[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 34 (Tuesday, February 21, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10034-10036]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-3974]
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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
Generalized System of Preferences (GSP): Notice Regarding the
2011 GSP Annual Product Review
AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces which petitions submitted in connection
with the 2011 GSP Annual Product Review have been accepted for further
review. In addition, twelve cotton products will be reviewed for
possible designation as eligible for GSP benefits for least-developed
country beneficiaries of the GSP program. This notice also sets forth
the schedule for submitting comments and for public hearings associated
with the review of these petitions and products.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tameka Cooper, GSP Program, Office of
the United States Trade Representative, 600 17th Street NW., Room 422,
Washington, DC 20508. The telephone number is (202) 395-6971, the fax
number is (202) 395-9674, and the email address is [email protected].
DATES: The GSP regulations (15 CFR Part 2007) provide the schedule of
dates for conducting an annual review unless otherwise specified in a
notice published in the Federal Register. The schedule for the 2011 GSP
Annual Product Review is set forth below. Notification of any other
changes will be published in the Federal Register.
March 6, 2012--Due date for submission of comments, pre-hearing
briefs and requests to appear at the GSP Subcommittee Public Hearing on
the 2011 GSP Annual Product Review.
[[Page 10035]]
March 20, 2012--GSP Subcommittee Public Hearing on all proposed or
petitioned product additions and CNL waiver petitions accepted for the
2011 GSP Annual Product Review. The hearing will be held in Rooms 1 and
2, 1724 F St. NW., Washington, DC 20508, beginning at 9:30 a.m.
Late March 2012--A U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC)
public hearing will be held on the probable economic effect of granting
the proposed or petitioned product additions and CNL waiver petitions.
(USITC will announce the date, time, and place of this hearing in a
separate notice published in the Federal Register.)
April 10, 2012--Due date for submission of post-hearing comments or
briefs in connection with the GSP Subcommittee Public Hearing.
Late May 2012--The USITC is scheduled to publish a public version
of its report providing advice on the probable economic effect of the
prospective addition of products and granting of CNL waiver petitions
considered as part of 2011 GSP Annual Product Review. Comments on the
USITC report on these products will be due 10 calendar days after the
date of USITC's publication of the public version of the report.
July 1, 2012: Effective date for any modifications that the
President proclaims to the list of articles eligible for duty-free
treatment under the GSP resulting from the 2011 Annual Product Review
and for determinations related to CNL waivers.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The GSP program provides for the duty-free
importation of designated articles when imported from designated
beneficiary developing countries. The GSP program is authorized by
Title V of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2461, et seq.), as amended
(the ``1974 Act''), and is implemented in accordance with Executive
Order 11888 of November 24, 1975, as modified by subsequent Executive
Orders and Presidential Proclamations.
Petitions Requesting Modifications of Product Eligibility
In a notice published in the Federal Register on November 1, 2011,
USTR announced the initiation of the 2011 GSP Annual Review and
indicated that the interagency GSP Subcommittee of the Trade Policy
Staff Committee (TPSC) was prepared to receive petitions to modify the
list of products that are eligible for duty-free treatment under the
GSP program and petitions to waive CNLs on imports of certain products
from specific beneficiary countries. On December 7, 2011, USTR
announced that the deadline for the filing of such petitions had been
extended to December 30, 2011 (76 FR 76477; see also 76 FR 67531).
The GSP Subcommittee of the TPSC has reviewed the product and CNL
waiver petitions submitted in response to these announcements, and has
decided to accept for review one petition to add a product to the list
of those eligible for duty-free treatment under GSP and nine petitions
to waive CNLs. Twelve cotton products will also be reviewed for
possible designation as eligible for GSP benefits for least-developed
country beneficiaries of the GSP program. The cotton products are being
considered for GSP eligibility at the initiative of USTR consistent
with USTR's December 2011 announcement of trade initiatives intended to
enable least-developed countries to benefit more fully from global
trade.
A list of all the petitions and products accepted for review is
posted on the USTR Web site at http://www.ustr.gov/trade-topics/trade-development/preference-programs/generalized-system-preference-gsp/current-review-4 under the title ``Petitions Accepted in the 2011 GSP
Annual Product Review.'' This list can also be found at
www.regulations.gov in Docket Number USTR-2011-0015. No other petitions
to modify the list of products eligible for duty-free treatment under
GSP or to grant CNL waivers have been accepted for review. Acceptance
of a petition for review does not indicate any opinion with respect to
the disposition on the merits of the petition. Acceptance indicates
only that the listed petitions have been found eligible for review by
the TPSC and that such review will take place.
The GSP Subcommittee of the TPSC invites comments in support of or
in opposition to any product or petition that has been accepted for the
2011 GSP Annual Product Review. The GSP Subcommittee of the TPSC will
also convene a public hearing on these products and petitions. See
below for information on how to submit a request to testify at this
hearing.
Requirements for Submissions
Submissions in response to this notice (including requests to
testify, written comments, and pre-hearing and post-hearing briefs),
with the exception of business confidential submissions, must be
submitted electronically by 5 p.m., Tuesday, March 6, 2012, or for post
hearing briefs only by 5 p.m., Tuesday, April 10, 2012 using
www.regulations.gov, docket number USTR-2011-0015. Instructions for
submitting business confidential versions are provided below. Hand-
delivered submissions will not be accepted. Submissions must be
submitted in English to William D. Jackson, Chairman of the GSP
Subcommittee, Trade Policy Staff Committee, by the applicable deadlines
set forth in this notice.
