[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 43 (Monday, March 5, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9272-9274]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-04392]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-890]


Wooden Bedroom Furniture From the People's Republic of China: 
Notice of Covered Merchandise Referral

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Enforce and Protect Act of 2015 (EAPA), the 
Department of Commerce (Commerce) received a covered merchandise 
referral from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in connection 
with a CBP Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) investigation concerning the 
antidumping duty (AD) order on wooden bedroom furniture (WBF) from the 
People's Republic of China (China). In accordance with EAPA, Commerce 
intends to determine whether the merchandise subject to the referral is 
covered by the scope of the order and promptly transmit its 
determination to CBP. Commerce is providing notice of the referral and 
inviting participation from interested parties.

DATES: Applicable March 5, 2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ariela Garvett at (202) 482-3609 or 
Howard Smith at (202) 482-5193, AD/CVD Operations Office IV, 
Enforcement & Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 
20230.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    On February 24, 2016, the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement 
Act of 2015 was signed into law, which contains Title IV-Prevention of 
Evasion of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Orders (short title 
``Enforce and Protect Act of 2015'' or ``EAPA'') (Pub. L. 114-125, 130 
Stat. 122, 155, Feb. 24, 2016). Effective August 22, 2016, section 421 
of the EAPA added section 517 to the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended 
(the Act), which establishes a formal process for CBP to investigate 
allegations of the evasion of antidumping and countervailing duty (AD/
CVD) orders. Section 517(b)(4)(A) of the Act provides a procedure 
whereby if, during the course of an EAPA investigation, CBP is unable 
to determine whether the merchandise at issue is covered merchandise 
within the meaning of section 517(a)(3) of the Act, it shall refer the 
matter to Commerce to make such a determination. Section 517(a)(3) of 
the Act defines covered merchandise as merchandise that is subject to 
an antidumping duty order issued under section 736 of the Act or a 
countervailing duty order issued under section 706 of the Act. Section 
517(b)(4)(B) of the Act states that Commerce, after receiving a covered 
merchandise referral from CBP, shall determine whether the merchandise 
is covered merchandise and promptly transmit its determination to CBP. 
The Act does not establish a deadline within which Commerce must issue 
its determination.
    On December 22, 2017, Commerce received a covered merchandise 
referral from CBP regarding CBP EAPA Investigation No. 7189 \1\ which 
concerns the AD order on WBF from China.\2\ Specifically, based on an 
allegation by the American Furniture Manufacturers Committee for Legal 
Trade, CBP has requested that Commerce issue a determination as to 
whether certain merchandise imported by Aspects Furniture 
International, Inc. is subject to the AD order on WBF from China:
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    \1\ See Letter from CBP, ``EAPA Case Number: 7189; Scope 
Referral Request for merchandise under EAPA Investigation 7189, 
imported by Aspects Furniture International, Inc. and concerning 
evasion of the antidumping duty order on Wooden Bedroom Furniture 
from the People's Republic of China,'' dated December 22, 2017. This 
document and any supporting documents will be available 
electronically on Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping Duty and 
Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS) 
within five days of publication of this notice.
    \2\ See Notice of Amended Final Determination of Sales at Less 
Than Fair Value and Antidumping Duty Order: Wooden Bedroom Furniture 
from the People's Republic of China, 70 FR 329 (January 4, 2005).
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    (1) Desk/Console table with drawers;
    (2) Credenza/Trunk Storage/Cabinet with minibar;
    (3) Consoles/Custom Dresser/Console; and
    (4) Bed Bench Base.

