[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 154 (Friday, August 9, 2002)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 51800-51802]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-20165]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Customs Service

19 CFR Part 12

RIN 1515-AD15


Entry of Certain Steel Products

AGENCY: U.S. Customs Service, Department of the Treasury.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: This document proposes to amend the Customs Regulations to set 
forth special requirements for the entry of certain steel products. The 
steel products in question are those listed by the President in 
Proclamation 7529 of March 5, 2002, pursuant to the safeguard 
provisions of section 203 of the Trade Act of 1974, including those 
products subject to country exceptions and product exclusions. The 
proposed amendment would require the inclusion of an import license 
number on the entry summary documentation filed with Customs for any 
steel product for which the U.S. Department of Commerce requires an 
import license under its steel licensing and import monitoring program.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before September 9, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Written comments are to be addressed to the U.S. Customs 
Service, Office of Regulations and Rulings, Attention: Regulations 
Branch, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20229. Submitted 
comments may be inspected at U.S. Customs Service, 799 9th Street NW., 
Washington, DC.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patty Fitzpatrick, Office of Field 
Operations (202-927-1106).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On March 5, 2002, President Bush signed Proclamation 7529 ``To 
Facilitate Positive Adjustment to Competition

[[Page 51801]]

From Imports of Certain Steel Products,'' which was published in the 
Federal Register (67 FR 10553) on March 7, 2002. The Proclamation was 
issued under section 203 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended (19 
U.S.C. 2253), and was in response to determinations by the U.S. 
International Trade Commission (ITC) under section 202 of the Trade Act 
of 1974, as amended (19 U.S.C. 2252), that certain steel products were 
being imported into the United States in such increased quantities as 
to be a substantial cause of serious injury, or threat of serious 
injury, to the domestic industries producing like or directly 
competitive articles. The action taken by the President in the 
Proclamation consisted of the implementation of certain ``safeguard 
measures,'' specifically, the imposition of a tariff-rate quota on 
imports of specified steel slabs and an increase in duties on other 
specified steel products. The Proclamation included an Annex setting 
forth appropriate modifications to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of 
the United States (HTSUS) to effectuate the President's action. The 
modifications to the HTSUS, which involved Subchapter III of Chapter 99 
and included the addition of a new U.S. Note 11 and the addition of 
numerous new subheadings to cover the affected steel products, were 
made effective with respect to goods entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse for consumption, on or after March 20, 2002.
    On March 5, 2002, the President issued a Memorandum to the 
Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Commerce, and the United 
States Trade Representative entitled ``Action Under Section 203 of the 
Trade Act of 1974 Concerning Certain Steel Products,'' which also was 
published in the Federal Register (67 FR 10593) on March 7, 2002. The 
Memorandum included an instruction to the Secretary of the Treasury and 
the Secretary of Commerce to establish a system of import licensing to 
facilitate the monitoring of imports of certain steel products. In 
addition, the Memorandum instructed the Secretary of Commerce, within 
120 days of the effective date of the safeguard measures established by 
Proclamation 7529, to publish regulations in the Federal Register 
establishing the system of import licensing.
    On July 18, 2002, the International Trade Administration of the 
Department of Commerce published in the Federal Register (67 FR 47338) 
a proposed rule to establish a steel licensing and surge monitoring 
system as instructed by the President in the March 5, 2002, Memorandum. 
Under the Commerce proposal, all importers of steel products covered by 
the President's section 203 action, including those products subject to 
country exemptions or product exclusions, would be required to obtain a 
steel import license and to provide the license information (that is, 
the license number) to Customs except in the case of merchandise which 
is eligible for informal entry under Sec. 143.21 of the Customs 
Regulations (19 CFR 143.21). Commerce proposes to institute a 
registration system for steel importers, and steel import licenses 
would be issued to registered importers, customs brokers or their 
agents through an automatic steel import licensing system. Once 
registered, an importer or broker would submit the required license 
application information electronically to Commerce, and the system 
would then automatically issue a steel import license number for 
inclusion on the entry summary documentation filed with Customs.
    Primary responsibility for the steel product import licensing and 
monitoring rests with the Secretary of Commerce. The Secretary of the 
Treasury, through the U.S. Customs Service, is responsible for the 
promulgation and administration of regulations regarding making entry 
of the subject merchandise into the United States. Accordingly, this 
document proposes to amend the Customs Regulations to provide an 
appropriate regulatory basis for the collection of the steel import 
license number on the entry summary documentation in accordance with 
the proposed regulatory standards promulgated by the Department of 
Commerce. The proposed amendment set forth in this document consists of 
the addition of a new Sec. 12.145 (19 CFR 12.145) which requires the 
inclusion of a steel import license number on the entry summary in any 
case in which a steel import license number is required to be obtained 
under regulations promulgated by the Department of Commerce.
    It should be noted that failure to provide the required steel 
import license number to Customs on a timely basis would constitute a 
breach of the terms of the importer's bond under Sec. 113.62 of the 
Customs Regulations (19 CFR 113.62) and therefore could give rise to a 
claim for liquidated damages under the bond equal to the value of the 
merchandise involved in the default. However, a claim for liquidated 
damages under a Customs bond may be reduced or cancelled in accordance 
with mitigation guidelines published pursuant to section 623 of the 
Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1623). After new Sec. 12.145 
has been adopted as a final rule, Customs will publish appropriate 
guidelines under section 623. It is presently contemplated that those 
guidelines will include circumstances in which liquidated damage claims 
in these cases may be reduced to $50 for a late filing of the required 
information or to $100 in the case of a complete failure to file the 
information.

