[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 78 (Thursday, April 22, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21815-21816]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-9161]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Bureau of Industry and Security

[Docket No. 040419121-4121-01]


Request for Public Comment on the Receipt by the Department of 
Commerce of a Written Petition Requesting the Imposition of Short 
Supply Export Controls and Monitoring on Recyclable Metallic Materials 
Containing Copper

AGENCY: Bureau of Industry and Security, Commerce.

ACTION: Request for comments on a petition requesting the imposition of 
short supply export controls.

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SUMMARY: On April 7, 2004, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) 
received a written petition requesting the imposition of export 
monitoring and export controls on copper scrap and copper-alloy scrap; 
the petitioner also requested a public hearing on the issue. This 
notice describes the Department's intended proceeding on the petition, 
and invites public comment on the subject of the petition.

DATES: In order to ensure ample time for the consideration of the views 
of interested persons, the Department requests submission of initial 
written comments by May 13, 2004. Written comments that respond to the 
initial comments should be submitted by May 27, 2004. All written 
comments must be received by no later than 5 p.m. e.d.t. June 7, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Written comments (three copies) should be sent to Copper 
Short Supply Petition, Regulatory Policy Division, Bureau of Industry 
and Security, Department of Commerce, P.O. Box 273, Washington, DC 
20044. Alternatively, comments may be e-mailed to 
[email protected]. All public comments on the 
subject of this proceeding, including the petition, will be made a 
matter of public record and will be available for review on the BIS Web 
site at www.bis.doc.gov. If requesters cannot access the BIS Web site, 
please call the Regulatory Policy Division at (202) 482-2440 for 
assistance.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Daniel O. Hill, Director of the Office 
of Strategic Industries and Economic Security, Bureau of Industry and 
Security, who may be reached at (202) 482-4506.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the provisions of section 7(c) of the 
Export Administration Act of 1979, as amended (EAA) (50 U.S.C. app. 
2406(c)), as implemented by section 754.7 of the Export Administration 
Regulations (EAR) (15 CFR 754.7), any entity, including a trade 
association, firm, or certified or recognized union or group of workers 
that is representative of an industry, or a substantial segment of an 
industry, that processes metallic materials capable of being recycled 
may file a petition with BIS requesting that the Department of Commerce 
impose monitoring on the export of such material, controls on the 
export of such material, or both, in order to carry out the policy set 
forth in section 3(2)(C) of the EAA.
    On April 7, 2004, a petition was received from the member companies 
of the Copper & Brass Fabricators Council, Inc., and the Non-Ferrous 
Founders' Society requesting that the Department impose monitoring and 
controls on exports of recycled metallic materials containing copper 
pursuant to the provisions of section 7(c) of the EAA and section 754.7 
of the EAR. The petitioner also requested that the Department hold a 
hearing on the subject of the petition.
    In this notice, BIS is seeking comments on the justification for 
and merits of the actions requested in the petition, and the impact of 
such actions on affected exporters, the recyclable metallic metals 
industry, the recyclable copper industry, the economy, and the public 
at large. The commodities to be considered by the Department in this 
proceeding, identified by Schedule B number in the Statistical 
Classification of Domestic and Foreign Commodities Exported from the 
United States, are listed under subheadings 7404.00.0020, 7404.00.0045, 
7404.00.0062, and 7404.00.0080.

Public Comments

    To assist the Department in its evaluation of this petition, 
interested persons are encouraged to submit written comments and data 
regarding the criteria set forth in section 7(c)(3)(A)(i)-(v) of the 
EAA; the need for and consequences of export monitoring or controls at 
this time on one or more of the commodities under consideration; and 
any other matters that interested persons believe to be relevant to the 
subject of this proceeding. All written comments should contain an 
executive summary of no more than five (5) pages.
    In order to take into account the views of all interested persons 
in making its determination, the Department encourages parties to 
submit their comments at the earliest possible date. Early submission 
will ensure that persons are able to address the areas identified by 
the Department as well as comment, expand upon, and, if applicable, 
rebut the comments submitted by other persons. To fulfill this 
objective, the Department will accept initial comments and comments 
that respond to previously submitted comments. The Department requests 
that initial comments be submitted by May 13, 2004. Written comments 
that respond to the initial comments should be submitted by May 27, 
2004. The period for submission of written comments on the action under 
consideration will end as of 5 p.m. e.d.t. June 7, 2004.

