[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 206 (Thursday, October 24, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57144-57152]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-23181]


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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE

[Docket Number USTR-2019-0005]


Procedures for Requests To Exclude Particular Products From the 
August 2019 Action Pursuant to Section 301: China's Acts, Policies, and 
Practices Related to Technology Transfer, Intellectual Property, and 
Innovation

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In a notice published on August 20, 2019, the U.S. Trade 
Representative announced that the Office of the U.S. Trade 
Representative (USTR) would establish a process by which U.S. 
stakeholders may request an exclusion from additional duties of 
particular products classified within a tariff subheading covered by 
the August 2019 action. This notice announces that USTR will open an 
electronic portal for submission of exclusion requests on October 31, 
2019 for products covered by Annex A of the August 2019 action, and 
sets out the specific procedures for submitting requests.

DATES: October 31, 2019 at noon EDT: The web portal for submitting 
exclusion requests--https://exclusions.USTR.gov--will open.
    January 31, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. EDT: Last day for submitting 
exclusion requests.
    Responses to individual exclusion requests are due 14 days after 
USTR

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posts the request on the online portal. Any replies to responses to an 
exclusion request are due the later of 7 days after the close of the 
14-day response period, or 7 days after the posting of a response.

ADDRESSES: You must submit all requests, responses to requests, and 
replies to responses through the online portal: https://
exclusions.ustr.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For questions about the product 
exclusion process, contact Assistant General Counsels Philip Butler or 
Megan Grimball at (202) 395-5725. For questions on customs 
classification or implementation of additional duties, contact 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. August 2019 Action

    For background on the proceedings in this investigation, please see 
the prior notices issued in the investigation, including 82 FR 40213 
(August 24, 2017), 83 FR 14906 (April 6, 2018), and 84 FR 22564 (May 
17, 2019).
    In a notice published on August 20, 2019, the U.S. Trade 
Representative, at the direction of the President, announced a 
determination to modify the action being taken in the Section 301 
investigation by imposing an additional 10 percent ad valorem duty on 
products of China with an annual aggregate trade value of approximately 
$300 billion. 84 FR 43304 (August 20, 2019). The August 20 notice 
contains two separate lists of tariff subheadings, with two different 
effective dates. List 1, which is set out in Annex A of the August 20 
notice, was effective September 1, 2019. List 2, which is set out in 
Annex C of the August 20 notice, currently is scheduled to take effect 
on December 15, 2019. On August 30, 2019, the U.S. Trade 
Representative, at the direction of the President, determined to modify 
the action being taken in the investigation by increasing the rate of 
additional duty from 10 to 15 percent ad valorem on the goods of China 
specified in Annex A and Annex C of the August 20 notice.

B. Procedures To Request the Exclusion of Particular Products

    USTR invites interested persons, including trade associations, to 
submit requests for exclusion from the additional duties for products 
covered by List 1 of the August 2019 action. As explained in more 
detail below, each request specifically must identify a particular 
product, and provide supporting data and the rationale for the 
requested exclusion. USTR will evaluate each request on a case-by-case 
basis, taking into account the asserted rationale for the exclusion, 
whether the exclusion would undermine the objective of the Section 301 
investigation, and whether the request defines the product with 
sufficient precision. Any exclusion will be effective for one year, 
starting from the September 1, 2019 effective date for Annex A of the 
August 20, 2019 notice. USTR will periodically announce decisions on 
pending requests.
    To submit an exclusion request, requesters must first register on 
the portal at https://exclusions.ustr.gov. As noted above, the portal 
will open at noon EDT on October 31, 2019. After registration, the 
requester can fill out and submit one or more exclusion request forms.
    Fields on the exclusion request form marked with an asterisk (*) 
are required fields. Fields with a green (Public) notation will be 
publicly available. Fields with a gray (BCI) notation are for Business 
Confidential Information and the information entered will not be 
publicly available. Additionally, parties will be able to upload 
documents and indicate whether the documents are BCI or public. 
Requesters will be able to review the public version of their 
submission before the submission is posted.
    In order to facilitate preparation of requests prior to the October 
31 opening of the web portal, a facsimile of the exclusion request form 
to be used on the portal is attached as an annex to this notice. Please 
note that the color-coding of public fields and BCI fields is not 
visible on the attached facsimile, but will be apparent on the actual 
form used on the portal.
    Set out below is a summary of the information to be entered on the 
exclusion request form.
    Each requester must provide contact information, including the full 
legal name of the organization making the request, whether the 
requester is a third party (law firm, trade association, or customs 
broker) submitting on behalf of an organization or industry, and the 
primary point of contact (requester and/or third party submitter). The 
requester may report whether the requester's business satisfies the 
Small Business Administration's size standards for a small business, 
which are identified by North American Industry Classification Systems 
Codes and are found in 13 CFR 121.201.
    With regard to product identification, any request for exclusion 
must include the following information:
     The 10-digit subheading of the HTSUS applicable to the 
particular product requested for exclusion. If no 10-digit subheading 
is available (i.e., the 8-digit subheading does not contain breakouts 
at the 10-digit level), requesters should use the 8-digit subheading 
and add ``00''. Different models classified under different 8-digit or 
10-digit subheadings are considered different products and require 
separate exclusion requests.
     Product name and a detailed description of the product. A 
detailed description of the product includes, but is not limited to, 
its physical characteristics (e.g., dimensions, weight, material 
composition, etc.). Requesters may submit a range of comparable goods 
within the product definition set out in an exclusion request. Thus, a 
product request may include two or more goods with similar product 
characteristics or attributes. Goods with different SKUs, model 
numbers, or sizes are not necessarily different products.
     The product's function, application (e.g., whether the 
product is designed to function in or with a particular machine or 
other device), principal use, and any unique physical features that 
distinguish it from other products within the covered 8-digit HTSUS 
subheading. Requesters may submit attachments that help distinguish the 
product (e.g., CBP rulings, photos and specification sheets, and 
previous import documentation). Documents submitted to support a 
requester's product description must be made available for public 
inspection and contain no BCI. USTR will not consider requests that 
identify the product using criteria that cannot be made available for 
public inspection.
     Whether the product is currently subject to an antidumping 
or countervailing duty order issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
    Requesters must provide their relationship to the product 
(Importer, U.S. Producer, Purchaser, Industry Association, Other) and 
provide specific data on the annual quantity and value of the Chinese-
origin product, domestic product, and third-country product the 
requester purchased, in 2017, 2018, and the first half of 2019.
    Requesters must provide information regarding their gross revenues 
for 2018 and the first half of 2019.
    For imports sold as final products, requesters must provide the 
percentage of their total gross sales in 2018 that sales of the 
Chinese-origin product accounted for.
    For imports used in the production of final products, requesters 
must provide the percentage of the total cost of producing the final 
product(s) the Chinese-origin input accounts for and the percentage of 
their total gross sales