Comments

    Before adopting this proposed regulation as a final rule, 
consideration will be given to any written comments timely submitted to 
Customs, including comments on the clarity of this proposed rule and 
how it may be made easier to understand. Comments submitted will be 
available for public inspection in accordance with the Freedom of 
Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552), Sec. 1.4 of the Treasury Department 
Regulations (31 CFR 1.4), and Sec. 103.11(b) of the Customs Regulations 
(19 CFR 103.11(b)), on regular business days between the hours of 9:00 
a.m. and 4:30 p.m. at the Office of Regulations and Rulings, U.S. 
Customs Service, 799 9th Street, NW., Washington, DC. Arrangements to 
inspect submitted comments should be made in advance by calling Mr. 
Joseph Clark at (202) 572-8768.

Executive Order 12866

    This document does not meet the criteria for a ``significant 
regulatory action'' as specified in E.O. 12866.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    Pursuant to the provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 
U.S.C. 601 et seq.), it is certified that, if adopted, the proposed 
amendment will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities. Customs believes that the proposed amendment, 
which involves the addition of only one data element to an existing 
required Customs form, will have a negligible impact on importer 
operations. Accordingly, the proposed amendment is not subject to the 
regulatory analysis or other requirements of 5 U.S.C. 603 and 604.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    The collections of information in the current regulations have 
already been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507) 
and assigned OMB control number 1515-0065 (Entry summary and 
continuation sheet). This rule does not involve any material

[[Page 51802]]

change to the existing approved information collection.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless the collection of 
information displays a valid control number assigned by OMB.

Drafting Information

    The principal author of this document was Francis W. Foote, Office 
of Regulations and Rulings, U.S. Customs Service. However, personnel 
from other offices participated in its development.

List of Subjects in 19 CFR Part 12

    Bonds, Customs duties and inspection, Entry of merchandise, 
Imports, Prohibited merchandise, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Restricted merchandise.

Proposed Amendment to the Regulations

    For the reasons stated above, it is proposed to amend Part 12 of 
the Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 12) as set forth below.

PART 12--SPECIAL CLASSES OF MERCHANDISE

    1. The authority citation for Part 12 continues to read in part as 
follows:

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 19 U.S.C. 66, 1202 (General Note 23, 
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS)), 1624;
* * * * *
    2. A new center heading and new Sec. 12.145 are added to read as 
follows:

Steel Products


Sec. 12.145  Entry of certain steel products.

    Except in the case of merchandise that is eligible for informal 
entry under Sec. 143.21 of this chapter, in any case in which a steel 
import license number is required to be obtained under regulations 
promulgated by the U.S. Department of Commerce, that license number 
must be included on the entry summary, Customs Form 7501, or on an 
electronic equivalent.

Robert C. Bonner,
Commissioner of Customs.
    Approved: August 6, 2002.
Timothy E. Skud,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury.
[FR Doc. 02-20165 Filed 8-8-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4820-02-P