[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 14 (Tuesday, January 23, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2860-2861]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-928]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration


Textile and Apparel Products from Vietnam: Import Monitoring 
Program; Request for Comments

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Request for Public Comment - Import Monitoring of Textile and 
Apparel Products from Vietnam.

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SUMMARY: As a follow-up to its December 4, 2006 request for public 
comment, the Department of Commerce (the Department) is providing an 
additional opportunity for the public to comment on the development and 
implementation of a monitoring program covering imports of textile and 
apparel products from Vietnam. This monitoring program will remain in 
place for the duration of this Administration. To help the Department 
implement the program and, at the same time, be advised of the concerns 
of all interested stakeholders, the Department is inviting the public 
to provide further input on the monitoring program and identify issues 
or considerations that submitters believe are deserving of the 
Department's attention as the program proceeds. Responses to comments 
already received by the Department as part of its December 4, 2006 
request are also welcome.

DATES: To be most useful, the Department requests that comments be 
submitted by close of business, January 31, 2007. However, the 
Department will continue to welcome and solicit additional views and 
input from all parties on an ongoing basis.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted in writing or electronically. 
Persons wishing to comment in writing should file, by the date 
specified above, a signed original and four copies of each set of 
comments. Written comments should be addressed to David M. Spooner, 
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration, Room 1870, Department of 
Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20230. 
Electronic comments should be submitted to [email protected]. Comments should be limited to 25 pages or 
less.
    All comments will be available for public inspection at Import 
Administration's Central Records Unit, Room B-099, between the hours of 
8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. on business days. The Department will not accept 
nor consider comments accompanied by a request that a part or all of 
the material be treated confidentially because of its business 
proprietary nature or for any other reason. In addition, all comments 
will be made available to the public in Portable Document Format (PDF) 
on the Internet at the Import Administration Web site at the following 
address: http://ia.ita.doc.gov. To the extent possible, all comments 
will be posted within 48 hours. Any questions concerning file 
formatting, document conversion, access on the Internet, or other 
electronic filing issues should be addressed to Andrew Lee Beller, 
Import Administration Webmaster, at (202) 482-0866, e-mail address: 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kelly Parkhill at (202) 482-3791.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department is instituting an import 
monitoring program for textile and apparel products from Vietnam. The 
Department currently monitors imports of textile and apparel products 
from Vietnam and all other textile and apparel producing countries as 
part of the regular monitoring and reporting conducted by Import 
Administration's Office of Textiles and Apparel. This program, which is 
not meant to inhibit legitimate trade, will supplement those monitoring 
activities already undertaken by that office and help ensure compliance 
with the trade remedy laws.
    Implementation of the program began on January 11, 2007 when 
Vietnam became a Member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and will 
cease at the end of the current Administration. Five product groups - 
trousers, shirts, underwear, swimwear and sweaters - have been 
identified as being of special sensitivity for monitoring purposes and 
specific products from these broad categories will constitute the 
initial focus of Import Administration's monitoring efforts. Outreach 
to interested parties, including domestic textile and apparel 
producers, workers, retailers, importers and the Government of Vietnam, 
will continue throughout the monitoring process and products may be 
added or removed from monitoring as appropriate.
OUTREACH PROCESS: As noted, the outreach process will be ongoing and 
continue throughout the life of the program. All parties are welcome to 
meet with or otherwise provide input to the Department There will be no 
restrictions on access to the Department or preconditions for comment 
on the monitoring program. In addition, the Department will establish 
an electronic hotline - [email protected] - 
to make it easier for parties to provide input, raise questions or 
submit suggestions to the Department about the program. The Department 
fully anticipates that input from this outreach process will lead to 
improvements in the monitoring program, as the need arises.
    The Department intends to hold a public hearing on the program in 
Washington, D.C. within the next three months. A separate notice in the 
Federal Register announcing the hearing and providing guidance on 
participation will be issued no later than 30 days in advance of the 
hearing. The Department is also considering the possibility of holding 
a series of field hearings. If held, the Department intends to ensure 
that the locations of these hearings will be convenient to the broad 
array of parties that have expressed interest in the monitoring program 
including domestic textile and apparel producers, workers, retailers 
and importers. The Department is also examining ways in which access to 
the hearing(s) may be extended to those unable to attend in person.
    The Department also intends to develop an email notification system 
to provide parties notice of upcoming developments. Those interested in 
being included in the email notification system should provide the 
Department with their email address. Email addresses may be submitted 
in writing

