[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 77 (Thursday, April 21, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23518-23520]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-09182]
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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION
[Investigation No. 332-558]
Nepal: Advice Concerning Whether Certain Textile and Apparel
Articles Are Import Sensitive
AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.
ACTION: Notice of institution of investigation and scheduling of public
hearing.
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SUMMARY: Following receipt of a request on March 30, 2016 from the
United States Trade Representative (USTR), the U.S. International Trade
Commission (Commission) instituted investigation No. 332-558, Nepal:
Advice Concerning Whether Certain Textile and Apparel Articles Are
Import Sensitive. The report will provide the advice requested by the
USTR.
DATES:
May 23, 2016: Deadline for filing requests to appear at the public
hearing.
May 25, 2016: Deadline for filing pre-hearing briefs and
statements.
June 9, 2016: Public hearing.
June 14, 2016: Deadline for filing post-hearing briefs and
statements.
June 24, 2016: Deadline for filing all other written submissions.
September 29, 2016: Transmittal of Commission report to the USTR.
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: Information specific to this
investigation may be obtained from Andrea Boron, Project Leader, Office
of Industries (202-205-3433 or [email protected]), or Natalie
Hanson, Deputy Project Leader, Office of Industries (202-205-2571 or
[email protected]). 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 Web
site (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 noted by the USTR in his request letter, on February
24, 2016, the President signed the Trade Facilitation and Trade
Enforcement Act of 2015 (the Act) (Pub. L. 114-125) into law. Section
915 of the Act authorizes the President to establish a trade preference
program for Nepal. Prior to determining whether an article is an
eligible article for the purposes of the Act, the President is required
to receive the advice of the Commission, in accordance with section
503(e) of the Trade Act of 1974 (the 1974 Act) (19 U.S.C. 2463(e)),
that the article is not import-sensitive in the context of imports from
Nepal.
In his request letter the USTR notified the Commission, under
authority delegated to him in accordance with sections 503(a)(1)(A),
503(e), and 131(a) of the 1974 Act, as amended (19 U.S.C.
2463(a)(1)(A), 2463(e), and 2151(a)), that the 66 eight-digit textile
and apparel tariff lines identified in Table A of the Annex to his
request letter are being considered for designation as eligible
articles for purposes of the Act. The USTR requested that the
Commission provide its advice as to whether these articles are import-
sensitive in the context of imports from Nepal. He asked that this
advice include the probable economic effect on total U.S. imports, on
U.S. industries producing like or directly competitive articles, and on
U.S. consumers of the elimination of U.S. import duties for Nepal on
the articles identified in Table A of the Annex to his request letter
(see Table A below).
Table A--Products Being Considered for Designation as Eligible Products
for Nepal
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HTS subheading Brief description
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4202.11.00......................... Trunks, suitcases, vanity & all
other cases, occupational luggage
& like containers, surface of
leather, composition or patent
leather.
4202.12.20......................... Trunks, suitcases, vanity and
attach[eacute] cases, occupational
luggage and similar containers,
with outer surface of plastics.
4202.12.40......................... Trunks, suitcases, vanity &
attach[eacute] cases, occupational
luggage & like containers,
surfaces of cotton, not of pile or
tufted construction.
4202.12.60......................... Trunks, suitcases, vanity &
attach[eacute] cases, occupational
luggage & like containers, w outer
surface of veg. fibers, excl.
cotton.
4202.12.80......................... Trunks, suitcases, vanity &
attach[eacute] cases, occupational
luggage and similar containers,
with outer surface of textile
materials nesi.
4202.21.60......................... Handbags, with or without shoulder
strap or without handle, with
outer surface of leather,
composition or patent leather,
nesi, n/o $ ea.
4202.21.90......................... Handbags, with or without shoulder
strap or without handle, with
outer surface of leather,
composition or patent leather,
nesi, over $ ea.
4202.22.15......................... Handbags, with or without shoulder
straps or without handle, with
outer surface of sheeting of
plastics.
[[Page 23519]]
4202.22.40......................... Handbags with or without shoulder
strap or without handle, with
outer surface of textile
materials, wholly or in part of
braid, nesi.
4202.22.45......................... Handbags with or without shoulder
strap or without handle, with
outer surface of cotton, not of
pile or tufted construction or
braid.
4202.22.60......................... Handbags with or w/o shoulder strap
or w/o handle, outer surface of
veg. fibers, exc. cotton, not of
pile or tufted construction or
braid.
4202.22.70......................... Handbags with or w/o shoulder strap
or w/o handle, with outer surface
containing % or more of silk, not
braided.
4202.22.80......................... Handbags with or without shoulder
strap or without handle, with
outer surface of textile
materials, nesi.
4202.29.50......................... Handbags w. or w/o shld. strap or w/
o handle of mat. (o/t leather,
shtng. of plas., tex. mat., vul.
fib. or paperbd.), pap.cov., of
mat. nesi.
