[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 141 (Monday, July 24, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41756-41758]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-6406]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Foreign Agricultural Service


WTO Agricultural Safeguard Trigger Levels

AGENCY: Foreign Agricultural Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of product coverage and trigger levels for safeguard 
measures provided for in the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement 
on Agriculture.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This notice lists updated quantity trigger levels for 
products, which may be subject to additional import duties under the 
safeguard provisions of the WTO Agreement on Agriculture. This notice 
also includes the relevant period applicable for the trigger levels on 
each of the listed products.

DATES: Efffective Date: July 24, 2006.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Charles R. Bertsch, Multilateral Trade 
Negotiations Division, Foreign Agricultural Service, Room 5524--South 
Building, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250 -1022, 
telephone at (202) 720-6278, or e-mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Article 5 of the WTO Agreement on 
Agriculture provides that additional import duties may be imposed on 
imports of products subject to tariffication as a result of the Uruguay 
Round if certain conditions are met. The agreement permits additional 
duties to be charged if the price of an individual shipment of imported 
products falls below the average price for similar goods imported 
during the years 1986-88 by a specified percentage. It also permits 
additional duties to be imposed if the volume of imports of an article 
exceeds the average of the most recent 3 years for which data are 
available by 5, 10, or 25 percent, depending on the article. These 
additional duties may not be imposed on quantities for which minimum or 
current access commitments were made during the Uruguay Round 
negotiations, and only one type of safeguard, price or

[[Page 41757]]

quantity, may be applied at any given time to an article.
    Section 405 of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act requires that the 
President cause to be published in the Federal Register information 
regarding the price and quantity safeguards, including the quantity 
trigger levels, which must be updated annually based upon import levels 
during the most recent 3 years. the President delegated this duty to 
the Secretary of Agriculture in Presidential Proclamation No. 6763, 
QUANTITY-BASED SAFEGUARD TRIGGER, dated December 23, 1994. The 
Secretary of Agriculture further delegated the duty to the 
Administrator of the Foreign Agricultural Service (7 CFR 2.43 (a)(2)). 
The Annex to this notice contains the updated quantity trigger levels.
    Additional information on the products subject to safeguards and 
the additional duties which may apply can be found in subchapter IV of 
Chapter 99 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States and 
in the Secretary of Agriculture's Notice of Safeguard Action, published 
in the Federal Register at 60 FR 427, January 4, 1995.

    Notice: As provided in section 405 of the Uruguay Round 
Agreements Act, consistent with Article 5 of the Agreement on 
agriculture, the safeguard quantity trigger levels previously 
notified are superceded by the levels indicated in the Annex to this 
notice. The definitions of these products were provided in the 
Notice of Safeguard Action published in the Federal Register, at 60 
FR 427, January 4, 1995.


    Issued at Washington, DC this 3rd day of July, 2006.
Michael W. Yost.
Administrator, Foreign Agricultural Service.