[[Page 2861]]

or through the email hotline - [email protected].
PRODUCT COVERAGE: The Department intends to monitor five product groups 
- trousers, shirts, underwear, swimwear and sweaters. However, the 
Department recognizes that these five product groups are too broad for 
effective monitoring. Within these five groups, the Department intends 
to focus on those traditional three-digit textile and apparel 
categories of greatest significance based on trade trends, composition 
of the U.S. industry and input from parties, as appropriate. In 
addition to gathering aggregate value data for each of the monitored 
three-digit categories, the Department intends to gather volume, value 
and average unit value data for selected products within those 
categories that will be collected and examined on a 10-digit Harmonized 
Tariff System (HTS) code basis. All data will be updated monthly and 
made available to the public on the Import Administration's Office of 
Textile and Apparel website - http://www.otexa.ita.doc.gov/.
    Product coverage is not intended by the Department necessarily to 
be static. Changes in product coverage may occur in response to input 
received from interested parties, changes in the trade, or as the 
Department broadens its understanding of the composition and structure 
of the domestic textile and apparel industry. Further, as the 
Department's extends its knowledge of the domestic industry and the 
products it produces, as part of its monitoring, biannual evaluation 
and like product analysis, it intends to continue its interaction with 
stakeholders to allow for full comment and input. As part of this 
process, products may be added or removed from monitoring, as 
appropriate.
PRODUCTION TEMPLATES: Production templates will be developed on an as-
needed basis, as merited by the Department's analysis of the monitored 
imports, and their impact on, and relation to, the domestic industry. 
In developing these templates, the Department intends to gather input 
from parties knowledgeable about the production process. Proxy 
countries, appropriate for the product being examined, will not be 
selected until that time.
BIANNUAL EVALUATION: The Department intends to conduct its formal 
evaluation of the information gathered under the monitoring program on 
a biannual basis. Interim reviews are not expected to be conducted 
unless warranted by unforeseen developments.
    As explained above, public import data gathered by the Department 
as part of its monitoring program will be posted on the Import 
Administration website and updated monthly. Data will be reviewed at 
the 10-digit HTS level and shifts in product mix and seasonality will 
be considered when evaluating price and volume trends, as appropriate. 
In addition to analyzing import data as part of this review process, 
the Department will consider domestic industry information including 
production, employment and other indicators of industry health, to the 
extent relevant to the biannual evaluation process.
SELF-INITIATION: Any self-initiation of an antidumping investigation 
arising from this program will be fully consistent with U.S. law as set 
forth in the statute and the Department's regulations, and with the 
applicable WTO rules.
CRITICAL CIRCUMSTANCES: Any application of critical circumstances in 
the context of a self-initiated investigation will be fully consistent 
with U.S. law, and with the applicable WTO rules. Should the Department 
find critical circumstances, suspension of liquidation would apply to 
unliquidated entries of merchandise entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse, for consumption on or after the later of: 1) 90 days before 
the date on which suspension of liquidation is first ordered; or 2) the 
date on which notice of the initiation of the investigation is 
published in the Federal Register (section 733(e)(2) of the Tariff Act 
of 1930, as amended).
NEW REPORTING REQUIREMENTS: There are no new paperwork or reporting 
requirements as a result of the Department's monitoring program. 
Furthermore, all responses to the Department's Federal Register notice 
requests for information, including this request, are strictly 
voluntary.

    Dated: January 17, 2007.
David M. Spooner,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. E7-928 Filed 1-22-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-S