All submissions for the GSP Annual Review must conform to the GSP
regulations set forth at 15 CFR part 2007, except as modified below.
These regulations are available on the USTR Web site at http://www.ustr.gov/trade-topics/trade-development/preference-programs/generalized-system-preference-gsp/gsp-program-inf. Any person or party
making a submission is strongly advised to review the GSP regulations
as well as the GSP Guidebook, which is available at the same link.
To make a submission using www.regulations.gov, enter docket number
USTR-2011-0015 in the ``Enter Keyword or ID'' field on the home page
and click ``Search.'' The site will provide a search-results page
listing all documents associated with this docket. Find a reference to
this notice by selecting ``Notice'' under ``Document Type'' in the top-
middle section of the search-results page, and click on the link
entitled ``Submit a Comment'' on the right-hand side of the page under
the heading ``Actions.'' The www.regulations.gov Web site offers the
option of providing comments by filling in a ``Type Comment'' field or
by attaching a document using the ``Upload file(s)'' field. Given the
detailed nature of the information sought by the GSP Subcommittee, it
is preferred that submissions be provided in an attached document. When
attaching a document, type (1) 2011 GSP Annual Product Review; (2) the
product description, case number, and related Harmonized Tariff System
(HTS) tariff number; (3) ``See attached'' in the ``Type Comment'' field
on the online submission form, and indicate on the attachment whether
the document is, as appropriate, ``Written Comments,'' ``Notice of
Intent to Testify,'' ``Pre-hearing brief,'' or a ``Post-hearing
brief.'' The product description, case number and HTS subheading number
can be found in the document ``Petitions Accepted in the 2011 GSP
Annual Product Review,'' which can be found on the USTR Web site at
http://www.ustr.gov/trade-topics/trade-development/preference-programs/generalized-system-preference-gsp/current-review-4. Submissions should
not exceed 30 single-spaced, standard letter-size pages in 12-point
type, including attachments.
[[Page 10036]]
Any data attachments to the submission should be included in the same
file as the submission itself, and not as separate files.
Each submitter will receive a submission tracking number upon
completion of the submissions procedure at http://www.regulations.gov.
The tracking number will be the submitter's confirmation that the
submission was received into http://www.regulations.gov. The
confirmation should be kept for the submitter's records. USTR is not
able to provide technical assistance for the Web site. Documents not
submitted in accordance with these instructions may not be considered
in this review. If unable to provide submissions as requested, please
contact the GSP Program at USTR to arrange for an alternative method of
transmission.
Business Confidential Submissions
A person seeking to request that information contained in a
submission from that person be treated as business confidential
information must certify that such information is business confidential
and would not customarily be released to the public by the submitter.
Confidential business information must be clearly designated as such.
The submission must be marked ``BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL'' at the top and
bottom of the cover page and each succeeding page, and the submission
should indicate, via brackets, the specific information that is
confidential. Additionally, ``Business Confidential'' must be included
in the ``Type Comment'' field. Any submission containing business
confidential information must be accompanied by a separate non-
confidential version of the confidential submission, indicating where
confidential information has been redacted. The non-confidential
version will be placed in the docket and open to public inspection.
Notice of Public Hearing
The GSP Subcommittee of the TPSC will hold a hearing on Tuesday,
March 20, 2012, on products and petitions accepted for the 2011 GSP
Annual Review beginning at 9:30 a.m. at the Office of the U.S. Trade
Representative, Rooms 1 and 2, 1724 F St. NW., Washington, DC 20508.
The hearing will be open to the public, and a transcript of the hearing
will be made available on www.regulations.gov within two weeks of the
hearing. No electronic media coverage will be allowed.
All interested parties wishing to make an oral presentation at the
hearing must submit, following the above ``Requirements for
Submissions'', the name, address, telephone number, and email address
(if available), of the witness(es) representing their organization to
William D. Jackson, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for GSP
by 5 p.m., Tuesday, March 6, 2012. Requests to present oral testimony
in connection with the public hearing must be accompanied by a written
brief or summary statement, in English, and also must be received by 5
p.m., Tuesday, March 6, 2012. Oral testimony before the GSP
Subcommittee will be limited to five-minute presentations that
summarize or supplement information contained in briefs or statements
submitted for the record. Post-hearing briefs or statements will be
accepted if they conform with the regulations cited above and are
submitted, in English, by 5 p.m., Tuesday, April 10, 2012, following
the ``Requirements for Submissions'' above. Parties not wishing to
appear at the public hearing may submit pre-hearing briefs or
statements, in English, by 5 p.m., Tuesday, March 6, 2012, and post-
hearing written briefs or statements, in English, by 5 p.m., Tuesday,
April 10, 2012, also in accordance with the ``Requirements for
Submissions'' above. Public versions of all documents relating to the
2011 Annual Review will be made available for public viewing in docket
USTR-2011-0015 at www.regulations.gov upon completion of processing and
no later than one week after the due date.
Donnette R. Rimmer,
Director for the Generalized System of Preferences, Office of the U.S.
Trade Representative.
[FR Doc. 2012-3974 Filed 2-17-12; 8:45 am]
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