Notification to Interested Parties

    Commerce is hereby notifying interested parties that it has 
received the covered merchandise referral referenced above, will begin 
a new segment of the proceeding, and intends to issue a determination 
regarding whether the merchandise subject to the referral is covered 
merchandise within the meaning of section 517(a)(3) of the Act. 
Additionally, Commerce intends to provide interested parties with the 
opportunity to participate in this segment of the proceeding, including 
through the submission of comments, and, if appropriate, new factual 
information and verification. Specifically, Commerce will notify 
parties on the segment-specific service list for this segment of the 
proceeding of a schedule for comments. In addition, Commerce may 
request factual information from any person to assist in making its 
determination and may verify submissions of factual information, if 
Commerce determines that such verification is appropriate. Commerce 
intends to issue a final determination within 120 days of the 
publication of this notice (this deadline may be extended if it is not 
practicable to complete the final determination within 120 days), and 
will promptly transmit its final determination to CBP in accordance 
with section 517(b)(4)(B) of the Act.

[[Page 9273]]

    Parties are also hereby notified that this is the only notice that 
Commerce intends to publish in the Federal Register concerning this 
covered merchandise referral. Therefore, interested parties that wish 
to participate in this segment of the proceeding, and receive notice of 
the final determination, must submit their letters of appearance as 
discussed below. Further, any party desiring access to business 
proprietary information in this segment of the proceeding must file an 
application for access to business proprietary information under 
administrative protective order (APO), as discussed below.
    Finally, we note that covered merchandise referrals constitute a 
new type of segment of a proceeding at Commerce and, therefore, 
Commerce will continue to develop its practice and procedures in this 
area.

Scope of the AD Order Wooden Bedroom Furniture From People's Republic 
of China

    The product covered by the order is wooden bedroom furniture. 
Wooden bedroom furniture is generally, but not exclusively, designed, 
manufactured, and offered for sale in coordinated groups, or bedrooms, 
in which all of the individual pieces are of approximately the same 
style and approximately the same material and/or finish. The subject 
merchandise is made substantially of wood products, including both 
solid wood and also engineered wood products made from wood particles, 
fibers, or other wooden materials such as plywood, strand board, 
particle board, and fiberboard, with or without wood veneers, wood 
overlays, or laminates, with or without non-wood components or trim 
such as metal, marble, leather, glass, plastic, or other resins, and 
whether or not assembled, completed, or finished.
    The subject merchandise includes the following items: (1) Wooden 
beds such as loft beds, bunk beds, and other beds; (2) wooden 
headboards for beds (whether stand-alone or attached to side rails), 
wooden footboards for beds, wooden side rails for beds, and wooden 
canopies for beds; (3) night tables, night stands, dressers, commodes, 
bureaus, mule chests, gentlemen's chests, bachelor's chests, lingerie 
chests, wardrobes, vanities, chessers, chifforobes, and wardrobe-type 
cabinets; (4) dressers with framed glass mirrors that are attached to, 
incorporated in, sit on, or hang over the dresser; (5) chests-on-
chests,\3\ highboys,\4\ lowboys,\5\ chests of drawers,\6\ chests,\7\ 
door chests,\8\ chiffoniers,\9\ hutches,\10\ and armoires; \11\ (6) 
desks, computer stands, filing cabinets, book cases, or writing tables 
that are attached to or incorporated in the subject merchandise; and 
(7) other bedroom furniture consistent with the above list.
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    \3\ A chest-on-chest is typically a tall chest-of-drawers in two 
or more sections (or appearing to be in two or more sections), with 
one or two sections mounted (or appearing to be mounted) on a 
slightly larger chest; also known as a tallboy.
    \4\ A highboy is typically a tall chest of drawers usually 
composed of a base and a top section with drawers, and supported on 
four legs or a small chest (often 15 inches or more in height).
    \5\ A lowboy is typically a short chest of drawers, not more 
than four feet high, normally set on short legs.
    \6\ A chest of drawers is typically a case containing drawers 
for storing clothing.
    \7\ A chest is typically a case piece taller than it is wide 
featuring a series of drawers and with or without one or more doors 
for storing clothing. The piece can either include drawers or be 
designed as a large box incorporating a lid.
    \8\ A door chest is typically a chest with hinged doors to store 
clothing, whether or not containing drawers. The piece may also 
include shelves for televisions and other entertainment electronics.
    \9\ A chiffonier is typically a tall and narrow chest of drawers 
normally used for storing undergarments and lingerie, often with 
mirror(s) attached.
    \10\ A hutch is typically an open case of furniture with shelves 
that typically sits on another piece of furniture and provides 
storage for clothes.
    \11\ An armoire is typically a tall cabinet or wardrobe 
(typically 50 inches or taller), with doors, and with one or more 
drawers (either exterior below or above the doors or interior behind 
the doors), shelves, and/or garment rods or other apparatus for 
storing clothes. Bedroom armoires may also be used to hold 
television receivers and/or other audio-visual entertainment 
systems.
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    The scope of the order excludes the following items: (1) Seats, 
chairs, benches, couches, sofas, sofa beds, stools, and other seating 
furniture; (2) mattresses, mattress supports (including box springs), 
infant cribs, water beds, and futon frames; (3) office furniture, such 
as desks, stand-up desks, computer cabinets, filing cabinets, 
credenzas, and bookcases; (4) dining room or kitchen furniture such as 
dining tables, chairs, servers, sideboards, buffets, corner cabinets, 
china cabinets, and china hutches; (5) other non-bedroom furniture, 
such as television cabinets, cocktail tables, end tables, occasional 
tables, wall systems, book cases, and entertainment systems; (6) 
bedroom furniture made primarily of wicker, cane, osier, bamboo or 
rattan; (7) side rails for beds made of metal if sold separately from 
the headboard and footboard; (8) bedroom furniture in which bentwood 
parts predominate; \12\ (9) jewelry armories; \13\ (10) cheval mirrors; 
\14\ (11) certain metal parts; \15\ (12) mirrors that do not attach to, 
incorporate in, sit on, or hang over a dresser if they are not designed 
and marketed to be sold in conjunction with a dresser as part of a 
dresser-mirror set; (13) upholstered beds; \16\ (14) toy boxes; \17\ 
(15) certain enclosable wall