4202.29.90......................... Handbags with or without shoulder
straps or without handle, with
outer surface of vulcanized fiber
or of paperboard, not covered with
paper.
4202.31.60......................... Articles of a kind normally carried
in the pocket or handbag, with
outer surface of leather,
composition or patent leather,
nesi.
4202.32.40......................... Articles of a kind normally carried
in the pocket or handbag, with
outer surface of cotton, not of
pile or tufted construction.
4202.32.80......................... Articles of a kind normally carried
in the pocket or handbag, with
outer surface of vegetable fibers,
not of pile or tufted
construction, nesi.
4202.32.95......................... Articles of a kind normally carried
in the pocket or handbag, with
outer surface of textile
materials, nesi.
4202.91.00......................... Cases, bags and containers nesi,
with outer surface of leather, of
composition leather or patent
leather.
4202.92.08......................... Insulated food or beverage bags
with outer surface of textile
materials, nesoi.
4202.92.15......................... Travel, sports and similar bags
with outer surface of cotton, not
of pile or tufted construction.
4202.92.20......................... Travel, sports and similar bags
with outer surface of vegetable
fibers, excl. cotton, not of pile
construction.
4202.92.30......................... Travel, sports and similar bags
with outer surface of textile
materials other than of vegetable
fibers.
4202.92.45......................... Travel, sports and similar bags
with outer surface of plastic
sheeting.
4202.92.60......................... Bags, cases and similar containers,
nesi, with outer surface of
cotton.
4202.92.90......................... Bags, cases and similar containers
nesi, with outer surface of
plastic sheeting or of textile
materials, excl. cotton.
4202.99.90......................... Cases, bags and similar containers,
nesi, with outer surface of
vulcanized fiber or of paperboard.
4203.29.50......................... Gloves, mittens and mitts of
leather or composition leather,
nesi, lined, for persons other
than men.
5701.10.90......................... Carpets and other textile floor
coverings, of wool or fine animal
hair, not hand-hooked, not hand
knotted during weaving.
5702.31.20......................... Carpets and other textile floor
coverings of pile construction,
woven, not tufted or flocked, not
made up, of wool/fine animal hair,
nesoi.
5702.49.20......................... Carpets & other textile floor
coverings of pile construction,
woven, not tufted or flocked, made
up, of other textile materials
nesoi.
5702.50.40......................... Carpets & other textile floor
coverings, not of pile
construction, woven, not made up,
of wool or fine animal hair,
nesoi.
5702.50.59......................... Carpets & other textile floor
coverings, not of pile
construction, woven, not made up,
of other textile materials nesoi.
5702.91.30......................... Floor coverings, not of pile
construction, woven not on power-
driven loom, made up, of wool or
fine animal hair, nesi.
5702.91.40......................... Carpets & other textile floor
coverings, not of pile
construction, woven nesoi, made
up, of wool or fine animal hair,
nesoi.
5702.92.90......................... Carpet & other textile floor
coverings, not of pile
construction, woven, made up, of
man-made textile materials, nesi.
5702.99.15......................... Carpets and other textile floor
coverings, not of pile
construction, woven, made up, of
cotton, nesoi.
5703.10.20......................... Hand-hooked carpets and other
textile floor coverings, tufted,
whether or not made up, of wool or
fine animal hair.
5703.10.80......................... Carpets and other textile floor
coverings, tufted, whether or not
made up, of wool or fine animal
hair, nesoi.
5703.90.00......................... Carpets and other textile floor
coverings, tufted, whether or not
made up, of other textile
materials nesoi.
5705.00.20......................... Carpets and other textile floor
coverings, whether or not made up,
nesoi.
6117.10.60......................... Shawls, scarves, mufflers,
mantillas, veils and the like,
nesoi.
6117.80.85......................... Headbands, ponytail holders &
similar articles, of textile
materials other than containing %
or more by weight of silk, knitted/
crocheted.
6214.10.10......................... Shawls, scarves, mufflers,
mantillas, veils and the like, not
knitted or crocheted, containing %
or more silk or silk waste.
6214.10.20......................... Shawls, scarves, mufflers,
mantillas, veils and the like, not
knitted or crocheted, containing
less than % silk or silk waste.
6214.20.00......................... Shawls, scarves, mufflers,
mantillas, veils and the like, not
knitted or crocheted, of wool or
fine animal hair.
6214.40.00......................... Shawls, scarves, mufflers,
mantillas, veils and the like, not
knitted or crocheted, of
artificial fibers.
6214.90.00......................... Shawls, scarves, mufflers,
mantillas, veils and the like, not
knitted or crocheted, of textile
materials nesoi.
6216.00.80......................... Gloves, mittens and mitts, not
knitted or crocheted, of wool or
fine animal hair, nesoi.
