[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 75 (Thursday, April 18, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16283-16284]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-07927]


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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

[Investigation No. 332-227]


Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act: Impact on U.S. Industries 
and Consumers and on Beneficiary Countries

AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.

ACTION: Scheduling of public hearing and opportunity to submit 
information in connection with the Commission's 24th report.

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SUMMARY: The Commission is inviting the public to appear at the public 
hearing and or to submit information in writing in connection with the 
preparation of its 24th report under section 215 of the Caribbean Basin 
Economic Recovery Act, which requires the Commission to report 
biennially to the Congress and the President by September 30 of each 
reporting year on the economic impact of the Act on U.S. industries and 
U.S. consumers and on the economy of the beneficiary countries. The 
report is being prepared under Commission investigation No. 332-227, 
Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act: Impact on U.S. Industries and 
Consumers and on Beneficiary Countries. The report will cover trade 
during calendar years 2017 and 2018, and will be transmitted to 
Congress and the President by September 30, 2019.

DATES: 
    May 3, 2019: Deadline for filing requests to appear at the public 
hearing.
    May 8, 2019: Deadline for filing pre-hearing briefs and statements.
    May 14, 2019: Public hearing.
    May 21, 2019: Deadline for filing post-hearing briefs and 
statements.
    June 3, 2019: Deadline for filing all other written submissions.
    September 30, 2019: Transmittal of Commission report to Congress 
and 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

[[Page 16284]]

20436. The public file for this investigation may be viewed on the 
Commission's electronic docket (EDIS) at https://edis.usitc.gov/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Project Leader Heather Wickramarachi 
(202-205-2699 or [email protected]) or Deputy Project 
Leader Stephanie Fortune-Taylor (202-205-2749 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 website at https://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 215(a)(1) of the Caribbean Basin Economic 
Recovery Act (CBERA) (19 U.S.C. 2704(a)(1)) requires that the 
Commission submit biennial reports to the Congress and the President 
regarding the economic impact of the Act on U.S. industries and 
consumers, and on the economy of the beneficiary countries. Section 
215(b)(1) requires that the reports include, but not be limited to, an 
assessment regarding:
    (A) The actual effect, during the period covered by the report, of 
[CBERA] on the United States economy generally, as well as on those 
specific domestic industries which produce articles that are like, or 
directly competitive with, articles being imported into the United 
States from beneficiary countries; and
    (B) the probable future effect which this Act will have on the 
United States economy generally, as well as on such domestic 
industries, before the provisions of this Act terminate.
    The report will cover trade with the 17 beneficiary countries: 
Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, British 
Virgin Islands, Cura[ccedil]ao, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, 
Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and 
the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago. Notice of institution of the 
investigation was published in the Federal Register of May 14, 1986 (51 
FR 17678). The Commission plans to transmit the 24th report, covering 
calendar years 2017 and 2018, by September 30, 2019.
    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 
May 14, 2019. Requests to appear at the public hearing should be filed 
with the Secretary no later than 5:15 p.m., May 3, 2019, in accordance 
with the requirements in the ``Submissions'' section below. All pre-
hearing briefs and statements should be filed no later than 5:15 p.m., 
May 8, 2019; and all post-hearing briefs and statements responding to 
matters raised at the hearing should be filed not later than 5:15 p.m., 
May 21, 2019. In the event that, as of the close of business on May 6, 
2019, 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 should contact the Office of the Secretary 
at 202-205-2000 after May 6, 2019, 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 no later than 5:15 p.m., June 3, 2019. 
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 of June 3, 2019 and submit eight (8) true 
paper copies by 12:00 noon 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).
    Confidential Business Information: 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 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 intends to prepare a report that it can release to 
the public in its entirety, and the Commission will not include any 
confidential business information in the report it sends to Congress 
and the President or makes available to the public. However, 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 for cybersecurity purposes. 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 positions of interested persons in an appendix to its 
report. Persons wishing to have a summary of their position included in 
the report should include a summary with their written submission and 
the summary should be marked as intended to be included in the 
designated appendix in the Commission's report. 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 16, 2019.
Lisa Barton,
Secretary to the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2019-07927 Filed 4-17-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7020-02-P