[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 39 (Wednesday, February 27, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6376-6378]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-03324]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[Application No. 18-00002]


Export Trade Certificate of Review

ACTION: Notice of issuance of an Export Trade Certificate of Review to 
Alaska Groundfish Commission (``AGC''), Application Number 18-00002.

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SUMMARY: The Secretary of Commerce, through the Office of Trade and 
Economic Analysis (``OTEA''), issued an

[[Page 6377]]

Export Trade Certificate of Review to AGC on February 15, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joseph Flynn, Director, OTEA, 
International Trade Administration, by telephone at (202) 482-5131 
(this is not a toll-free number) or email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title III of the Export Trading Company Act 
of 1982 (15 U.S.C. 4001-21) (``the Act'') authorizes the Secretary of 
Commerce to issue Export Trade Certificates of Review. An Export Trade 
Certificate of Review protects the holder and the members identified in 
the Certificate from State and Federal government antitrust actions and 
from private treble damage antitrust actions for the export conduct 
specified in the Certificate and carried out in compliance with its 
terms and conditions. The regulations implementing Title III are found 
at 15 CFR part 325 (2018). OTEA is issuing this notice pursuant to 15 
CFR 325.6(b), which requires the Secretary of Commerce to publish a 
summary of the certification in the Federal Register. Under Section 
305(a) of the Act and 15 CFR 325.11(a), any person aggrieved by the 
Secretary's determination may, within 30 days of the date of this 
notice, bring an action in any appropriate district court of the United 
States to set aside the determination on the ground that the 
determination is erroneous.

Description of Certified Conduct

    A summary of AGC's Export Trade Certificate of Review follows.

Certificate Holder

 AGC

Members

 Ocean Peace, Inc., Seattle, WA; M/V Savage, Inc., Seattle, WA; 
AK Victory, Inc., Seattle, WA; The Fishing Company of Alaska, Inc., 
Seattle, WA; Alaska Warrior, Inc., Seattle, WA; O'Hara Corporation, 
Rockland, ME; O'Hara DISC, Inc., Rockland, ME

Export Product

 AGC and its Members plan to export the following six products, 
which are frozen-at-sea (i.e., the export product is frozen on the 
catcher-processor trawl vessel while at-sea), and in headed and gutted 
(i.e., head and viscera are removed) and round (i.e., whole) forms: 
Atka mackerel, Pacific Ocean perch, yellowfin sole, Pacific cod, 
flathead sole, and rock sole (``Export Product,'' or collectively, the 
``Export Products'').

