[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 80 (Wednesday, April 26, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24762-24763]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-6224]


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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE


Determinations Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has determined 
that the Republic of Chad has adopted an effective visa system and 
related procedures to prevent unlawful transshipment and the use of 
counterfeit documents in connection with shipments of textile and 
apparel articles and has implemented and follows, or is making 
substantial progress toward implementing and following, the customs 
procedures required by the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). 
Therefore, imports of eligible products from Chad qualify for the 
textile and apparel benefits provided under the AGOA.

DATES: Effective April 26, 2006.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William Jackson, Director for African 
Affairs, Office of the United States Trade Representative, (202) 395-
9514.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The AGOA (Title I of the Trade and 
Development Act of 2000, Pub. L. No. 106-200) provides preferential 
tariff treatment for imports of certain textile and apparel products of 
beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries. The textile and apparel 
trade benefits under the AGOA are available to imports of eligible 
products from countries that the President designates as beneficiary 
sub-Saharan African countries, provided that these countries: (1) Have 
adopted an effective visa system and related procedures to prevent 
unlawful transshipment and the use of counterfeit documents; and (2) 
have implemented and follow, or are making substantial progress toward 
implementing and following, certain customs procedures that assist U.S. 
Customs and Border Protection in verifying the origin of the products.
    In Proclamation 7350 (Oct. 2, 2000), the President designated Chad 
a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country. Proclamation 7350 delegated 
to the USTR the authority to determine whether designated countries 
have met the two requirements described above. The President directed 
the USTR to announce any such determinations in the Federal Register 
and to implement them through modifications of the Harmonized Tariff 
Schedule of the United States (HTS). Based on actions that the 
Government of Chad has taken,

[[Page 24763]]

I have determined that Chad has satisfied these two requirements.
    Accordingly, pursuant to the authority vested in the USTR by 
Proclamation 7350, U.S. note 7(a) to subchapter II of chapter 98 of the 
HTS and U.S. note 1 to subchapter XIX of chapter 98 of the HTS are each 
modified by inserting Chad in alphabetical sequence in the list of 
countries. The foregoing modifications to the HTS are effective with 
respect to articles entered, or withdrawn from warehouse for 
consumption, on or after the date of publication of this notice. 
Importers claiming preferential tariff treatment under the AGOA for 
entries of textile and apparel articles should ensure that those 
entries meet the applicable visa requirements. See Visa Requirements 
Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act, 66 FR 7837 (2001).

Rob Portman,
United States Trade Representative.
 [FR Doc. E6-6224 Filed 4-25-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3190-W6-P