft notice of institution reproduced at Annex A to this 
Notice constitutes an information collection request subject to the 
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. After 
consultation with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the 
Commission believes that the contemplated collection of information 
pursuant to the draft notice of institution is encompassed within a 
clearance OMB has given the Commission under the Paperwork Reduction 
Act to collect information for antidumping and countervailing duty 
investigations and reviews, including those undertaken pursuant to 
section 751 of the Act. This clearance has been assigned OMB Control 
Number 3117-0016.

Request for Comment

    The Commission solicits comments pertaining to its proposals 
concerning five-year reviews. The Commission will conduct a two-step 
comment process. Initial comments should be received by the Commission 
Secretary not later than December 22, 1997. Rebuttals to the initial 
comments may also be filed. Any rebuttal comments should be received by 
the Commission Secretary not later than January 21, 1998. All comments 
will be available for public inspection in the Commission's Public 
Docket Room between the hours of 8:45 am and 5:15 pm, Monday through 
Friday (except Federal Holidays).
    Commenters are invited to address several distinct matters in their 
comments and rebuttal comments. The Commission requests that, to 
facilitate its review, commenters organize their comments as follows:
    Section I of the comments should address the proposed amendments to 
the part 201 and 207 regulations presented in this notice.
    Section II of the comments should address proposed procedures for 
five-year reviews that the Commission has discussed in this notice, but 
has not incorporated into the proposed amendments to the part 201 and 
part 207 regulations. These would include, for example, comments on the 
format or specific questions of the sample notice of institution 
appearing as Annex A to this notice, or comments on the proposed 
schedule appearing as Annex B to this notice.
    Section III of the comments should address any other issues 
commenters may desire to raise pertaining to five-year reviews. The 
regulations proposed below solely concern the procedures that the 
Commission intends to use in conducting five-year reviews. The proposed 
regulations do not address what methodology the Commission, or 
individual Commissioners, may use to determine whether revocation of an 
order, or termination of a suspended investigation, would be likely to 
lead to continuation or recurrence of material injury within a 
reasonably foreseeable time. Nor do the proposed regulations address 
how the Commission, or individual Commissioners, will analyze the 
various factors specified in section 752(a) of the Act in making 
determinations in five-year reviews.
    Although the Commission does not intend to issue regulations 
pertaining to methodological or analytical issues in five-year reviews, 
many private practitioners may desire the opportunity to address the 
Commission about such issues before the reviews begin. The Commission 
therefore invites persons to file comments on such issues in 
conjunction with their comments on the procedural matters discussed in 
this NOPR.

Hearing

    The Commission also intends to hold a public hearing at which 
interested persons will be invited to present their views regarding the 
procedural matters discussed in this NOPR as well as methodological and 
analytical issues relating to five-year reviews. The Commission will 
issue a notice in advance of the hearing setting forth the date of the 
hearing and the procedures that will be followed at the hearing. The 
hearing will be held after the submission of the rebuttal comments.

Overview of the Proposed Regulations

    The Commission is proposing to promulgate a series of new 
regulations, to be codified in Subpart F of Part 207, establishing 
procedures for five-year reviews. Several of the proposed regulations 
closely resemble current regulations in Subpart C of Part 207 
concerning final phase antidumping and countervailing duty 
investigations. Others establish new procedures that address unique 
aspects of the five-year review mechanism created by the URAA.
    The statute requires Commerce to initiate all five-year reviews 
automatically. As part of the initiation, Commerce and the Commission 
are authorized to request that interested parties submit certain 
information needed to conduct the review. Accordingly, one of the 
proposed regulations describes the information that the Commission will 
request from interested parties upon initiation of the review. Each 
interested party will be requested to state its willingness to 
participate in the review, and describe the likely effects of 
revocation of the order or termination of the suspended investigation 
under review. In addition, the Commission will request that each 
interested party provide other information or industry data, including 
a statement concerning conditions of competition in the pertinent 
domestic industry, a listing of U.S. producers of the domestic like 
product and importers and foreign producers of the subject merchandise, 
and certain quantitative data concerning its operations. All interested 
parties will be requested to furnish this information to the Commission 
within 30 days. (Interested parties that desire to participate as 
parties in the Commission review must also file entries of appearance 
with the Commission within 21 days.) These provisions will aid the 
Commission in ascertaining whether interested parties have sufficient 
willingness to participate in a five-year review. They will also 
provide the Commission with record information for use in an expedited 
determination, if appropriate.
    Section 751(c)(3)(B) of the Act authorizes the Commission to make 
an expedited determination without further investigation when 
interested party responses to the notice of initiation are inadequate. 
Interested parties that have entered appearances in the review and have 
responded to the notice of institution and other parties that have 
entered appearances in the review will be permitted to file a brief 
submission concerning whether an expedited determination is appropriate 
based on the adequacy of interested party responses to the notice of 
institution.
    The Commission will consider these comments and the responses to 
the notice of institution and determine whether the review should be 
expedited approximately 95 days after publication of the notice of 
institution. Should the Commission determine to expedite the review, 
interested parties that have entered appearances in the review and have 
responded adequately to the notice of institution and other parties 
that have entered appearances in the review will be provided the 
opportunity to submit comments concerning the merits of the review 
before the Commission's

[[Page 55187]]

determination on the merits. The record evidence in the expedited 
review will be limited to that already available to the Commission.
    Should the Commission determine not to expedite the review, the 
review will proceed in a manner closely resembling a final phase 
antidumping or countervailing duty investigation. Several of the 
proposed regulations apply existing procedures to five-year reviews. 
For example, parties that have entered appearances in the review will 
have the opportunity to submit written comments on draft 
questionnaires. They will receive prehearing and final reports from the 
Commission staff, and will have the opportunity to present testimony at 
a hearing before the Commission and to file prehearing and posthearing 
briefs and final comments.

Section-by-Section Analysis of the Proposed Regulations

Section 201.11

    Section 201.11 concerns the filing of entries of appearance in 
Commission investigations and reviews. The Commission is proposing to 
add new paragraphs (b)(4) and (b)(5) to this section to govern the 
filing of entries of appearance in five-year reviews. Under proposed 
section 201.11(b)(4), a party will have 21 days from publication of the 
Commission's notice of institution of five-year review to file an entry 
of appearance.
    If the Commission determines not to expedite the review, it will 
issue a notice of scheduling approximately 95 days after institution of 
the review. (See proposed section 207.62.) Under proposed section 
201.11(b)(5), a party will have an additional 45 days after publication 
of this notice to file an entry of appearance.

Section 207.3

    Section 207.3(b) requires parties to provide hand or overnight 
service of, inter alia, prehearing briefs, hearing testimony, and 
posthearing briefs filed in antidumping and countervailing duty 
investigations. The proposed amendment adds cross-references to several 
of the new provisions in Subpart F to existing requirements regarding 
service.

Section 207.45

    Section 207.45 concerns changed circumstances reviews pursuant to 
section 751(b) of the Act. The proposed amendment changes the statutory 
cross-reference in section 207.45(a) so it specifically cites section 
751(b). No substantive change is intended.