[[Page 9274]]

bed units; \18\ (16) certain shoe cabinets; \19\ and (17) certain bed 
bases.\20\
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    \12\ As used herein, bentwood means solid wood made pliable. 
Bentwood is wood that is brought to a curved shape by bending it 
while made pliable with moist heat or other agency and then set by 
cooling or drying. See CBP's Headquarters Ruling Letter 043859, 
dated May 17, 1976.
    \13\ Any armoire, cabinet or other accent item for the purpose 
of storing jewelry, not to exceed 24 inches in width, 18 inches in 
depth, and 49 inches in height, including a minimum of 5 lined 
drawers lined with felt or felt-like material, at least one side 
door or one front door (whether or not the door is lined with felt 
or felt-like material), with necklace hangers, and a flip-top lid 
with inset mirror. See Issues and Decision Memorandum from Laurel 
LaCivita to Laurie Parkhill, Office Director, concerning ``Jewelry 
Armoires and Cheval Mirrors in the Antidumping Duty Investigation of 
Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People's Republic of China,'' 
dated August 31, 2004. See also Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the 
People's Republic of China: Final Changed Circumstances Review, and 
Determination To Revoke Order in Part, 71 FR 38621 (July 7, 2006).
    \14\ Cheval mirrors are any framed, tiltable mirror with a 
height in excess of 50 inches that is mounted on a floor-standing, 
hinged base. Additionally, the scope of the order excludes 
combination cheval mirror/jewelry cabinets. The excluded merchandise 
is an integrated piece consisting of a cheval mirror, i.e., a framed 
tiltable mirror with a height in excess of 50 inches, mounted on a 
floor-standing, hinged base, the cheval mirror serving as a door to 
a cabinet back that is integral to the structure of the mirror and 
which constitutes a jewelry cabinet line with fabric, having 
necklace and bracelet hooks, mountings for rings and shelves, with 
or without a working lock and key to secure the contents of the 
jewelry cabinet back to the cheval mirror, and no drawers anywhere 
on the integrated piece. The fully assembled piece must be at least 
50 inches in height, 14.5 inches in width, and 3 inches in depth. 
See Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People's Republic of China: 
Final Changed Circumstances Review and Determination To Revoke Order 
in Part, 72 FR 948 (January 9, 2007).
    \15\ Metal furniture parts and unfinished furniture parts made 
of wood products (as defined above) that are not otherwise 
specifically named in this scope (i.e., wooden headboards for beds, 
wooden footboards for beds, wooden side rails for beds, and wooden 
canopies for beds) and that do not possess the essential character 
of wooden bedroom furniture in an unassembled, incomplete, or 
unfinished form.
    \16\ Upholstered beds that are completely upholstered, i.e., 
containing filling material and completely covered in sewn genuine 
leather, synthetic leather, or natural or synthetic decorative 
fabric. To be excluded, the entire bed (headboards, footboards, and 
side rails) must be upholstered except for bed feet, which may be of 
wood, metal, or any other material and which are no more than nine 
inches in height from the floor. See Wooden Bedroom Furniture from 
the People's Republic of China: Final Results of Changed 
Circumstances Review and Determination to Revoke Order in Part, 72 
FR 7013 (February 14, 2007).
    \17\ To be excluded the toy box must: (1) Be wider than it is 
tall; (2) have dimensions within 16 inches to 27 inches in height, 
15 inches to 18 inches in depth, and 21 inches to 30 inches in 
width; (3) have a hinged lid that encompasses the entire top of the 
box; (4) not incorporate any doors or drawers; (5) have slow-closing 
safety hinges; (6) have air vents; (7) have no locking mechanism; 
