[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 22 (Wednesday, February 2, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5821-5822]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-2217]


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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

[Investigation No. 332-503]


Earned Import Allowance Program: Evaluation of the Effectiveness 
of the Program for Certain Apparel From the Dominican Republic; Second 
Annual Report

AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice of public hearing and opportunity to provide testimony 
and written comments in connection with the Commission's second annual 
report.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. International Trade Commission (Commission) has 
announced its schedule, including the date for the public hearing and 
deadlines for filing briefs and other written submissions, in 
connection with the preparation of its second annual report in 
investigation No. 332-503, Earned Import Allowance Program: Evaluation 
of the Effectiveness of the Program for Certain Apparel from the 
Dominican Republic.

DATES: 
    March 3, 2011: Deadline for filing requests to appear at the public 
hearing.
    March 8, 2011: Deadline for filing pre-hearing briefs and 
statements.
    March 22, 2011: Public hearing.
    April 1, 2011: Deadline for filing post-hearing briefs and 
statements and all other written submissions.
    July 22, 2011: Transmittal of second report to House Committee on 
Ways and Means and Senate Committee on Finance.

ADDRESSES: All Commission offices, including the Commission's hearing 
rooms, are located in the United States International Trade Commission 
Building, 500 E Street, SW., Washington, DC. All written submissions, 
including requests to appear at the hearing, statements, and briefs, 
should be addressed to the Secretary, United States International Trade 
Commission, 500 E Street SW., Washington, DC 20436. The public record 
for this investigation may be viewed on the Commission's electronic 
docket (EDIS) at http://www.usitc.gov/secretary/edis.htm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Project Leader Kimberlie Freund (202-
708-5402 or [email protected]) for information specific to 
this investigation. For information on the legal aspects of this 
investigation, contact William Gearhart of the Commission's Office of 
the General Counsel (202-205-3091 or [email protected]). The 
media should contact Margaret O'Laughlin, Office of External Relations 
(202-205-1819 or [email protected]). Hearing-impaired 
individuals may obtain information on this matter by contacting the 
Commission's TDD terminal at 202-205-1810. General information 
concerning the Commission may also be obtained by accessing its 
Internet server (http://www.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.
    Background: Section 404 of the Dominican Republic-Central America-
United States Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (DR-CAFTA Act) 
(19 U.S.C. 4112) required the Secretary of Commerce to establish an 
Earned Import Allowance Program (EIAP) and directed the Commission to 
conduct annual reviews of the program for the purpose of evaluating its 
effectiveness and making recommendations for improvements. Section 404 
of the DR-CAFTA Act authorizes certain apparel articles wholly 
assembled in an eligible country to enter the United States free of 
duty if accompanied by a certificate that shows evidence of the 
purchase of certain U.S. fabric. The term ``eligible country'' is 
defined to mean the Dominican Republic. More specifically, the program 
allows producers (in the Dominican Republic) that purchase a certain 
quantity of qualifying U.S. fabric for use in the production of certain 
bottoms of cotton in the Dominican Republic to receive a credit that 
can be used to ship a certain quantity of eligible apparel using third 
country fabrics from the Dominican Republic to the United States duty 
free.
    Section 404(d) directs the Commission to conduct an annual review 
of the program for the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of the 
program and making recommendations for improvements. The Commission is 
required to submit its reports to the House Committee on Ways and Means 
and the Senate Committee on Finance. The Commission submitted its first 
annual report (USITC Publication 4175) on July 28, 2010 and expects to 
submit its second report to the committees by July 22, 2011.
    The Commission instituted this investigation pursuant to section 
332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930 to facilitate docketing of submissions 
and also to facilitate public access to Commission records through the 
Commission's EDIS electronic records system.
    Public Hearing: A public hearing in connection with this second 
report will be held at the U.S. International Trade Commission 
Building, 500 E Street, SW., Washington, DC beginning at 9:30 a.m. on 
March 22, 2011. Requests to appear at the public hearing should be 
filed with the Secretary no later than 5:15 p.m., March 3, 2011, in 
accordance with the requirements in the ``Submissions'' section below. 
All pre-hearing briefs and statements should be filed not later than 
5:15 p.m., March 8, 2011; and all post-hearing briefs and statements 
responding to matters raised at the hearing should be filed not later 
than 5:15 p.m., April 1, 2011. If, at of the close of business on March 
3, 2011, no witnesses are scheduled to appear at the hearing, the 
hearing will be canceled. Any person interested in attending the 
hearing as an observer or non-participant may call the Secretary (202-
205-2000) after March 3, 2011, to determine whether the hearing will be 
held.
    Submissions: In lieu of or in addition to participating in the 
hearing, interested parties are invited to file written submissions 
concerning this investigation. All written submissions, including 
requests to appear at the hearing, statements, and briefs, should be 
addressed to the Secretary and must conform to the provisions of 
section 201.8 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 
CFR 201.8). Section 201.8 requires that a signed original (or a copy so 
designated) and fourteen (14) copies of each document be filed. If 
confidential treatment of a 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

[[Page 5822]]

authorize filing submissions with the Secretary by facsimile or 
electronic means only to the extent permitted by section 201.8 of the 
rules (see Handbook for Electronic Filing Procedures, http://www.usitc.gov/secretary/fed_reg_notices/rules/documents/handbook_on_electronic_filing.pdf). Persons with questions regarding 
electronic filing should contact the Secretary (202-205-2000).
    Any submissions that contain confidential business information must 
also conform to 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 
is clearly identified by means of brackets. All written submissions, 
except for confidential business information, will be made available 
for inspection by interested parties.
    The Commission intends to publish only a public report in this 
investigation. Consequently, the report that the Commission sends to 
the committees will not contain any confidential business information. 
Any confidential business information received by the Commission in 
this investigation and used in preparing its report will not be 
published in a manner that would reveal the operations of the firm 
supplying the information.

    By order of the Commission.

    Issued: January 26, 2011.
Marilyn R. Abbott,
Secretary to the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2011-2217 Filed 2-1-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P