[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 23 (Wednesday, February 4, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6137-6138]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-02103]


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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

[Investigation No. 332-552]


Overview of Cuban Imports of Goods and Services and Effects of 
U.S. Restrictions

AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.

ACTION: Institution of investigation and scheduling of hearing.

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SUMMARY: Following receipt on December 17, 2014, of a request from the 
Senate Committee on Finance (Committee) under section 332(g) of the 
Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1332(g)), the U.S. International Trade 
Commission (Commission) instituted investigation No. 332-552, Overview 
of Cuban Imports of Goods and Services and Effects of U.S. 
Restrictions.

DATES: 
    March 10, 2015: Deadline for filing requests to appear at the 
public hearing.
    March 12, 2015: Deadline for filing prehearing briefs and 
statements.
    March 24, 2015: Public hearing.
    March 31, 2015: Deadline for filing posthearing briefs and 
statements.
    April 15, 2015: Deadline for filing all other written submissions.
    September 15, 2015: Transmittal of Commission report to the 
Committee.

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 
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 Heidi Colby-Oizumi 
(202-205-3391 or [email protected]) or deputy project leader Alissa 
Tafti (202-205-3244 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: As requested by the Committee, the Commission will 
conduct an investigation and provide a report that provides an overview 
of recent and current trends in Cuban imports of goods and services, 
including from the United States, and an analysis of U.S. restrictions 
affecting such purchases, including restrictions on U.S. citizen travel 
to Cuba. The Committee asked that the report, to the extent possible, 
include the following:
    1. An overview of Cuba's imports of goods and services from, to the 
extent possible, 2005 to the present, including identification of major 
supplying countries, products, and market segments;
    2. a description of how U.S. restrictions on trade, including those 
relating to export financing terms and travel to Cuba by U.S. citizens, 
affect Cuban imports of U.S. goods and services; and
    3. for sectors where the impact is likely to be significant, a 
qualitative and, to the extent possible, quantitative estimate of U.S. 
exports of goods and services to Cuba, in the event that statutory, 
regulatory, or other trade restrictions on U.S. exports of goods and 
services as well as travel to Cuba by U.S. citizens are lifted.
    The Committee also asked that the report include, to the extent 
possible, state-specific analysis of the impacts described above. The 
Committee asked that the Commission deliver its report no later than 
September 15, 2015. The Committee also stated that it intends to make 
the Commission's report public and asked that the report not include 
any confidential business information.
    Public Hearing: The Commission will hold a public hearing in 
connection with this investigation at the U.S. International Trade 
Commission Building, 500 E Street SW., Washington, DC, beginning at 
9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, March 24, 2015. Requests to appear at

[[Page 6138]]

the public hearing should be filed with the Secretary not later than 
5:15 p.m., March 10, 2015, in accordance with the requirements in the 
``Submissions'' section below. All prehearing briefs and statements 
should be filed with the Secretary not later than 5:15 p.m., March 12, 
2015; and all posthearing briefs and statements responding to matters 
raised at the hearing should be filed with the Secretary not later than 
5:15 p.m., March 31, 2015. All hearing-related briefs and statements 
should be filed in accordance with the requirements for filing written 
submissions set out below. In the event that, as of the close of 
business on March 10, 2015, 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 nonparticipant may call the 
Office of the Secretary (202-205-2000) after March 5, 2015, for 
information concerning whether the hearing will be held.
    Written 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 
should be addressed to the Secretary, and all such submissions (other 
than prehearing and posthearing briefs and statements) should be 
received not later than 5:15 p.m., April 15, 2015. All written 
submissions must conform with the provisions of section 201.8 of the 
Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 CFR 201.8). Section 
201.8 and the Commission's Handbook on Filing Procedures require that 
interested parties file documents electronically on or before the 
filing deadline and submit eight (8) true paper copies by 12:00 p.m. 
eastern time on the next business day. In the event that confidential 
treatment of a document is requested, interested parties must file, at 
the same time as the eight paper copies, at least four (4) additional 
true paper copies in which the confidential information must be deleted 
(see the following paragraph for further information regarding 
confidential business information). Persons with questions regarding 
electronic filing should contact the Secretary (202-205-2000).
    Any submissions that contain confidential business information must 
also conform with 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 
``nonconfidential'' version, and that the confidential business 
information be clearly identified by means of brackets. All written 
submissions, except for confidential business information, will be made 
available for inspection by interested parties.
    In the request letter, the Committee stated that it intends to make 
the Commission's report available to the public in its entirety, and 
asked that the Commission not include any confidential business 
information in the report it sends to the Committee. Any confidential 
business information received by the Commission in this investigation 
and used in preparing this report will not be published in a manner 
that would reveal the operations of the firm supplying the information.
    Summaries of Written Submissions: The Commission intends to publish 
summaries of the positions of interested persons in an appendix to its 
report. Persons wishing to have a summary of their position included in 
the appendix should include a summary with their written submission. 
The summary may not exceed 500 words, should be in MSWord format or a 
format that can be easily converted to MSWord, and should not include 
any confidential business information. The summary will be published as 
provided if it meets these requirements and is germane to the subject 
matter of the investigation. In the appendix the Commission will 
identify the name of the organization furnishing the summary, and will 
include a link to the Commission's Electronic Document Information 
System (EDIS) where the full written submission can be found.

    By order of the Commission.

     Issued: January 29, 2015.
Lisa R. Barton,
Secretary to the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2015-02103 Filed 2-3-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P