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in 2018 that sales of the final product(s) accounted for.
    As noted in the attached facsimile, required information regarding 
the requester's purchases and gross sales and revenue is BCI and the 
information entered will not be publicly available.
    With regard to the rationale for the requested exclusion, each 
requester will be asked to address the following:
     Whether the particular product is available only from 
China and whether the particular product and/or a comparable product is 
available from sources in the United States and/or in third countries. 
The requester must provide an explanation if the product is not 
available outside of China or the requester is not sure of the product 
availability.
     Whether the requester has attempted to source the product 
from the United States or third countries.
     Whether the imposition of additional duties on the 
particular product will cause severe economic harm to the requester or 
other U.S. interests.
     Whether the particular product is strategically important 
or related to ``Made in China 2025'' or other Chinese industrial 
programs.
    In addressing each factor, the requester should provide support for 
their assertions. To provide information about the possible cumulative 
effects of the Section 301 tariff actions, requesters also may submit 
information about any exclusion requests submitted by the requester 
under the initial $34 billion tariff action (Docket ID: USTR-2018-
0025), the additional $16 billion tariff action (Docket ID: USTR-2018-
0032), or the additional $200 billion tariff action (Docket ID: USTR-
2019-0005) and the value of the requester's imports covered by the 
previous tariff actions. Requesters also may provide any other 
information or data that they consider relevant to an evaluation of the 
request.

C. Responses to Requests for Exclusions

    After a request for exclusion of a particular product is posted on 
USTR's online portal, interested persons will have 14 days to respond 
to the request, indicating support or opposition and providing reasons 
for their view. A response to a product exclusion request must be 
submitted using USTR's online portal at https://exclusions.ustr.gov. To 
file a response, an interested party does not have to register. 
Responses will be publicly available.

D. Replies to Responses to Requests for Exclusions

    After a response is posted on USTR's online portal, the requester 
will have the opportunity to reply to the response using the same 
portal. Any reply must be submitted within the later of 7 days after 
the close of the 14-day response period, or 7 days after the posting of 
a response. A reply to a response must be submitted using USTR's online 
portal at https://exclusions.ustr.gov. Replies to responses will be 
publicly available.

E. Submission Instructions

    As noted above, interested persons must submit requests for 
exclusions in the period between the opening of the portal on October 
31, 2019, and January 31, 2020. Any responses to those requests must be 
submitted within 14 days after the requests are posted. Any reply to a 
response must be submitted within the later of 7 days after the close 
of the 14-day response period, or 7 days after the posting of a 
response. Interested persons seeking to exclude two or more products 
must submit a separate request for each product, i.e., one product per 
request. As noted above, a single product may include two or more goods 
with similar product characteristics or attributes.
    By submitting an exclusion request, a response, or a reply, the 
submitter certifies that the information provided is complete and 
correct to the best of his or her knowledge.

F. Paperwork Reduction Act

    In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995 (PRA) and its implementing regulations, USTR submitted a 
request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for emergency 
review and clearance of this information collection request (ICR) 
titled 301 Exclusion Requests. OMB assigned control number 0350-0015, 
which is due to expire on December 31, 2019. USTR has submitted the 
information collection to OMB for review and approval of a three-year 
extension of the control number. 84 FR 43853 (August 22, 2019).

Joseph Barloon,
General Counsel, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
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[FR Doc. 2019-23181 Filed 10-23-19; 8:45 am]
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