Section 207.46

    Section 207.46 is an interim regulation that establishes procedures 
for investigations under section 753 of the Act, which concerns 
countervailing duty orders issued under former section 303 of the Act 
without an injury determination by the Commission.1 The 
proposed regulation contains three changes from the interim regulation. 
First, in the caption for subsection 207.46(g) and in the first 
sentence of section 207.46(g)(1), the word ``expedited'' has been 
deleted to avoid any confusion between simultaneous reviews conducted 
pursuant to section 753(e) of the Act and five-year reviews that are 
expedited pursuant to section 751(c)(3)(B) of the Act. Second, the 
second sentence of section 207.46(g)(1) has been deleted as 
unnecessary. This sentence requires that requests for simultaneous 
five-year reviews under section 753(e) of the Act contain a statement 
why revocation of the order to be reviewed would lead to continuation 
or recurrence of material injury. Should a simultaneous five-year 
review be conducted, a similar statement will be requested in the 
notice of institution. Third, the final sentence in section 
207.46(g)(2) has been amended to refer to the new Subpart F governing 
five-year reviews.
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    \1\Section 207.46 became effective on January 1, 1995, together 
with several other interim regulations that were designed to conform 
the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure to the URAA pending 
adoption of final regulations. See 60 Fed. Reg. 18 (Jan. 3, 1995). 
When the Commission proposed adopting its other interim regulations 
as final regulations, it did not do so with respect to section 
207.46, because it perceived section 207.46 to relate to the general 
question of five-year reviews and stated that ``the Commission is 
not prepared to address the question of ``sunset'' reviews at this 
time.'' 60 Fed. Reg. 51748, 51753 (Oct. 3, 1995). Now that the 
Commission is establishing procedures for five-year reviews, it 
believes that proposing to adopt section 207.46 as a final 
regulation is appropriate. (The Commission contemplates that it will 
be conducting investigations under section 753, pursuant to pending 
requests, during 1997-98. Additionally, there is a theoretical 
possibility that future requests for section 753 investigations may 
be filed if additional countries become Subsidies Agreement 
countries.)
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Section 207.60

    Proposed section 207.60 defines certain terms used in Subpart F of 
Part 207 concerning five-year reviews. The first three definitions, 
``five-year review,'' ``expedited determination,'' and ``notice of 
institution,'' are proposed to promote economy of wording. ``Five-year 
review'' is a five-year review investigation conducted under section 
751(c) of the Act. ``Expedited determination'' is a determination made 
under section 751(c)(3)(B) of the Act. ``Notice of institution'' is the 
notice of institution of five-year review that the Commission will 
publish in the Federal Register upon initiation of a review. The 
remaining three terms, ``domestic like product,'' ``domestic 
industry,'' and ``subject merchandise,'' are terms commonly used in 
antidumping and countervailing duty proceedings, and are based on 
sections 771(10), 771(4)(A), and 771(25) of the Act, respectively.

Section 207.61

    When Commerce initiates a five-year review, the Commission will 
publish a notice of institution of five-year review in the Federal 
Register informing interested parties and other persons of their 
opportunity to provide information to the Commission. Proposed section 
207.61 describes what interested parties will be requested to submit to 
the Commission in response to the notice of institution.
    Each interested party (as that term is defined in section 771(9) of 
the Act) may respond to the notice of institution whether or not it 
entered an appearance in the Commission review proceedings. If 
interested parties do not file adequate responses, however, the 
Commission may determine not to conduct a full review investigation, 
but instead may issue an expedited determination based on the facts 
available pursuant to section 751(c)(3)(B) of the Act. The Commission's 
evaluation of adequacy is described below in the discussion of proposed 
section 207.62.
    Proposed Sec. 207.61(a) states that responses to the notice of 
institution must be submitted to the Commission no later than 30 days 
after publication of the notice in the Federal Register. The Commission 
believes that 30 days will be ample time for interested parties to 
submit the requested information, particularly since the Commission 
will provide public notice (through this rulemaking and other actions) 
of the type of information that will be requested in five-year reviews 
well in advance of the actual institution of any five-year reviews. 
Moreover, the Commission intends that it will jointly prepare with 
Commerce a final schedule of all transition reviews, which will be 
published in the Federal Register before the initiation of the first 
review. This notice will provide interested parties with sufficient 
advance notice of scheduling of all transition reviews to enable them 
to know approximately when such information will be due before 
publication of the actual notice of institution. This notice will also 
be mailed to the embassy in Washington, D.C. of each country that will 
be a

[[Page 55188]]

subject country in any five-year review. Persons who are not interested 
parties will also be provided an opportunity to respond under proposed 
Sec. 207.61(e), as discussed below.
    Proposed paragraphs (b) and (c) describe what interested parties 
will be requested to submit to the Commission in response to the notice 
of institution. Sections 751(c)(2)(A), (B), and (C) of the Act 
expressly direct the Commission and Commerce to request interested 
parties to submit: (1) A statement expressing their willingness to 
participate in the review by providing information requested by the 
agencies, (2) a statement regarding the likely effects of revocation of 
the order or termination of the suspension agreement under review, and 
(3) such other information or industry data as the agencies may 
specify. The URAA's legislative history specifically contemplates that 
the Commission may seek detailed quantitative data from interested 
parties upon initiation of a five-year review, such as ``certain key 
data regarding sales, prices, imports, and market conditions.'' 
2
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    \2\ URAA Statement of Administrative Action (SAA), H.R. Rep. 
316, 103d Cong., 2d Sess., vol. 1 at 879 (1994).
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    The Commission has two reasons for requesting the submission of 
certain information and quantitative data from interested parties upon 
initiation of a five-year review. First, the Commission must determine 
whether there is sufficient willingness among interested parties to 
participate in the review and adequate indication that parties will 
submit requested information throughout the proceeding. The Commission 
could not effectively ascertain whether such willingness exists--and 
whether any future investigative efforts are likely to be fruitful--if 
interested parties were permitted merely to submit pro forma statements 
of intent to participate. When such willingness does not exist or is 
limited, an expedited review will be more efficient for both the 
parties and the Commission than conducting a full review.
    Second, the responses to the notice of institution will provide the 
Commission with information for the record it can use in making a 
determination, particularly an expedited determination pursuant to 
section 751(c)(3)(B) of the Act. Section 752(a) of the Act requires the 
Commission to consider a number of factors when it makes its 
determination, including an expedited determination, in a five-year 
review. Additionally, the Commission's expedited determinations are 
subject to review by U.S. courts, NAFTA Chapter 19 panels, and/or the 
WTO Dispute Settlement Body.
    As a practical matter, the Commission's sole opportunity in 
expedited reviews to obtain information that will enhance its ability 
to reach a defensible determination--beyond what is available from the 
original record--is to request such information in the notice of 
institution. Thus, because of the possibility of an expedited 
determination in any five-year review, there is a certain amount of 
information gathering at the initiation stage that is simply 
unavoidable and any resulting burden on interested parties is inherent 
in the statutory scheme. Moreover, the information to be submitted is 
the same type of information that the Commission necessarily would seek 
at some point in the review. At most, therefore, the proposed 
regulations request interested parties to submit information earlier in 
the review process. The Commission nevertheless solicits comments 
addressing what amount and type of information should be requested in 
the notice of institution that will enable the Commission to assess the 
willingness of interested parties to participate in a full five-year 
review and to make an expedited determination when such a determination 
is appropriate, while minimizing burdens on interested parties.
    Interested party responses to the notice of institution will be in 
two parts. One part will be filed with the Secretary. The other will be 
submitted to the Office of Investigations. The Commission believes that 
such a bifurcated filing process will reduce the burdens to interested 
parties in submitting business proprietary information (BPI), because, 
as explained below, the parties need not justify proprietary treatment 
for information they will submit to the Office of Investigations or 
prepare and file a public version of this submission. The evaluation of 
whether the response of an individual interested party is adequate will 
be based on that party's response to both parts of the notice.
    The first part of the response, which proposed section 207.61(b) 
addresses, will be filed with the Secretary pursuant to the 
requirements of Commission rules 201.8 and 207.3. This submission will 
include the material specified in section 751(c)(2)(A) and (B) of the 
Act: a statement that the submitter is willing to participate in the 
review by providing requested information and a statement regarding the 
likely effects of revocation of the order or termination of the 
suspended investigation. These requirements are set forth in proposed 
sections 207.61(b)(1) and (b)(2). The submission will also provide 
identifying information: the submitter's name, address, telephone 
number, facsimile number, electronic mail address and (if applicable) 
World Wide Web site address, and a statement indicating whether it is a 
producer of the domestic like product, a U.S. importer of subject 
merchandise, a foreign producer or exporter of subject merchandise, or 
another type of interested party.
    Interested parties will also be asked to list all known and 
currently operating U.S. producers of the domestic like product, all 
known and currently operating U.S. importers of subject merchandise, 
and all known and currently operating producers of the subject 
merchandise in each subject country that currently export or have 
exported subject merchandise to the United States or to any other 
country during the period specified in the notice of institution. This 
material will aid the Commission in determining the adequacy of 
interested party responses to the notice of institution. Interested 
parties will be required only to furnish information in their 
possession to compile these lists. If this information is not in the 
interested party's possession, however, it must expressly so indicate 
in its response to the Commission pursuant to proposed section 
207.61(d).
    Additionally, each interested party will be provided the option of 
stating whether it agrees with the definitions of the domestic like 
product and domestic industry that the Commission adopted in its 
original investigation(s). Interested parties that respond that they 
disagree with an original definition will be requested to explain why 
and to provide an alternative definition. This information will assist 
the Commission to ascertain the like product and domestic industry 
issues that may arise in each review, and the extent and nature of any 
future investigative activity it may conduct.
    The second part of the response to the notice of institution, which 
proposed section 207.61(c) addresses, will be a submission to the 
Commission's Office of Investigations. Domestic producers, foreign 
producers of subject merchandise, and U.S. importers of subject 
merchandise will be requested to furnish certain quantitative data to 
the Office of Investigations concerning their operations. Each domestic 
producer will be asked to provide information about the domestic like 
product(s) defined by the Commission in the original investigation(s) 
giving rise to the review, including information on capacity, 
production, commercial shipments, inventories, employment, financial 
performance, and prices. Each