and (8) comply with American Society for Testing and Materials 
(``ASTM'') standard F963-03. Toy boxes are boxes generally designed 
for the purpose of storing children's items such as toys, books, and 
playthings. See Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People's Republic 
of China: Final Results of Changed Circumstances Review and 
Determination to Revoke Order in Part, 74 FR 8506 (February 25, 
2009). Further, as determined in the scope ruling memorandum 
``Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People's Republic of China: 
Scope Ruling on a White Toy Box,'' dated July 6, 2009, the 
dimensional ranges used to identify the toy boxes that are excluded 
from the wooden bedroom furniture order apply to the box itself 
rather than the lid.
    \18\ Excluded from the scope are certain enclosable wall bed 
units, also referred to as murphy beds, which are composed of the 
following three major sections: (1) A metal wall frame, which 
attaches to the wall and uses coils or pistons to support the metal 
mattress frame; (2) a metal frame, which has euro slats for 
supporting a mattress and two legs that pivot; and (3) wood panels, 
which attach to the metal wall frame and/or the metal mattress frame 
to form a cabinet to enclose the wall bed when not in use. Excluded 
enclosable wall bed units are imported in ready-to-assemble format 
with all parts necessary for assembly. Enclosable wall bed units do 
not include a mattress. Wood panels of enclosable wall bed units, 
when imported separately, remain subject to the order.
    \19\ Excluded from the scope are certain shoe cabinets 31.5-33.5 
inches wide by 15.5-17.5 inches deep by 34.5-36.5 inches high. They 
are designed strictly to store shoes, which are intended to be 
aligned in rows perpendicular to the wall along which the cabinet is 
positioned. Shoe cabinets do not have drawers, rods, or other 
indicia for the storage of clothing other than shoes. The cabinets 
are not designed, manufactured, or offered for sale in coordinated 
groups or sets and are made substantially of wood, have two to four 
shelves inside them, and are covered by doors. The doors often have 
blinds that are designed to allow air circulation and release of bad 
odors. The doors themselves may be made of wood or glass. The depth 
of the shelves does not exceed 14 inches. Each shoe cabinet has 
doors, adjustable shelving, and ventilation holes.
    \20\ Excluded from the scope are certain bed bases consisting 
of: (1) A wooden box frame, (2) three wooden cross beams and one 
perpendicular center wooden support beam, and (3) wooden slats over 
the beams. These bed bases are constructed without inner springs 
and/or coils and do not include a headboard, footboard, side rails, 
or mattress. The bed bases are imported unassembled.
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    Imports of subject merchandise are classified under subheadings 
9403.50.9042 and 9403.50.9045 of the HTSUS as ``wooden . . . beds'' and 
under subheading 9403.50.9080 of the HTSUS as ``other . . . wooden 
furniture of a kind used in the bedroom.'' In addition, wooden 
headboards for beds, wooden footboards for beds, wooden side rails for 
beds, and wooden canopies for beds may be entered under subheadings 
9403.90.7005 or 9403.90.7080 of the HTSUS. Subject merchandise may also 
be entered under subheadings 9403.50.9041, 9403.60.8081, 9403.20.0018, 
or 9403.90.8041. Further, framed glass mirrors may be entered under 
subheading 7009.92.1000 or 7009.92.5000 of the HTSUS as ``glass mirrors 
. . . framed.'' The order covers all wooden bedroom furniture meeting 
the above description, regardless of tariff classification. Although 
the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs 
purposes, our written description of the scope of this proceeding is 
dispositive.