                 Annex: Quantity-Based Safeguard Trigger
------------------------------------------------------------------------
            Product               Trigger level            Period
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Beef..........................  447,684 mt.......  January 1, 2006 to
                                                    December 31, 2006.
Mutton........................  3,242 mt.........  January 1, 2006 to
                                                    December 31, 2006.
Cream.........................  4,298,187 liters.  January 1, 2006 to
                                                    December 31, 2006.
Evaporated or Condensed Milk..  6,930,879          January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Nonfat Dry Milk...............  898,525 kilograms  January 1, 2006 to
                                                    December 31, 2006.
Dried Whole Milk..............  3,987,868          January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Dried Cream...................  40,235 kilograms.  January 1, 2006 to
                                                    December 31, 2006.
Dried Whey/Buttermilk.........  70,736 kilograms.  January 1, 2006 to
                                                    December 31, 2006.
Butter........................  11,548,913         January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Butter Oil and Butter           8,745,001          January 1, 2006 to
 Substitutes.                    kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Dairy Mixtures................  37,038,485         January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Blue Cheese...................  5,047,654          January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Cheddar Cheese................  12,356,363         January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
American-Type Cheese..........  15,606,654         January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Edam/Gouda Cheese.............  8,318,776          January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Italian-Type Cheese...........  23,130,918         January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Swiss Cheese with Eye           34,767,209         January 1, 2006 to
 Formation.                      kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Gruyere Process Cheese........  8,355,381          January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Lowfat Cheese.................  3,603,811          January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
NSPF Cheese...................  55,111,280         January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Peanuts.......................  15,699 mt........  April 1, 2006 to
                                                    March 31, 2007.
Peanut Butter/Paste...........  3,637 mt.........  January 1, 2006 to
                                                    December 31, 2006.
Raw Cane Sugar................  1,096,324 mt.....  October 1, 2005 to
                                                    September 30, 2006.
                                1,172,199 mt.....  October 1, 2006 to
                                                    September 30, 2007.
Refined Sugar and Syrups......  36,661 mt........  October 1, 2005 to
                                                    September 30, 2006.
                                73,889...........  October 1, 2006 to
                                                    September 30, 2007.
Blended Syrups................  59 mt............  October 1, 2005 to
                                                    September 30, 2006.
                                36 mt............  October 1, 2006 to
                                                    September 30, 2007.
Articles Over 65% Sugar.......  170 mt...........  October 1, 2005 to
                                                    September 30, 2006.
                                358 mt...........  October 1, 2006 to
                                                    September 30, 2007.
Articles Over 10% Sugar.......  12,067 mt........  October 1, 2005 to
                                                    September 30, 2006.
                                18,297 mt........  October 1, 2006 to
                                                    September 30, 2007.
Sweetened Cocoa Powder........  660 mt...........  October 1, 2005 to
                                                    September 30, 2006.
                                1,008 mt.........  October 1, 2006 to
                                                    September 30, 2007.
Chocolate Crumb...............  8,542,963          January 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         December 31, 2006.
Lowfat Chocolate Crumb........  229,080 kilograms  January 1, 2006 to
                                                    December 31, 2006.
Infant Formula Containing       53,153 kilograms.  January 1, 2006 to
 Oligosaccharides.                                  December 31, 2006.
Mixes and Doughs..............  78 mt............  October 1, 2005 to
                                                    September 30, 2006.
                                101 mt...........  October 1, 2006 to
                                                    September 30, 2007.
Mixed Condiments and            98 mt............  October 1, 2005 to
 Seasonings.                                        September 30, 2006.
                                0 mt.............  October 1, 2006 to
                                                    September 30, 2007.
Ice Cream.....................  1,636, 297 liters  January 1, 2006 to
                                                    December 31, 2006.
Animal Feed Containing Milk...  157,978 kilograms  January 1, 2006 to
                                                    December 31, 2006.
Short Staple Cotton...........  20,042 kilograms.  September 20, 2005 to
                                                    September 19, 2006.
                                29,945 kilograms.  September 20, 2006 to
                                                    September 19, 2007.
Harsh or Rough Cotton.........  0 mt.............  August 1, 2005 to
                                                    July 31, 2006.
                                0 mt.............  August 1, 2006 to
                                                    July 31, 2007.
Medium Staple Cotton..........  1,571,375          August 1, 2005 to
                                 kilograms.         July 31, 2006.
                                2,361,931          August 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         July 31, 2007.
Extra Long Staple Cotton......  9,736,417          August 1, 2005 to
                                 kilograms.         July 31, 2006.
                                8,109,615          August 1, 2006 to
                                 kilograms.         July 31, 2007.
Cotton Waste..................  5,125 kilograms..  September 20, 2005 to
                                                    September 19, 2006.
                                7,692 kilograms..  Sepember 20, 2006 to
                                                    September 19, 2007.
Cotton, Processed, Not Spun...  80,208 kilograms.  September 11, 2005 to
                                                    September 10, 2006.

[[Page 41758]]

 
                                26,883 kilograms.  September 11, 2006 to
                                                    September 10, 2007.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

[FR Doc. 06-6406 Filed 7-21-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-10-M