[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 140 (Friday, July 21, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41469-41470]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-11565]


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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

[Investigation Nos. 332-350 and 332-351]


Monitoring of U.S. Imports of Tomatoes; Monitoring of U.S. 
Imports of Peppers

AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice of opportunity to submit information for 2006 monitoring 
reports.

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DATES: Effective Date: July 12, 2006.

SUMMARY: Pursuant to statute (see below), the Commission monitors U.S. 
imports of fresh or chilled tomatoes and fresh or chilled peppers, 
other than chili peppers, for the purpose of expediting an 
investigation under certain U.S. safeguard laws, should an appropriate 
petition be filed. As part of that monitoring, the Commission compiles 
data on imports and the domestic industry, and has made its data series 
available electronically to the public on an annual basis since 1994. 
The Commission is in the process of preparing its data series for the 
period

[[Page 41470]]

ending June 30, 2006, and is seeking input from interested members of 
the public. The Commission expects to make its data series available to 
the public in November 2006 in electronic format, posted on the 
Commission's Web site.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Timothy McCarty (202-205-3324, 
[email protected]) or Jonathan Coleman (202-205-3465, 
[email protected]), Agriculture and Fisheries Division, Office 
of Industries, U.S. International Trade Commission, 500 E Street, SW., 
Washington DC, 20436, for general information, or William Gearhart 
(202-205-3091, [email protected]), Office of the General 
Counsel, U.S. International Trade Commission, for information on legal 
aspects.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Background.--Section 316 of the North American Free-Trade Agreement 
Implementation Act (NAFTA Implementation Act) (19 U.S.C. 3881) requires 
that the Commission monitor U.S. imports of fresh or chilled tomatoes 
(HTS heading 0702.00) and fresh or chilled peppers, other than chili 
peppers (HTS subheading 0709.60.00), until January 1, 2009, for 
purposes of expediting an investigation concerning provisional relief 
under section 202 of the Trade Act of 1974 or section 302 of the NAFTA 
Implementation Act. Section 316 does not require that the Commission 
publish reports on this monitoring activity or otherwise make the 
information available to the public. However, the Commission maintains 
current data files on tomatoes and peppers in order to conduct an 
expedited investigation should a request be received. In response to 
the monitoring requirement, the Commission instituted investigation No. 
332-350, Monitoring of U.S. Imports of Tomatoes (59 FR 1763) and 
investigation No. 332-351, Monitoring of U.S. Imports of Peppers (59 FR 
1762).
    The Commission will make its reports available to the public in 
electronic format, and will maintain electronic copies of its reports 
on its Web site until one year after the monitoring requirement expires 
on January 1, 2009. The most recent Commission monitoring reports in 
this series were published in November 2005 and are available on the 
Commission's Web site.
    Written submissions.--The Commission does not plan to hold a public 
hearing in connection with preparation of these reports. However, 
interested persons are invited to submit written statements containing 
data and other information concerning the matters to be addressed in 
the reports. All submissions should be addressed to the Secretary, 
United States International Trade Commission, 500 E Street SW., 
Washington, DC 20436, and should be received no later than the close of 
business on August 31, 2006. All written submissions must conform with 
the provisions of section 201.8 of the Commission's Rules of Practice 
and Procedure (19 CFR 201.8). Section 201.8 of the rules requires that 
a signed original (or a copy designated as an original) and fourteen 
(14) copies of each document be filed. In the event that confidential 
treatment of the document is requested, at least four (4) additional 
copies must be filed, in which the confidential information must be 
deleted (see the following paragraph for further information regarding 
confidential business information). The Commission's rules do not 
authorize filing submissions with the Secretary by facsimile or 
electronic means, except to the extent permitted by section 201.8 of 
the rules (see Handbook for Electronic Filing Procedures, ftp://ftp.usitc.gov/pub/reports/electronic_filing_handbook.pdf ).
    Any submissions that contain confidential business information must 
also conform with the requirements of section 201.6 of the Commission's 
Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 CFR 201.6). Section 201.6 of the 
rules requires that the cover of the document and the individual pages 
be clearly marked as to whether they are the ``confidential'' or ``non-
confidential'' version, and that the confidential business information 
be clearly identified by means of brackets. All written submissions, 
except for confidential business information, will be made available in 
the Office of the Secretary to the Commission for inspection by 
interested parties.
    The Commission will not publish such confidential business 
information in the monitoring reports it posts on its Web site in a 
manner that would reveal the operations of the firm supplying the 
information. However, the Commission may include such information in 
the report it sends to the President under section 202 of the Trade Act 
of 1974 or section 302 of the NAFTA Implementation Act, if it is 
required to conduct an investigation involving these products under 
either of these statutory authorities. Hearing-impaired individuals are 
advised that information on this matter can be obtained by contacting 
our TDD terminal on (202) 205-1810. General information concerning the 
Commission may also be obtained by accessing its Internet server 
(http://www.usitc.gov). The public record for these investigations may 
be viewed on the Commission's electronic docket (EDIS-ON LINE) at 
http://edis.usitc.gov. Persons with mobility impairments who will need 
special assistance in gaining access to the Commission should contact 
the Office of the Secretary at 202-205-2000.

    By order of the Commission.

    Issued: July 17, 2006.
Marilyn R. Abbott,
Secretary to the Commission.
 [FR Doc. E6-11565 Filed 7-20-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P