Filing Requirements

    All submissions to Commerce must be filed electronically using 
ACCESS.\21\ An electronically filed document must be received 
successfully in its entirety by the time and date it is due. Documents 
exempted from the electronic submission requirements must be filed 
manually (i.e., in paper form) with Enforcement and Compliance's APO/
Dockets Unit, Room 18022, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 
Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230, and stamped with the date 
of receipt by the applicable deadlines.
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    \21\ See Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings: 
Electronic Filing Procedures; Administrative Protective Order 
Procedures, 76 FR 39263 (July 6, 2011), as amended in Enforcement 
and Compliance; Change of Electronic Filing System Name, 79 FR 69046 
(November 20, 2014) for details of Commerce's electronic filing 
requirements, effective August 5, 2011. Information on help using 
ACCESS can be found at https://access.trade.gov/help.aspx and a 
handbook can be found at https://access.trade.gov/help/Handbook%20on%20Electronic%20Filing%20Procedures.pdf.
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Letters of Appearance and Administrative Protective Order

    Interested parties that wish to participate in this segment of the 
proceeding and be added to the public service list for this segment of 
the proceeding must file a letter of appearance in accordance with 19 
CFR 351.103(d)(1), with one exception: the parties publicly identified 
by CBP in the covered merchandise referral (referenced above) are not 
required to submit a letter of appearance, and will be added to the 
public service list for this segment of the proceeding by Commerce.
    Commerce placed an APO on the record on January 11, 2018,\22\ and 
established the APO service list for use in this segment. Commerce 
intends to place the business proprietary versions of the documents 
contained in the covered merchandise referral on the record of this 
proceeding in ACCESS within five days of publication of this notice.
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    \22\ See the Administrative Protective Order ``In the Matter of 
the Scope Inquiry of the Antidumping Duty Order on Wooden Bedroom 
Furniture from the People's Republic of China (A-570-890) (CBP EAPA 
Inv. No. 7189)'', dated January 11, 2018.
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    Interested parties must submit applications for disclosure under 
the APO in accordance with the procedures outlined in Commerce's 
regulations at 19 CFR 351.305. Those procedures apply to this segment 
of the proceeding, with one exception: APO applicants representing the 
parties that have been identified by CBP as an importer in the covered 
merchandise referral (referenced above) are exempt from the additional 
filing requirements for importers pursuant to 19 CFR 351.305(d).

    Dated: February 22, 2018.
Christian Marsh,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2018-04392 Filed 3-2-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P