[[Page 55189]]

importer of subject merchandise will be asked to provide information 
about its import volumes, commercial shipments, inventories, and prices 
for the subject merchandise. Each foreign producer of subject 
merchandise will be asked to provide information about its capacity, 
production, home market shipments, export shipments, and inventories of 
the subject merchandise. The Commission will request each party to 
submit actual data for the most recently completed calendar year, and 
projections for the succeeding calendar year (which will generally be 
the calendar year in which the notice of institution is published) in 
accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. The notice of 
institution for each review will specify the particular data that 
interested parties are to furnish.
    Each interested party will also be requested to provide certain 
narrative information to the Office of Investigations. First, each 
interested party will be requested to identify significant changes in 
the supply of and demand for the domestic like product that have 
occurred since the order(s) or agreement(s) under review became 
effective. This will provide the Commission with information concerning 
conditions of competition that it can use in making a determination. 
Additionally, interested parties in grouped reviews involving multiple 
subject countries will be asked to explain the extent to which the 
domestic like product competes or is likely to compete with subject 
merchandise from each subject country, and the degree to which 
merchandise from each subject country competes or is likely to compete 
with merchandise from each other subject country. This will provide the 
Commission with information pertinent to its determination on 
cumulation.
    Finally, under proposed section 207.61(c)(2), interested parties 
will be free to furnish any other information or data relevant to the 
Commission's determination. For example, interested parties may desire 
to provide information not specifically requested in the notice of 
institution pertinent to one or more of the factors that the Commission 
is to consider under section 752(a) of the Act in rendering a 
determination in a five-year review. Interested parties may also desire 
to indicate which domestic producers are related parties under section 
771(4)(B) of the Act.
    Any submission that interested parties make pursuant to section 
207.61(c) will be submitted to the Office of Investigations and will 
not be subject to the filing requirements of section 201.8. Instead, 
only a single copy of the submission need be filed with the Office of 
Investigations. The Commission contemplates that substantially all of 
the information contained in this submission will be business 
proprietary. Consequently, the Commission will automatically accord 
such submissions proprietary treatment, except to the extent the 
information is otherwise publicly available. A submitter need not 
submit the justification for proprietary treatment or public versions 
of the submissions that would otherwise be required by Commission rules 
201.6 or 201.8. This procedure will accord the same treatment to these 
submissions that has long been accorded to questionnaires submitted to 
the Office of Investigations in Commission investigations. Pursuant to 
Commission rule 207.3(b), interested parties that entered appearances 
in the review must serve the public version of the submission described 
in section 207.61(b) on all other parties to the review and the 
proprietary versions of both parts of their response to the notice of 
institution (i.e., the submissions described in both sections 207.61(b) 
and 207.61(c)) on all representatives on the Administrative Protective 
Order (APO) service list.
    A sample notice of institution appears at Annex A to this notice. 
The Commission contemplates that interested parties will be able to 
obtain forms, whose use will be optional, to respond to the notice of 
institution in a specific review from the Office of Investigations or 
the Commission's World Wide Web site.
    Proposed section 207.61(d) addresses situations in which an 
interested party cannot furnish the information requested in the notice 
of institution in the form or manner requested. In such instances, the 
interested party should explain in its response why it is unable to 
comply and indicate alternative forms in which it can provide such 
information. This section is intended to apply the provisions of 
section 782(c)(1) of the Act in the context of responses to notices of 
institution.
    Pursuant to section 782(b) of the Act and Commission rule 207.3(a), 
any person that submits information in response to the notice of 
institution or that makes a submission pursuant to section 207.61(e) 
must certify that the information is accurate and complete to the best 
of its knowledge. The Commission contemplates that the standard forms 
it will make available for responses to the notice of institution will 
contain specific language, such as that currently used in 
questionnaires in antidumping and countervailing duty investigations, 
for the required certification. Interested parties must certify both 
parts of their responses (i.e., the submissions described in section 
207.61(b) and section 207.61(c)).
    Each individual interested party response to the notice of 
institution will be reviewed for completeness by Commission staff 
immediately upon its receipt. Commission staff will attempt to notify 
each interested party of any deficiencies in its response, will state 
the nature of the deficiency and will, to the extent practicable, 
provide it with a brief period of time (approximately 5-10 days) in 
which to remedy or explain the deficiency. The Commission will not 
collect or accept any additional information or conduct other 
investigative activity thereafter unless it decides to proceed to a 
full review. This notification procedure is intended to apply the 
provisions of section 782(d) of the Act in the context of responses to 
notices of institution.
    The Act provides the Commission with several potential courses of 
action when interested parties fail to provide responses to the notice 
of institution or provide responses that are deficient. Under section 
782(d) of the Act, when a person fails to respond in a satisfactory or 
timely manner to a request to remedy or explain a deficiency in a 
submission, the Commission may disregard all or part of the submission. 
Under section 776(b) of the Act, when an interested party fails to 
cooperate by not acting to the best of its ability to comply with a 
Commission request for information, the Commission may take an adverse 
inference against the party in reaching a determination. Consequently, 
when an interested party neither provides the information requested in 
the notice of institution nor provides an acceptable explanation of its 
inability to provide such information, the Commission may take an 
adverse inference against that party in reaching any determination in a 
five-year review, including an expedited determination.
    Proposed section 207.61(e) provides an opportunity for those 
persons that are not interested parties as defined by the Act (such as 
industrial users, and, if merchandise under investigation is sold at 
the retail level, representative consumer groups) to submit information 
they consider relevant to the Commission's five-year review. Such 
information must be filed with the Commission Secretary in accordance 
with the provisions of section 201.8 within the 30-day period 
applicable to interested party responses to the notice of institution.