6217.10.85......................... Headbands, ponytail holders and
similar articles, of textile
materials containing < % by weight
of silk, not knit/crochet.
6301.90.00......................... Blankets and traveling rugs, nesoi.
6308.00.00......................... Needlecraft sets for making up into
rugs, etc., consist of woven
fabric and yarn, whether/not w/
accessories, put up packings for
retail sale.
6504.00.90......................... Hats and headgear, plaited or
assembled from strips of any
material (o/than veg. fibers/
unspun fibrous veg. materials and/
or paper yarn).
6505.00.08......................... Hats and headgear made from hat
forms and hat bodies of, except of
fur felt.
6505.00.15......................... Hats and headgear, of cotton and/or
flax, knitted.
6505.00.20......................... Headwear, of cotton, not knitted;
certified hand-loomed and folklore
hats & headgear, of cotton or
flax, not knitted.
6505.00.25......................... Hats and headgear, of cotton or
flax, not knitted, not certified
hand-loomed folklore goods.
6505.00.30......................... Hats and headgear, of wool, knitted
or crocheted or made up from
knitted or crocheted fabric.
6505.00.40......................... Hats and headgear, of wool, made up
from felt or of textile material,
not knitted or crocheted or made
up from knitted or crocheted
fabric.
6505.00.50......................... Hats and headgear, of man-made
fibers, knitted or crocheted or
made up from knitted or crocheted
fabric, wholly or in part of
braid.
6505.00.60......................... Hats and headgear, of man-made
fibers, knitted or crocheted or
made up from knitted or crocheted
fabrics, not in part of braid.
6505.00.80......................... Hats and headgear, of man-made
fibers, made up from felt or of
textile material, not knitted or
crocheted, not in part of braid.
6505.00.90......................... Hats and headgear, of textile
materials (other than of cotton,
flax, wool or man-made fibers),
nesoi.
6506.99.30......................... Headgear, nesoi, of furskin,
whether or not lined or trimmed.
[[Page 23520]]
6506.99.60......................... Headgear (other than safety
headgear), nesoi, of materials
other than rubber, plastics, or
furskins, whether or not lined or
trimmed.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
As requested, to the extent possible, the Commission will provide
its advice and statistics separately and individually for each U.S.
Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading for all products subject to the
request. The USTR indicated that those sections of the Commission's
report and working papers that contain the Commission's advice and
assessment will be classified as ``confidential.'' The USTR also stated
that his office considers the Commission's report to be an inter-agency
memorandum that will contain pre-decisional advice and be subject to
the deliberative process privilege.
The Commission has instituted the investigation under section
332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1332(g)) in order to
facilitate the filing and inspection of written submissions and also to
make the report a part of an established Commission reporting series.
As requested by the USTR, the Commission will provide its report to the
USTR containing the requested advice by September 29, 2016. The USTR
asked that the Commission issue a public version of the report as soon
as possible thereafter, containing only the unclassified information,
with any confidential business information deleted.
Public Hearing: A public hearing in connection with this
investigation will be held at the U.S. International Trade Commission
Building, 500 E Street SW., Washington, DC, beginning at 9:30 a.m. on
Thursday June 9, 2016. Requests to appear at the public hearing should
be filed with the Secretary no later than 5:15 p.m., May 23, 2016. All
pre-hearing briefs and statements should be filed no later than 5:15
p.m., May 25, 2016; and all post-hearing briefs and statements should
be filed no later than 5:15 p.m., June 14, 2016. All requests to
appear, and pre- and post-hearing briefs and statements should be filed
by the above dates but otherwise in accordance with the requirements of
the ``written submissions'' section below.
Written Submissions: In lieu of or in addition to appearing at the
hearing, interested parties are invited to file written submissions
concerning this investigation. All written submissions should be
addressed to the Secretary. Except for requests to appear and pre- and
post-hearing briefs, all written submissions should be received not
later than 5:15 p.m., June 24, 2016. All written submissions 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 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, Docket Services
Division (202-205-1802).
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.
Disclosure of Confidential Business Information: 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.
Additionally, all information, including confidential business
information, submitted in this investigation may be disclosed to and
used: (i) By the Commission, its employees and Offices, and contract
personnel (a) for developing or maintaining the records of this or a
related proceeding, or (b) in internal investigations, audits, reviews,
and evaluations relating to the programs, personnel, and operations of
the Commission including under 5 U.S.C. Appendix 3; or (ii) by U.S.
government employees and contract personnel (a) for cybersecurity
purposes or (b) in monitoring user activity on U.S. government
classified networks. The Commission will not otherwise disclose any
confidential business information 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. Persons wishing to
have a summary of their position included in the report 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. 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: April 15, 2016.
Lisa R. Barton,
Secretary to the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2016-09182 Filed 4-20-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P