Export Conduct

    To engage in Export Trade in the Export Markets, AGC and its 
Members may undertake the following activities:
    1. Each Member will from time to time independently determine in 
its sole discretion (i) the quantity of Export Product that it makes 
available for sale in Export Markets, and (ii) whether any portion of 
such quantity will be sold independently by it, be sold in cooperation 
with some or all of the other Members, or be made available to AGC for 
sale in Export Markets. AGC may not require any Member to export any 
minimum quantity of Export Product.
    2. AGC and/or its Members may enter into agreements to act in 
certain countries or markets as the Members' exclusive or non-exclusive 
export intermediary for the quantity of Export Product dedicated by 
each Member for sale by AGC or any Member in that country or market. In 
any such agreement (i) AGC or the Member acting as the exclusive export 
intermediary may agree not to represent any other supplier of Export 
Product with respect to one or more Export Market, and (ii) Members may 
agree that they will export the quantity of Export Product dedicated 
for sale in such Export Markets only through AGC or the Member acting 
as exclusive export intermediary, and that they will not export Export 
Product otherwise, either directly or through any other export 
intermediary.
    3. AGC and/or one or more of its Members may engage in joint 
bidding or selling arrangements for Export Markets and allocate sales 
resulting from such arrangements among the Members.
    4. The Members may refuse to deal with export intermediaries other 
than AGC and its Members.
    5. AGC may, for itself and on behalf of its Members, by agreement 
with its or its Members' distributors or agents, or on the basis of its 
own determination:
    a. Establish the prices at which Export Product will be sold in 
Export Markets;
    b. establish standard terms of sale of Export Product;
    c. establish standard quality grades for Export Product;
    d. establish target prices for sales of Export Product by its 
Members in Export Markets, with each Member remaining free to deviate 
from such target prices in its sole discretion;
    e. subject to the limitations set forth in paragraph 1, above, 
establish the quantity of Export Product to be sold in Export Markets
    f. allocate among the Members Export Markets or customers in the 
Export Markets;
    g. refuse to quote prices for, or to market or sell, Export Product 
in Export Markets; and
    h. engage in joint promotional activities aimed at developing 
existing or new Export Markets, such as advertising and trade shows.
    6. AGC may, for itself and on behalf of its Members, contact non-
member suppliers of Export Product to elicit information relating to 
price, volume delivery schedules, terms of sale, and other matters 
relating to such suppliers' sales or prospective sales in Export 
Markets.
    7. Subject to the limitations set forth in paragraph 1, above, AGC 
and its Members may agree on the quantities of Export Product and the 
prices at which AGC and its Members may sell Export Product in and for 
Export Markets, and may also agree on territorial and customer 
allocations in Export Markets among the Members.
    8. AGC and its Members may enter into exclusive and non-exclusive 
agreements appointing third parties as export intermediaries for the 
sale of Export Product in Export Markets. Such agreements may contain 
the price, quantity, territorial, and customer provisions for Export 
Markets contained in paragraph 5, above.
    9. AGC and its Members may solicit individual non-Member suppliers 
of Export Product to sell such Export Product to AGC or Members for 
sale in Export Markets.
    10. AGC and its Members may prescribe conditions for withdrawal of 
Members from and admission of Members to AGC.
    11. AGC may, for itself or on behalf of its Members, establish and 
implement a quality assurance program for Export Product, including 
without limitation establishing, staffing, and operating a laboratory 
to conduct quality testing, promulgating quality standards or grades, 
inspecting Export Product samples and publishing guidelines for and 
reports of the results of laboratory testing.
    12. AGC may conduct meetings of its Members to engage in the 
activities described in paragraphs 1 through 11 above.
    13. AGC may compile for, collect from, and disseminate to its 
Members, and the Members may discuss among themselves, either in 
meetings conducted by AGC or independently via telephone and other 
available and appropriate modes of communication, the following types 
of information with respect to the export of Export Product to Export 
Markets only:
    a. Sales and marketing efforts, and activities and opportunities 
for sales of

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Export Product, including but not limited to selling strategies and 
pricing, projected demand for Export Product, standard or customary 
terms of sale in Export Markets, prices and availability of Export 
Product from competitors, and specifications for Export Product by 
customers in Export Markets;
    b. Price, quality, quantity, source, and delivery dates of Export 
Product available from the Members for export including but not limited 
to export inventory levels and geographic availability;
    c. Terms and conditions of contracts for sales to be considered 
and/or bid on by AGC and its Members;
    d. Joint bidding or selling arrangements and allocation of sales 
resulting from such arrangements among the Members, including each 
Member's share of the previous calendar year's total foreign sales;
    e. Expenses specific to exporting to and within Export Markets, 
including without limitation transportation, trans- or intermodal 
shipments, cold storage, insurance, inland freight to port, port 
storage, commissions, transactional costs, documentation, financing, 
customs duties, and taxes;
    f. U.S. and foreign legislation regulations and policies affecting 
export sales; and
    g. AGC's and/or its Members' export operations, including without 
limitation, sales and distribution networks established by AGC or its 
Members in Export Markets, and prior export sales by Members (including 
export price information).
    The effective date of the Certificate is October 22, 2018, the date 
on which AGC's application was deemed submitted.

    Dated: February 21, 2019.
Joseph Flynn,
Director, Office of Trade and Economic Analysis, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce.
[FR Doc. 2019-03324 Filed 2-26-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DR-P