Public Hearing

    The Department has received a request for a hearing pursuant to the 
provisions of section 7(c)(2) of the EAA. Persons desiring to make 
presentations at the public hearing must make a written request to BIS 
at the address listed above. Requests must be filed by May 13, 2004. 
The request should contain a telephone number where the presenter can 
be reached before the hearing. All requests to make an oral 
presentation should describe the presenter's interest in the 
proceeding, explain why that person is an appropriate representative of 
a group or class of persons that has such an interest, and should 
enclose a concise summary of the proposed oral presentation. The 
Department will notify each person selected to be heard prior to the 
hearing. Persons selected to be heard should bring 25 copies of their 
statement to the hearing.
    The Department will attempt to ensure that all interested parties 
have an opportunity to be heard at the public hearing. The Department 
reserves the right to select the persons to be heard at the hearing, to 
schedule their respective presentations, and to establish the 
procedures governing the conduct of the hearing. The length of each 
presentation will be limited. Only members of the Department's hearing 
panel may ask questions of the presenters.
    The Department will provide more details on the procedures 
governing the conduct of the hearing in a notice to be published in the 
Federal Register.

Areas of Interest

    Pursuant to the provisions of section 7(c) of the EAA, in making 
the determination as to whether to impose

[[Page 21816]]

monitoring or controls on the exports of recyclable metallic materials, 
the Department is required to determine whether:
    1. There has been a significant increase, in relation to a specific 
period of time, in exports of such material in relation to domestic 
supply and demand.
    2. There has been a significant increase in domestic price of such 
material or a domestic shortage of such material relative to demand.
    3. Exports of such material are as important as any other cause of 
a domestic price increase or shortage relative to demand.
    4. A domestic price increase or shortage relative to demand has 
significantly adversely affected or may significantly adversely affect 
the national economy or any sector thereof, including a domestic 
industry.
    5. Export monitoring or controls, or both, are necessary in order 
to carry out the policy set forth in section 3(2)(C) of the EAA. 
Section 3(2)(C) of the EAA states that it is the policy of the United 
States to restrict the export of goods where necessary to protect the 
domestic economy from the excessive drain of scarce materials and to 
reduce the serious inflationary impact of foreign demand.
    To assist the Department in making these determinations, the 
Department is interested in any information that can be provided on the 
following subjects:
    1. Information describing the current economic profile of the U.S. 
copper industry, including information on the number of producers, 
smelters, refiners, users, and exporters of copper scrap, and the 
number of employed workers engaged in these activities by industry and 
occupation.
    2. Quantitative information characterizing the effect of copper 
scrap exports on industries that mine copper; smelt and refine copper; 
companies that roll, draw, and extrude copper; companies that produce 
copper wire; and the secondary smelting, refining, and copper alloying 
industry.
    3. Data on the materials used in the manufacturing process for 
copper products; the percentage, by measure and price, of these 
materials, including the energy used, in manufactured copper products.
    4. Data on the impact of exports on the domestic price of products 
containing copper, including an assessment of the direct economic 
impact of exports on user industries, such as construction, 
electronics, and transportation.
    5. Quantitative information on the global copper industry, 
including the current and anticipated world supply, demand, imports, 
and exports of copper and copper scrap, and the effect of copper scrap 
prices and supply on the U.S. copper industry involving mining.
    6. Historical information comparing consumption, demand, prices, 
and exports of copper and copper scrap during the expanding economy 
from the mid-1990s through 2000, in comparison to the contraction of 
the economy in 2001 and 2002, and again in comparison to the current 
economic expansion of 2003-2004.
    7. Information on any factors, other than exports, that may have 
contributed to domestic shortages and increased prices for copper 
scrap. For example, this information could include seasonal effects, 
reduction in smelting capacity, declines in domestic consumption, 
changes in technology, consumer preferences, and disruptions in the 
supply, production or distribution chains.
    8. The effect that copper scrap shortages, by type or grade of 
scrap, have had on any segments of the copper industry that only 
utilize scrap as an input to their manufactured goods, and are unable 
to convert to other forms of copper.
    9. Information on the trade and other practices of other countries 
that have had a direct impact on the U.S. copper industry's ability to 
compete globally.
    10. Comments regarding the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of the 
requested monitoring and controls, and comments or suggestions as to 
actions that would make the requested actions more effective, if 
imposed.
    11. Economic analyses of the likely effect of export monitoring 
and/or export controls on the price and availability of copper scrap in 
the domestic market, as well as the likely effect on other domestic 
industries and the U.S. economy at large.
    The Department will reach a decision on this matter within 45 days 
of the close of the comment period. This decision and any regulations 
necessary to implement it, together with a detailed statement of the 
reasons for the Department's decision, will be published in the Federal 
Register.

    Dated: April 19, 2004.
Peter Lichtenbaum,
Assistant Secretary for Export Administration.
[FR Doc. 04-9161 Filed 4-21-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-33-P