[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 158 (Wednesday, August 15, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49055-49056]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-20077]


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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE


Request for Public Comments To Compile the National Trade 
Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to section 181 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended 
(19 U.S.C. 2241), the Office of the United States Trade Representative 
(USTR) is required to publish annually the National Trade Estimate 
Report on Foreign Trade Barriers (NTE). With this notice, the Trade 
Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) is requesting interested persons to 
submit comments to assist it in identifying significant barriers to 
U.S. exports of goods, services, and U.S. foreign direct investment for 
inclusion in the NTE.
    The TPSC invites written comments from the public on issues that 
USTR should examine in preparing the NTE.
    In 2013, USTR will once again release in conjunction with the NTE 
report two reports dealing with additional trade barriers--one on SPS 
measures and one on standards-related measures. USTR will invite 
written comments from the public on issues that should be examined in 
preparing those two reports through a separate Notice in the Federal 
Register that will be forthcoming. Information regarding such measures 
should NOT be submitted in response to this Notice.

DATES: Public comments are due not later than October 15, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Submissions should be made via the Internet at 
www.regulations.gov docket number USTR-2012-0021. For alternatives to 
on-line submissions please contact Donald W. Eiss (202-395-3475). The 
public is strongly encouraged to file submissions electronically rather 
than by facsimile or mail.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions regarding the NTE or on 
submitting comments in response to this notice should be directed to 
Donald W. Eiss at (202) 395-3475.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The NTE sets out an inventory of the most 
important foreign barriers affecting U.S. exports of goods and 
services, U.S. foreign direct investment, and protection of 
intellectual property rights. The inventory facilitates U.S. 
negotiations aimed at reducing or eliminating these barriers. The 
report also provides a valuable tool in enforcing U.S. trade laws and 
strengthening the rules-based trading system. The 2012 NTE Report may 
be found on USTR's Internet Home Page (http://www.ustr.gov) under the 
tab ``Reports''.
    To ensure compliance with the NTE's statutory mandate and the Obama 
Administration's commitment to focus on the most significant foreign 
trade barriers, USTR will be guided by the existence of active private 
sector interest in deciding which restrictions to include in the NTE.
    Topics on which the TPSC Seeks Information: To assist USTR in 
preparing the NTE, commenters should submit information related to one 
or more of the following categories of foreign trade barriers:
    (1) Import policies (e.g., tariffs and other import charges, 
quantitative

[[Page 49056]]

restrictions, import licensing, and customs barriers);
    (2) Government procurement restrictions (e.g.,''buy national 
policies'' and closed bidding);
    (3) Export subsidies (e.g., export financing on preferential terms 
and agricultural export subsidies that displace U.S. exports in third 
country markets);
    (4) Lack of intellectual property protection (e.g., inadequate 
patent, copyright, and trademark regimes);
    (5) Services barriers (e.g., limits on the range of financial 
services offered by foreign financial institutions, regulation of 
international data flows, restrictions on the use of data processing, 
quotas on imports of foreign films, and barriers to the provision of 
services by professionals);
    (6) Investment barriers (e.g., limitations on foreign equity 
participation and on access to foreign government-funded R&D consortia, 
local content, technology transfer and export performance requirements, 
and restrictions on repatriation of earnings, capital, fees, and 
royalties);
    (7) Government-tolerated anticompetitive conduct of state-owned or 
private firms that restrict the sale or purchase of U.S. goods or 
services in the foreign country's markets;
    (8) Trade restrictions affecting electronic commerce (e.g., tariff 
and non-tariff measures, burdensome and discriminatory regulations and 
standards, and discriminatory taxation); and
    (9) Other barriers (e.g., barriers that encompass more than one 
category, such as bribery and corruption, or that affect a single 
sector).
    In responding to this notice, commenters should place particular 
emphasis on any practices that may violate U.S. trade agreements. The 
TPSC is also interested in receiving new or updated information 
pertinent to the barriers covered in the 2012 NTE as well as 
information on new barriers. If USTR does not include in the NTE 
information that it receives pursuant to this notice, it will maintain 
the information for potential use in future discussions or negotiations 
with trading partners.
    Estimate of Increase in Exports: Each comment should include an 
estimate of the potential increase in U.S. exports that would result 
from removing any foreign trade barrier the comment identifies, as well 
as a description of the methodology the commenter used to derive the 
estimate. Estimates should be expressed within the following value 
ranges: Less than $5 million; $5 to $25 million; $25 million to $50 
million; $50 million to $100 million; $100 million to $500 million; or 
over $500 million. These estimates will help USTR conduct comparative 
analyses of a barrier's effect over a range of industries.
    Requirements for Submissions: Commenters providing information on 
foreign trade barriers in more than one country should, whenever 
possible, provide a separate submission for each country. Comments 
addressing SPS or standards-related measures should not be submitted in 
response to this request but should be submitted in response to the 
separate request for comments which will be forthcoming.
    In order to ensure the timely receipt and consideration of 
comments, USTR strongly encourages commenters to make on-line 
submissions, using the http://www.regulations.gov Web site. Comments 
should be submitted under docket number USTR-2012-0021.
    To find this docket, enter the docket number in the ``Enter Keyword 
or ID'' window at the http://www.regulations.gov home page and click 
``Search.'' The site will provide a search-results page listing all 
documents associated with that docket number. Find a reference to this 
notice by selecting ``Notices'' under ``Document Type'' on the search-
results page, and click on the link entitled ``Submit a Comment.'' (For 
further information on using the www.regulations.gov Web site, please 
consult the resources provided on the Web site by clicking on the 
``Help'' tab.)
    The http://www.regulations.gov Web site provides the option of 
making submissions by filling in a comments field, or by attaching a 
document. USTR prefers submissions to be provided in an attached 
document. If a document is attached, please identify the name of the 
country to which the submission pertains in the ``Comments'' field. For 
example: ``See attached comment for (name of country)''. USTR prefers 
submissions in Microsoft Word (.doc) or Adobe Acrobat (.pdf). If the 
submission is in an application other than those two, please indicate 
the name of the application in the ``Comments'' field.
    For any comments submitted electronically containing business 
confidential information, the file name of the business confidential 
version should begin with the characters ``BC''. The top of any page 
containing business confidential information must be clearly marked 
``BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL''. Any person filing comments that contain 
business confidential information must also file in a separate 
submission a public version of the comments. The file name of the 
public version of the comments should begin with the character ``P''. 
The ``BC'' and ``P'' should be followed by the name of the person or 
entity submitting the comments. If a comment contains no business 
confidential information, the file name should begin with the character 
``P'', followed by the name of the person or entity submitting the 
comments.
    Please do not attach separate cover letters to electronic 
submissions; rather, include any information that might appear in a 
cover letter in the comments themselves. Similarly, to the extent 
possible, please include any exhibits, annexes, or other attachments in 
the same file as the submission itself, not as separate files.
    Public inspection of submissions: Comments will be placed in the 
docket and open to public inspection pursuant to 15 CFR 2006.13, except 
confidential business information exempt from public inspection in 
accordance with 15 CFR 2006.15. Comments may be viewed on the http://www.regulations.gov Web site by entering the relevant docket number in 
the search field on the home page.

Douglas M. Bell,
Chair, Trade Policy Staff Committee.
[FR Doc. 2012-20077 Filed 8-14-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3290-F2-P