[[Page 55190]]

Section 207.62

    Section 751(c)(3)(B) of the Act permits the Commission to make 
expedited determinations in five-year reviews when ``interested parties 
provide inadequate responses to a notice of initiation.'' Proposed 
section 207.62 describes the procedures for issuing expedited 
determinations under section 751(c)(3)(B).
    Proposed section 207.62(a) authorizes certain parties to file brief 
comments to the Commission within a time specified in the notice of 
institution, which will generally be no later than 60 days after 
publication of the notice. Parties authorized to file comments are: (1) 
Interested parties that have entered appearances in the review and have 
responded to the notice of institution; and (2) all parties that have 
entered appearances in the review that are not interested parties. The 
sole issue these comments may address is whether an expedited 
determination under section 751(c)(3)(B) of the Act is appropriate. 
These comments may not include any new factual information (such as 
supplementation of the response to the notice of institution) and will 
be limited to five pages.
    Representatives of interested parties that have entered into a 
Commission APO will have access to other parties' proprietary responses 
to the notice of institution well before these comments are due. Under 
section 207.3(b), responses to the notice of institution submitted by 
parties that have entered appearances in the investigation must be 
served on all other parties on the service list. The Commission will 
release under APO responses to the notice of institution filed by 
interested parties that have not entered appearances in the 
investigation approximately two weeks before the section 207.62(a) 
comments are due. At approximately the same time, the Commission 
intends to release confidential versions of the Commission's opinion(s) 
in the original investigation and staff reports and non-privileged 
memoranda prepared in connection with that investigation (where 
available) to representatives under the APO. Public versions of these 
documents (where available) will also be released. The Commission will 
also release official import statistics and estimates of domestic and 
foreign industry production compiled by Commission staff, where such 
information is available.
    After all comments are received, the Commission will determine 
whether interested party responses are adequate. The SAA provides that 
the purpose of the expedited review mechanism is to promote 
administrative efficiency by eliminating needless reviews. The SAA also 
states that the determination of adequacy is committed to the 
Commission's (and, separately, Commerce's) discretion. 3
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\  SAA at 880.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Responses will be evaluated for adequacy on both an individual and 
an aggregate basis. In assessing the adequacy of responses in the 
aggregate, the Commission will consider only those responses that 
individually are considered adequate. The Commission will separately 
determine the adequacy of response (in the aggregate) of: (1) 
Interested parties described in sections 771(9)(C), (D), (E), (F), and 
(G) of the Act (a group that consists of, inter alia, U.S. producers of 
the domestic like product and labor unions or groups of workers which 
are representative of an industry producing the domestic like product; 
this group will be referred to as ``domestic producers/unions''), and 
(2) interested parties described in sections 771(9)(A) and (B) of the 
Act (a group that consists of, inter alia, U.S. importers and foreign 
exporters or producers of subject merchandise and subject country 
governments; this group will be referred to as ``foreign producers/
importers'').
    The Commission will make the determination of adequacy on a case-
by-case basis taking several factors into account. One factor that the 
Commission will consider in determining adequacy is the responding 
parties' likely share of domestic production (for domestic producers/
unions) or of subject imports or production of the subject merchandise 
(for foreign producers/importers). The Commission does not intend to 
apply strict numerical tests to determine adequacy of interested party 
responses. Nevertheless, to provide some guidance to interested 
parties, the Commission can tentatively identify certain circumstances 
in which it will consider that response rates are sufficiently high or 
low to provide a strong indication that interested party responses are 
either adequate or inadequate. Specifically, responses from parties 
accounting for more than 50 percent of domestic production will 
normally be considered to be a strong indication of an adequate 
response from domestic producers/unions. Responses from parties 
accounting for more than 50 percent of subject imports or production of 
subject merchandise will normally be considered to be a strong 
indication of an adequate response from foreign producers/importers. 
Consequently, a sufficient response by either U.S. importers or foreign 
producers of the subject merchandise may constitute an adequate 
response from foreign producers/importers. By contrast, responses 
accounting for less than 25 percent of domestic production, on the one 
hand, or subject imports or production of subject merchandise, on the 
other, will normally be considered to be a strong indication of 
inadequate responses by domestic producers/unions and foreign 
producers/importers, respectively.
    The Commission will not rely solely on numerical tests and will 
take other factors into account in determining whether interested party 
responses are adequate. For example, a response rate that may seem to 
be inadequate for a highly concentrated industry may be adequate for a 
highly fragmented industry.
    Additional factors that the Commission intends to consider include 
the structure of the pertinent domestic industry and industry producing 
the subject merchandise, the potential of particular foreign producers 
to export to the United States, the extent to which subject imports are 
effectively excluded from the U.S. market by the order or suspension 
agreement under review, and, for domestic producers/unions, the 
prevalence of related party producers. The Commission invites parties 
to comment on the appropriateness of relying on these factors to 
determine whether interested party responses are adequate, and whether 
there are additional or different factors that the Commission should 
consider in making such a determination. The Commission also invites 
parties to comment on the appropriateness of making expedited 
determinations in grouped reviews involving subject merchandise from 
several countries, if responses from the foreign producers/importers 
are adequate with respect to some of the subject countries within the 
group but inadequate with respect to others.
    Pursuant to proposed section 207.62(b), if the Commission 
determines that interested party responses are adequate, it will 
conduct a full five-year review. In such cases, the Commission will 
publish its schedule of the remaining procedures in the Federal 
Register. (A sample schedule appears as Annex B to this notice.) Under 
proposed section 201.11(b)(5), parties will have 45 days after 
publication of this Federal Register notice to file additional entries 
of appearance and APO applications.
    By contrast, proposed section 207.62(c) describes procedures that 
apply when the Commission concludes that interested party responses are

[[Page 55191]]

inadequate and an expedited determination is appropriate. In such 
circumstances, the Secretary will notify all parties that submitted 
timely entries of appearance in the Commission review that the 
Commission has decided to make an expedited determination. The notice 
will invite interested parties that responded adequately to the notice 
of institution and all parties that are not interested parties to 
submit comments on the merits of the review by a specific deadline 
(which will generally be approximately 30-35 days from issuance of the 
notice). Other persons who are not interested parties will have the 
opportunity to submit a brief written statement on the merits of the 
review by the same deadline.
    The comments to be filed under proposed section 207.62(c), which 
will satisfy the requirements of section 782(g) of the Act, give 
parties their sole opportunity to submit comments to the Commission on 
the merits of an expedited determination. These comments may not 
contain new factual information and may not exceed 25 pages. Consistent 
with Commission practice under section 207.30(b), comments containing 
new factual information will be accepted into the record, but new 
factual information and arguments based on that new factual information 
will be disregarded. Any compilations by the Commission of information 
collected and not previously released to representatives under APO will 
be released under APO approximately 20 days before these comments are 
due. The information released will include a staff report that will 
compile information obtained in response to the notice of institution 
as well as official import statistics, and, where available, estimates 
of domestic and foreign industry production compiled by the Commission 
staff. A public version of the staff report will also be released.
    Proposed section 207.62(d) allows the Commission to delegate to a 
senior member of the staff, such as the Director of Operations or the 
Director of Investigations, authority to make decisions concerning 
whether interested party responses to the notice of institution are 
adequate or inadequate. Initially, the Commission will itself make all 
such decisions. Should the Commission decide to delegate decisionmaking 
authority concerning whether interested party responses are inadequate, 
it will retain sole authority to issue the expedited determination in 
any particular review.

