[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 194 (Wednesday, October 7, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60713-60714]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-25546]



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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

[Investigation No. 1205-12]


Commission Recommendations to the President To Modify the Tariff 
Nomenclature in Chapters 3, 44, and 63 of the Harmonized Tariff 
Schedule

AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice of institution of investigation.

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SUMMARY: Following adoption by the World Customs Organization (WCO) of 
certain recommended modifications to the Harmonized System on June 11, 
2015, the Commission has instituted investigation No. 1205-12, 
Commission Recommendations to the President to Modify the Tariff 
Nomenclature in Chapters 3, 44, and 63 of the Harmonized Tariff 
Schedule, pursuant to section 1205 of the Omnibus Trade and 
Competitiveness Act of 1988 (the 1988 Act) (19 U.S.C. 3005).
    The WCO recommendation calls upon the Contracting Parties to the 
International Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description and 
Coding System (Convention) to amend their tariff nomenclature to make 
certain corrections to Chapters 3 and 63, and to make further 
amendments to their nomenclature relating to Chapter 44 that were 
inadvertently omitted from the Council Recommendation of June 27, 2014. 
The amendments to Chapters 3 and 63 are expected to enter into force on 
January 1, 2017, and the amendments to Chapter 44, on January 1, 2018. 
The amendments to Chapters 3 and 63 relate to the text of certain 
subheadings of headings 03.01 and 03.03 (certain fish), and Subheading 
Note 1 to Chapter 63 and subheading 6304.20 (certain textiles). The 
amendments to Chapter 44 relate to several subheadings for certain wood 
and wood products.

DATES: 
    October 7, 2015: Posting of the WCO's Recommendation of June 11, 
2015, on the Commission Web site.
    February 12, 2016: Posting of the Commission's proposed 
recommendations on the Commission's Web site.
    March 18, 2016: Deadline for interested Federal agencies and the 
public to file written views on the Commission's proposed 
recommendations.
    July 22, 2016: Transmittal of the Commission's report to the 
President.

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: Daniel P. Shepherdson, Attorney-
Advisor, Office of Tariff Affairs and Trade Agreements (202-205-2598, 
or [email protected]) or Cynthia Wilson, Nomenclature 
Analyst, Office of Tariff Affairs and Trade Agreements (202-205-3052, 
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 about the Commission may be 
obtained by accessing the Commission Web site at 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 1205(a) of the 1988 Act requires that the 
Commission keep the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States 
(Harmonized Tariff Schedule or HTS) under continuous review and 
periodically recommend to the President such modifications in the HTS 
as the Commission considers necessary or appropriate, including to 
conform the HTS with amendments made to the International Convention on 
the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (Convention), 
which contains the Harmonized System nomenclature in the Annex to the 
Convention.
    The Harmonized System nomenclature provides uniform product 
architecture for the customs tariffs and statistical nomenclatures of 
all major trading countries of the world, including the United States. 
The Harmonized System establishes the general arrangement or structure 
of product categories, set forth in chapters, 4-digit headings and 6-
digit subheadings. It also includes the general rules of 
interpretation, and section and chapter legal notes that define the 
scope of sections, chapters, 4-digit headings and 6-digit subheadings. 
The Harmonized Tariff Schedule is based on the Harmonized System 
nomenclature. In addition, however, the HTS includes national 
subdivisions (8-digit subheadings and 10-digit statistical 
annotations), as well as additional U.S. chapter notes, and other 
national provisions that facilitate the administration of U.S. customs, 
tariff and statistical programs.
    The Commission will recommend such modifications in the HTS as it 
considers necessary or appropriate to conform the HTS with amendments 
recommended in the WCO Council Recommendation of June 11, 2015. In that 
recommendation the WCO Council recommended that the Contracting Parties 
to the Convention amend their tariff nomenclature to make certain 
corrections that were inadvertently omitted from the Council 
Recommendation of June 27, 2014. The amendments to Chapters 3 and 63 
relate to the text of certain subheadings of headings 03.02 and 03.03 
(certain fish), and Subheading Note 1 to Chapter 63 and subheading 
6304.20 (certain textiles); and the amendments to Chapter 44 relate to 
several subheadings for certain wood and wood products. The amendments 
to Chapters 3 and 63 are expected to enter into force on January 1, 
2017, and the amendments to Chapter 44, on January 1, 2018.
    The Commission expects to transmit its report to the President 
containing its recommendations in July 2016. The Commission's report 
will include, in addition to its recommendations, a summary of the 
information on which the recommendations were based, a statement of the 
probable economic effect of each recommended change on any industry in 
the United States, a copy of all written views submitted by interested 
Federal agencies, and a copy or summary of the views of all other 
interested parties.
    Proposed Recommendations, Opportunity To Comment: Before making 
recommendations to the President, the Commission will provide notice of 
its ``proposed recommendations'' and will afford opportunity for 
interested Federal agencies and the public to present their views in 
writing on those proposed recommendations in accordance with the 
procedures in the following paragraphs. The Commission expects to post 
those proposed recommendations on its Web site by February 12, 2016.
    Written Submissions: Following publication of the Commission's 
``proposed recommendations,'' all interested parties, including 
interested Federal agencies, are invited to file written submissions 
concerning the recommendations the Commission

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should make to the President. All such written submissions should be 
addressed to the Secretary, and should be received not later than 5:15 
p.m., March 18, 2016. 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 
Office of the Secretary (202-205-2000).
    Any submissions that contain confidential business information 
(CBI) 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 ``non-confidential'' 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. The Commission may include some or all of the confidential 
business information submitted in the course of this investigation in 
the report it sends to the USTR. The Commission will not otherwise 
publish any confidential business information in a manner that would 
reveal the operations of the firm supplying the information.

    By order of the Commission.

    Issued: October 2, 2015.
William R. Bishop,
Supervisory Information and Hearings Officer.
[FR Doc. 2015-25546 Filed 10-6-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7020-02-P