Section 207.63

    Proposed section 207.63 concerns circulation of draft 
questionnaires in five-year reviews. As stated in proposed section 
207.63(a), when the Commission does not issue an expedited 
determination in a five-year review, it will circulate draft 
questionnaires to the parties that have entered appearances in the 
review. The Commission anticipates sending questionnaires to U.S. 
producers of the domestic like product, foreign producers of subject 
merchandise, U.S. importers of subject merchandise, and U.S. 
purchasers. Questionnaires will commonly seek data in more detail 
(particularly with respect to financial performance and pricing), for 
additional periods of time, and, when warranted, for additional 
products than will the notice of institution. The Commission 
anticipates that draft questionnaires will be circulated to the parties 
to the review approximately 150 days after initiation. The Commission 
invites comment on the content and format of questionnaires in five-
year reviews.
    Parties that desire to comment on the draft questionnaires may 
submit written comments to the Commission, as indicated by proposed 
section 207.63(b). The Commission anticipates that such comments will 
be due approximately 30 days after circulation of the draft 
questionnaires.
    Proposed section 207.63(b) requires each party to present all data 
collection requests in its questionnaire comments. The Commission will 
disregard any subsequent arguments that are premised on the collection 
of new data if the data collection request was not asserted in the 
questionnaire comments. Thus, if the draft questionnaires in a review 
propose collecting data for only one product, and a party believes that 
data should be collected for two products, it must request data 
collection for two products, and provide a legal basis for its request, 
in its comments on the questionnaire. It may not request collection of 
such data for the first time, for example, in its prehearing brief or 
at the hearing.
    The Commission believes this procedure is necessary to focus its 
data collection efforts. In original antidumping and countervailing 
duty investigations, the Commission has found issuing supplemental 
questionnaires in the late stages of an investigation to be impractical 
because of time and staffing constraints. These problems will be 
exacerbated in five-year reviews. Therefore, any data collected in a 
five-year review must be collected pursuant to the notice of 
institution and in the questionnaires. It is imperative that the 
Commission be apprised of all data collection issues before 
questionnaires are issued. The Commission believes that this procedure 
will impose no hardship on representatives of interested parties who 
have entered an APO, who will have the benefit of pertinent portions of 
the record of the original investigation, as well as access under APO 
to all information collected in response to the notice of institution, 
before they are to file comments on the questionnaires. This material 
should allow interested party representatives ample time to determine 
what information they believe the Commission should seek and consider. 
Likewise, parties to the review that are not interested parties will 
have ample notification and access to the public record to provide an 
informed basis for comment.

Section 207.64

    Proposed section 207.64 concerns staff reports in five-year 
reviews. It tracks current section 207.22 concerning staff reports in 
final phase antidumping and countervailing duty investigations.

Section 207.65

    Proposed section 207.65 concerns prehearing briefs. It is adapted 
from current section 207.23. In a five-year review, every party to the 
review is to submit a prehearing brief on the date specified in the 
scheduling notice.

Section 207.66

    Proposed section 207.66 concerns hearings in five-year reviews. The 
Commission will conduct a hearing in each five-year review in which it 
does not render an expedited determination. Hearing procedures will 
conform to those established in current section 207.24 concerning final 
phase antidumping and countervailing duty investigations.

Section 207.67

    Proposed section 207.67 concerns posthearing briefs and statements. 
It is based on current sections 207.25 and 207.26.

Section 207.68

    Proposed section 207.68 concerns final comments on information in 
five-year reviews. It is based on the final comment procedure in 
section 207.30 currently used in final phase antidumping and 
countervailing duty investigations.
    The procedures in section 207.68 will be used in five-year reviews 
where the determination is not expedited. In five-year reviews where 
the determination is

[[Page 55192]]

expedited, the final comment procedure is specified in proposed section 
207.62(c).

Section 207.69

    Proposed section 207.69 requires the Commission to publish and 
serve its determinations in five-year reviews. It tracks current 
section 207.29.

List of Subjects

19 CFR Part 201

    Administrative practice and procedure, Investigations, Imports.

19 CFR Part 207

    Administrative practice and procedure, Antidumping, Countervailing 
duties, Investigations.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, 19 CFR parts 201 and 207 
are proposed to be amended as set forth below:

PART 201--[AMENDED]

    1. The authority citation for part 201 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: Section 335 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
1335) and Sec. 603 of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2482), unless 
otherwise noted.

    2. New paragraphs (b)(4) and (b)(5) are added to Sec. 201.11 to 
read as follows:


Sec. 201.11  Appearance in an investigation as a party.

* * * * *
    (b) Time for filing. * * *
    (4) In the case of reviews conducted under subpart F of part 207 of 
this chapter, each entry of appearance shall be filed with the 
Secretary not later than twenty-one (21) days after publication in the 
Federal Register of the notice of institution described in 
Sec. 207.60(c).
    (5) Notwithstanding paragraph (b)(4) of this section, a party may 
file an entry of appearance in a review conducted under subpart F of 
part 207 of this chapter for a period of 45 days after publication in 
the Federal Register of the notice specified under Sec. 207.62(b).
* * * * *

PART 207--[AMENDED]

    3. The authority citation for part 207 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 19 U.S.C. 1336, 1671-1677n, 2482, 3513.

    4. Paragraph (b) of Sec. 207.3 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 207.3  Service, filing, and certification of documents

* * * * *
    (b) Service. Any party submitting a document for inclusion in the 
record of the investigation shall, in addition to complying with 
Sec. 201.8 of this chapter, serve a copy of each such document on all 
other parties to the investigation in the manner prescribed in 
Sec. 201.16 of this chapter. If a document is filed before the 
Secretary's issuance of the service list provided for in Sec. 201.11 of 
this chapter or the administrative protective order list provided for 
in Sec. 207.7, the document need not be accompanied by a certificate of 
service, but the document shall be served on all appropriate parties 
within two (2) days of the issuance of the service list or the 
administrative protective order list and a certificate of service shall 
then be filed. Notwithstanding Sec. 201.16 of this chapter, petitions, 
briefs, and testimony filed by parties pursuant to Secs. 207.10, 
207.15, 207.23, 207.24, 207.25, 207.65, 207.66, and 207.67 shall be 
served by hand or, if served by mail, by overnight mail or its 
equivalent. Failure to comply with the requirements of this rule may 
result in removal from status as a party to the investigation. The 
Commission shall make available to all parties to the investigation a 
copy of each document, except transcripts of conferences and hearings, 
business proprietary information, privileged information, and 
information required to be served under this section, placed in the 
record of the investigation by the Commission.
* * * * *
    5. Paragraph (a) of Sec. 207.45 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 207.45  Investigation to review outstanding determination

    (a) Request for review. Any person may file with the Commission a 
request for the institution of a review investigation under section 
751(b) of the Act. The person making the request shall also promptly 
serve copies of the request on the parties to the original 
investigation upon which the review is to be based. All requests shall 
set forth a description of changed circumstances sufficient to warrant 
the institution of a review investigation by the Commission.
* * * * *
    6. Paragraph (g) of Sec. 207.46 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 207.46  Investigations concerning certain countervailing duty 
orders.

* * * * *
    (g) Request for simultaneous section 751(c) review. (1) A 
requesting party who requests a section 753 review may at the same time 
request from the Commission and the administering authority a review 
under section 751(c) of the Act of a countervailing or antidumping duty 
order involving the same or comparable subject merchandise.
    (2) Should the administering authority, after consulting with the 
Commission, determine to initiate a section 751(c) review, the 
Commission shall conduct a consolidated review under sections 751(c) 
and 753 of the Act of the orders involving the same or comparable 
subject merchandise. Any such consolidated review shall be conducted 
under the applicable procedures set forth in subparts A and F of this 
part.
    (3) Should the administering authority, after consulting with the 
Commission, determine not to initiate a section 751(c) review, the 
Commission will consider the request for a section 753 review pursuant 
to the procedures established in this section.
    7. A new subpart F is added to read as follows:

Subpart F--Five-Year Reviews

207.60  Definitions.
207.61  Responses to notice of institution.
207.62  Adequacy of responses to notice of institution.
207.63  Circulation of draft questionnaires.
207.64  Staff reports.
207.65  Prehearing briefs.
207.66  Hearing.
207.67  Posthearing briefs and statements.
207.68  Final comments on information.
207.69  Publication of determinations.


Sec. 207.60  Definitions.

    For purposes of this subpart:
    (a) The term five-year review means a five-year review 
investigation conducted pursuant to section 751(c) of the Act.
    (b) The term expedited determination means a determination issued 
by the Commission pursuant to section 751(c)(3)(B) of the Act.
    (c) The term notice of institution shall refer to the notice of 
institution of five-year review that the Commission shall publish in 
the Federal Register requesting that interested parties provide 
information to the Commission upon initiation of a five-year review.
    (d) The term domestic like product means a product produced in the 
United States which is like, or in the absence of like, most similar in 
characteristics and uses with, the articles subject to a five-year 
review.
    (e) The term domestic industry means the producers as a whole of a 
domestic like product, or those producers whose collective output of a 
domestic like product constitutes a major proportion of the total 
domestic production of the product.
    (f) The term subject merchandise means the class or kind of 
merchandise

[[Page 55193]]

that is within the scope of the five-year review.


Sec. 207.61  Responses to notice of institution.

    (a) When information must be filed. Responses to the notice of 
institution shall be submitted to the Commission no later than 30 days 
after its publication in the Federal Register.
    (b) Information to be filed with the Secretary. The notice of 
institution shall direct each interested party to make a filing 
pursuant to Secs. 201.8 and 207.3 of this chapter containing the 
following:
    (1) A statement expressing its willingness to participate in the 
review by providing information requested by the Commission;
    (2) A statement regarding the likely effects of revocation of the 
order(s) or termination of the suspended investigation(s) under review;
    (3) Other information requested in the notice of institution.
    (c) Information to be submitted to the Office of Investigations. 
The notice of institution shall further direct each interested party to 
submit the following material to the Commission's Office of 
Investigations:
    (1) Such information or industry data as the Commission may specify 
in the notice of institution;
    (2) Any other information or data the party considers relevant to 
the Commission's determination.
    (d) When requested information cannot be supplied. Any interested 
party that cannot furnish the information requested by the notice of 
institution shall explain in its response(s) why it is unable to 
provide the information and indicate alternative forms in which it can 
provide equivalent information.
    (e) Submissions by persons other than interested parties. Any 
person who is not an interested party may submit to the Commission, in 
a filing satisfying the requirements of Sec. 201.8 of this title, 
information relevant to the Commission's review no later than 30 days 
after publication of the notice of institution in the Federal Register.


Sec. 207.62  Adequacy of responses to notice of institution.

    (a) Comments to the Commission. (1) Comments to the Commission 
concerning whether the Commission should make an expedited 
determination in that review may be submitted by:
    (i) Any interested party that is a party to the investigation and 
that has responded to the notice of institution; and
    (ii) Any party, other than an interested party, that is a party to 
the investigation.
    (2) Comments shall be submitted within the time specified in the 
notice of institution. Comments shall not exceed five (5) pages of 
textual material, double-spaced and single-sided, on stationery 
measuring 8\1/2\ x 11 inches. Comments containing new factual 
information shall be disregarded.
    (b) Determination that responses are adequate. If the Commission 
concludes that interested parties' responses to the notice of 
institution are adequate, investigative activities pertaining to that 
review will continue. The Commission will publish in the Federal 
Register a notice of scheduling pertaining to subsequent procedures in 
the review.
    (c) Determination that responses are inadequate. (1) If the 
Commission concludes that interested parties' responses to the notice 
of institution are inadequate, it may decide to issue an expedited 
determination. In that event, the Commission shall direct the Secretary 
to issue a notice stating that the Commission has decided to make an 
expedited determination and inviting those parties to the review 
described in paragraph (c)(2) of this section to file written comments 
with the Secretary on what determination the Commission should reach in 
the review. The date on which such comments must be filed will be 
specified in the notice to be issued by the Secretary. Comments shall 
not exceed twenty-five (25) pages of textual material, double-spaced 
and single-sided, on stationery measuring 8\1/2\  x  11 inches. 
Comments containing new factual information shall be disregarded.
    (2) The following parties may file the comments described in 
paragraph (c)(1) of this section:
    (i) Any interested party that is a party to the investigation and 
that has filed an adequate response to the notice of institution; and
    (ii) Any party, other than an interested party, that is a party to 
the investigation.
    (3) Any person who is neither a party to the investigation nor an 
interested party may submit a brief written statement (which shall not 
contain any new factual information) pertinent to the review within the 
time specified for the filing of written comments.
    (d) Delegation of responsibilities. Notwithstanding any other 
provision of this part, the Commission may delegate its 
responsibilities pursuant to this section to a member of the Commission 
staff.


Sec. 207.63  Circulation of draft questionnaires.

    (a) In each five-year review in which the Commission has not issued 
an expedited determination, the Director shall circulate draft 
questionnaires to the parties for comment.
    (b) Any party desiring to comment on the draft questionnaires shall 
submit such comments in writing to the Commission within a time 
specified by the Director. All requests for collecting new data must be 
presented at this time. The Commission will disregard subsequent 
arguments that are premised on requests for collection of new data if 
such requests were not included in the comments on the draft 
questionnaires.


Sec. 207.64  Staff reports.

    (a) Prehearing staff report. The Director shall prepare and place 
in the record, prior to the hearing, a prehearing staff report 
containing information concerning the subject matter of the five-year 
review. A version of the staff report containing business proprietary 
information shall be placed in the nonpublic record and made available 
to persons authorized to receive business proprietary information under 
Sec. 207.7, and a nonbusiness proprietary version of the staff report 
shall be placed in the public record.
    (b) Final staff report. After the hearing, the Director shall 
revise the prehearing staff report and submit to the Commission, prior 
to the Commission's determination, a final version of the staff report. 
The final staff report is intended to supplement and correct the 
information contained in the prehearing staff report. A public version 
of the final staff report shall be made available to the public and a 
business proprietary version shall also be made available to persons 
authorized to receive business proprietary information under 
Sec. 207.7.


Sec. 207.65  Prehearing briefs.

    Each party to a five-year review may submit a prehearing brief to 
the Commission on the date specified in the scheduling notice. A 
prehearing brief shall be signed and shall include a table of contents. 
The prehearing brief should present a party's case concisely and shall, 
to the extent possible, refer to the record and include information and 
arguments which the party believes relevant to the subject matter of 
the Commission's determination.


Sec. 207.66  Hearing.

    (a) In general. The Commission shall hold a hearing in each five-
year review in which it does not make an expedited determination. The 
date of the hearing

[[Page 55194]]

shall be specified in the scheduling notice.
    (b) Procedures. Hearing procedures in five-year reviews will 
conform to those for final phase antidumping and countervailing duty 
investigations set forth in Sec. 207.24.


Sec. 207.67  Posthearing briefs and statements.

    (a) Briefs from parties. Any party to a five-year review may file 
with the Secretary a posthearing brief concerning the information 
adduced at or after the hearing within a time specified in the 
scheduling notice or by the presiding official at the hearing. No such 
posthearing brief shall exceed fifteen (15) pages of textual material, 
double spaced and single sided, on stationery measuring 8\1/2\  x  11 
inches. In addition, the presiding official may permit persons to file 
answers to questions or requests made by the Commission at the hearing 
within a specified time. The Secretary shall not accept for filing 
posthearing briefs or answers which do not comply with this section.
    (b) Statements from nonparties. Any person other than a party may 
submit a brief written statement of information pertinent to the review 
within the time specified for the filing of posthearing briefs.


Sec. 207.68  Final comments on information.

    (a) The Commission shall specify a date after the filing of 
posthearing briefs on which it will disclose to all parties to the 
five-year review all information it has obtained on which the parties 
have not previously had an opportunity to comment. Any such information 
that is business proprietary information will be released to persons 
authorized to obtain such information pursuant to Sec. 207.7.
    (b) The parties shall have an opportunity to file comments on any 
information disclosed to them after they have filed their posthearing 
brief pursuant to Sec. 207.67. Comments shall only concern such 
information, and shall not exceed 15 pages of textual material, double 
spaced and single-sided, on stationery measuring 8\1/2\  x  11 inches. 
A comment may address the accuracy, reliability, or probative value of 
such information by reference to information elsewhere in the record, 
in which case the comment shall identify where in the record such 
information is found. Comments containing new factual information shall 
be disregarded. The date on which such comments must be filed will be 
specified by the Commission when it specifies the time that information 
will be disclosed pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section. The record 
shall close on the date such comments are due, except with respect to 
changes in bracketing of business proprietary information in the 
comments permitted by Sec. 207.3(c).


Sec. 207.69  Publication of determinations.

    Whenever the Commission makes a determination concluding a five-
year review, the Secretary shall serve copies of the determination and, 
when applicable, the nonbusiness proprietary version of the final staff 
report on all parties to the review, and on the administering 
authority. The Secretary shall publish notice of such determination in 
the Federal Register.

    By order of the Commission.

    Issued: October 20, 1997.
Donna R. Koehnke,
Secretary.
    Note: The following annexes would not appear in the Code of 
Federal Regulations.

Annex A--Notice of Institution of Five-Year Review

Definitions

    (1) Subject Merchandise is the class or kind of merchandise that 
is within the scope of the five-year review. In this review, the 
Department of Commerce has defined the Subject Merchandise as 
DEFINE.
    (2) The Subject Country in this review is COUNTRY.
    (3) The Domestic Like Product is the domestically produced 
product or products which are like, or in the absence of like, most 
similar in characteristics or uses with, the Subject Merchandise. In 
its original determination, the Commission defined the Domestic Like 
Product as DEFINE. One Commissioner/certain Commissioners defined 
the Domestic Like Product differently.
    (4) The Domestic Industry is the producers as a whole of a 
Domestic Like Product, or those producers whose collective output of 
a Domestic Like Product constitutes a major proportion of the total 
domestic production of the product. In its original determination, 
the Commission defined the Domestic Industry as producers of DEFINE.
    (5) The Order Date is the date that the countervailing duty 
order/antidumping duty order/suspension agreement under review 
became effective. In this review, the Order Date is DATE.
    (6) An Importer is any person or firm engaged, either directly 
or through a parent company or subsidiary, in importing the Subject 
Merchandise into the United States from a foreign manufacturer or 
through its selling agent.

Certification

    In accordance with Commission rule 207.3, any person submitting 
information to the Commission in connection with this investigation 
must certify that the information is accurate and complete to the 
best of the submitter's knowledge. This certification must be 
included in both the information to be submitted to the Commission's 
Secretary and the information to be submitted to the Commission's 
Office of Investigations specified below. In making the 
certification, the submitter will be deemed to consent, unless 
otherwise specified, for the Commission, its employees, and contract 
personnel to use the information provided in any other 
investigations of the same or comparable products which the 
Commission conducts under Title VII of the Act, or in internal 
audits and investigations relating to the programs and operations of 
the Commission pursuant to 5 U.S.C. Appendix 3.

Information to be Submitted to the Secretary

    Responses filed with the Secretary must conform with the 
provisions of section 201.8 of the Commission's rules. If business 
proprietary treatment is desired for portions of a response, 
submitters must follow the requirements set forth in sections 201.6, 
207.3, and 207.7 of the Commission's rules. Also, in accordance with 
sections 201.16(c) and 207.3 of the Commission's rules, each 
document filed by a party to the investigation must be served on all 
other parties to the investigation (as identified by either the 
public or BPI service list as appropriate), and a certificate of 
service must accompany the document (if you are not a party to the 
investigation you do not need to serve your response). Any 
interested party that cannot furnish the information requested 
should explain why it is unable to do so and indicate alternative 
forms in which it can provide equivalent information. (Added if more 
than one country is involved) If you are a domestic producer, 
import/export Subject Merchandise from more than one Subject 
Country, or produce Subject Merchandise in more than one Subject 
Country, you may file a single response. If you do so, please ensure 
that your response to each question includes the information 
requested for each pertinent Subject Country.
    The response to the Secretary should include:
    (1) The name and address of your firm (including World Wide Web 
address if available) and name, telephone number,

[[Page 55195]]

fax number, and E-mail address of the certifying official.
    (2) A statement indicating whether your firm is a U.S. producer 
of the Domestic Like Product, a U.S. importer of the Subject 
Merchandise, a foreign producer/exporter of the Subject Merchandise, 
or another interested party (including an explanation).
    (3) A statement indicating whether your firm is willing to 
participate in this review by providing information requested by the 
Commission.
    (4) A statement of the likely effects of the revocation of the 
countervailing duty order/antidumping duty order/termination of the 
suspension agreement on the Domestic Industry in general and/or your 
firm specifically.
    (5) A list of all known and currently operating U.S. producers of 
the Domestic Like Product.
    (6) A list of all known and currently operating U.S. importers 
of the Subject Merchandise and producers of the Subject Merchandise 
in COUNTRY that currently export or have exported Subject 
Merchandise to the United States or other countries since (YEAR OF 
PETITION).
    (7) (OPTIONAL) A statement of whether you agree with the above 
definitions of the Domestic Like Product and Domestic Industry; if 
you disagree with either or both of these definitions, please 
explain why and provide alternative definitions.

Information To Be Submitted to the Office of Investigations

    Responses filed with the Office of Investigations will be 
treated as business proprietary unless the information is otherwise 
publicly available and should be submitted to INVESTIGATOR, Office 
of Investigations, U.S. International Trade Commission, Room 615, 
500 E Street, SW, Washington, DC 20436. Only one copy of the 
response needs to be submitted to the Office of Investigations, but 
each document filed by a party to the investigation must be served 
on all other parties to the investigation (as identified by the BPI 
service list), and a certificate of service must accompany the 
document (if you are not a party to the investigation you do not 
need to serve your response). Any interested party that cannot 
furnish the information requested should explain why it is unable to 
do so and indicate alternative forms in which it can provide 
equivalent information. (Added if more than one country is involved) 
If you are a domestic producer, import/export Subject Merchandise 
from more than one Subject Country, or produce Subject Merchandise 
in more than one Subject Country, you may file a single response. If 
you do so, please ensure that your response to each question 
includes the information requested for each pertinent Subject 
Country.
    The response to the Office of Investigations should include:
    (1) The name and address of your firm (including World Wide Web 
address if available) and name, telephone number, fax number, and E-
mail address of the certifying official.
    (2) If your firm is a U.S. producer of PRODUCT, provide the 
following information on your firm's operations on that product 
during calendar year PRECEDING YEAR and your projections, in 
accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), for 
calendar year CURRENT YEAR (report quantity data in UNITS and value 
data in thousands of dollars):
    (a) Annual production capacity (quantity) (report the practical 
capacity of your plant(s) using the machinery and equipment in place 
at the end of the year and specify that the capacity reported is 
based on operating ____ hours per week, ____ weeks per year);
    (b) end-of-year inventories (quantity);
    (c) production (quantity) (including, if known, an estimate of 
the percentage of total U.S. production of PRODUCT accounted for by 
your firm's production in PRECEDING YEAR);
    (d) the quantity and value of U.S. commercial shipments of 
product produced in your U.S. plant(s);
    (e) the quantity of product produced in your U.S. plant(s) that 
you consumed internally or transferred within your company;
    (f) the quantity and value of exports of product produced in 
your U.S. plant(s);
    (g) the average number of production workers;
    (h) your firm's net sales and operating income or (loss); and
    (i) average prices for SPECIFIC PRODUCT.
    (3) If your firm is a U.S. importer of the Subject Merchandise, 
provide the following information on your firm's operations on that 
product FOR EACH COUNTRY SUBJECT TO THIS REVIEW INVESTIGATION during 
calendar year PRECEDING YEAR and your projections, in accordance 
with GAAP, for calendar year CURRENT YEAR (report quantity data in 
UNITS and value data in thousands of dollars):
    (a) The quantity and value of U.S. imports (including, if known, 
an estimate of the percentage of total U.S. imports of PRODUCT from 
COUNTRY accounted for by your firm's imports in PRECEDING YEAR);
    (b) end-of-year inventories (quantity);
    (c) the quantity and value of U.S. commercial shipments of 
imported product; and
    (d) average prices for SPECIFIC PRODUCT.
    (4) If your firm is a producer of the Subject Merchandise in 
COUNTRY, provide the following information on your firm's operations 
on that product during calendar year PRECEDING YEAR and your 
projections, in accordance with GAAP, for calendar year CURRENT YEAR 
(report quantity data in UNITS and value data in thousands of 
dollars):
    (a) Annual production capacity (quantity) (report the practical 
capacity of your plant(s) using the machinery and equipment in place 
at the end of the year and specify that the capacity reported is 
based on operating ____ hours per week, ____ weeks per year);
    (b) end-of-year inventories (quantity);
    (c) production (quantity) (including, if known, an estimate of 
the percentage of total production of PRODUCT in COUNTRY accounted 
for by your firm's production in PRECEDING YEAR);
    (d) the quantity and value of home market shipments of product 
produced in your plant(s) (including any internal consumption and 
company transfers);
    (e) the quantity and value of your firm's exports to the United 
States of product produced in your plant(s) (including, if known, an 
estimate of the percentage of total exports to the United States of 
PRODUCT from COUNTRY accounted for by your firm's exports in 
PRECEDING YEAR); and
    (f) the quantity and value of your firm's exports to all other 
countries of product produced in your plant(s).
    (5) Identify any significant changes in the supply of and demand 
for the Domestic Like Product that have occurred in the United 
States since the Order Date. Address changes in factors such as 
technology; production methods; the availability and price of major 
production inputs; consumption patterns; new alternative products 
that compete for sales; availability of imports from nonsubject 
countries; the degree of interchangeability between the Domestic 
Like Product, Subject Merchandise, and nonsubject imports; and 
demand for U.S. products in export markets.
    (6) (Asked in reviews involving multiple subject countries) 
Explain (a) whether the Domestic Like Product and Subject 
Merchandise from each Subject Country compete or are likely to 
compete with each other in the United States and (b) whether Subject 
Merchandise from each individual Subject Country competes or is 
likely to

[[Page 55196]]

compete in the United States with Subject Merchandise from each 
other Subject Country. In determining whether (likely) competition 
exists between two products, you may consider such factors as (i) 
the degree of (likely) fungibility between the products, (ii) 
whether the products are (likely to be) sold in the same geographic 
markets in the United States, (iii) whether the products are (likely 
to be) sold in common channels of distribution, and (iv) whether the 
products are (likely to be) sold in the U.S. market simultaneously.
    (7) (OPTIONAL) Provide any other information or data that you 
consider relevant to the Commission's determination.

Annex B--Proposed Schedule for Sunset Reviews\1\

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          Action/Event                             Day  
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notice of Institution (Published in the Federal Register)......        0
Entries of Appearance/APO Applications Due.....................       21
Responses to Notice of Institution Due.........................       30
Comments on Appropriateness of Expedited Review Due............       60
Notice of Inadequacy/Expedited Review or Adequacy/Full Review..       95
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The Commission may extend its deadline by up to 90 days in all      
  transition reviews and other extraordinarily complicated cases.       


                  Inadequate Responses/Expedited Review                 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          Action/Event                             Day  
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Report/Data Compilation to Commission and Parties........      110
Commerce Expedited Determination (If Issued)...................      120
Written Submission on Merits (``Final Comments'') by Parties            
 Due...........................................................      130
Commission Vote................................................      140
Commission Determination and Views to Commerce.................      150
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                     Adequate Responses/Full Review                     
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          Action/Event                             Day  
------------------------------------------------------------------------
New Entries of Appearance/APO Applications Due.................      140
Draft Questionnaires to Parties for Comment....................      150
Written Comments on Draft Questionnaires Due (Final Opportunity         
 for Parties to Raise Issues Affecting Data Collection)........      180
Questionnaire Mail Date........................................      225
Commerce Subsidy/Dumping Determination.........................      240
Questionnaire Return Date......................................      265
Prehearing Report to Commission and Parties....................      299
Prehearing Briefs Due..........................................      305
Hearing........................................................      313
Posthearing Briefs Due.........................................      320
Staff Report to Commission and Parties.........................      330
Final Comments Due.............................................      340
Commission Vote................................................      348
Commission Determination and Views to Commerce.................      360
------------------------------------------------------------------------

[FR Doc. 97-28257 Filed 10-22-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P