[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 18 (Tuesday, January 28, 2020)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 5125-5127]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-01650]



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Vol. 85

Tuesday,

No. 18

January 28, 2020

Part III





The President





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Proclamation 9979--To Further Facilitate Positive Adjustment to 
Competition From Imports of Large Residential Washers
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  Federal Register / Vol. 85 , No. 18 / Tuesday, January 28, 2020 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

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                Proclamation 9979 of January 23, 2020

                
To Further Facilitate Positive Adjustment to 
                Competition From Imports of Large Residential Washers

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                1. On January 23, 2018, pursuant to section 203 of the 
                Trade Act of 1974, as amended (the ``Trade Act'') (19 
                U.S.C. 2253), I issued Proclamation 9694, which imposed 
                a safeguard measure for a period of 3 years plus 1 day 
                comprising both a tariff-rate quota (TRQ) on imports of 
                large residential washers (washers) provided for in 
                subheadings 8450.11.00 and 8450.20.00 of the Harmonized 
                Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS) and a TRQ on 
                covered washer parts provided for in subheadings 
                8450.90.20 and 8450.90.60 of the HTS. I exempted 
                covered imports from Canada and certain designated 
                beneficiary countries under the Generalized System of 
                Preferences from the application of the measure.

                2. On August 7, 2019, the United States International 
                Trade Commission (USITC) issued its report pursuant to 
                section 204(a)(2) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 
                2254(a)(2)), on the results of its monitoring of 
                developments with respect to the domestic washers 
                industry (USITC, Large Residential Washers: Monitoring 
                Developments in the Domestic Industry, No. TA-204-013). 
                In its report, the USITC found that imports peaked in 
                November and December of 2017, just before the 
                safeguard measure was imposed, and again in February 
                and March of 2019, at the opening of the second TRQ 
                period. More recent data from U.S. Customs and Border 
                Protection indicate that the number of imported units 
                exceeded the 1.2-million-unit annual limit qualifying 
                for the in-quota rate well before the end of the year 
                in the first year of the measure and in less than 3 
                months in the second year of the measure.

                3. Section 204(b)(1)(B) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 
                2254(b)(1)(B)) authorizes the President, upon petition 
                of the majority of the representatives of the domestic 
                industry, to reduce, modify, or terminate an action 
                taken under section 203 of the Trade Act when the 
                President determines that the domestic industry has 
                made a positive adjustment to import competition.

                4. After taking into account the information provided 
                in the USITC's report, and after receiving a petition 
                from the representative of the majority of the domestic 
                industry, I have determined that the domestic industry 
                has begun to make positive adjustment to import 
                competition but that, despite that adjustment, 
                increased imports of washers at peak times of the year 
                have impaired the effectiveness of the action I 
                proclaimed in 2018 under section 203 of the Trade Act, 
                and modification of the action is warranted.

                5. Section 204(b)(2) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 
                2254(b)(2)) also authorizes the President to take such 
                additional action under section 203 of the Trade Act as 
                may be necessary to eliminate any circumvention of any 
                action previously taken under such section. Pursuant to 
                section 203(a)(3)(B) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 
                2253(a)(3)(B)), the President may proclaim a TRQ on the 
                imported article.

                6. I have further determined that additional action is 
                necessary to eliminate circumvention of the TRQ by 
                ensuring that within-quota quantities of imports of 
                washers are spread throughout the year, thus 
                eliminating the possibility

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                that importers' concentration of imports of washers in 
                a limited period would distort the quantity of washers 
                in the U.S. market and undermine the positive effect of 
                the TRQ on the domestic industry's adjustment to import 
                competition. Accordingly, I have decided to allocate, 
                on a quarterly basis, within-quota quantities of 1.2 
                million washers during the third year of the action, 
                beginning February 7, 2020.

                7. Section 604 of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2483) 
                authorizes the President to embody in the HTS the 
                substance of the relevant provisions of that Act, and 
                of other acts affecting import treatment, and actions 
                thereunder, including the removal, modification, 
                continuance, or imposition of any rate of duty or other 
                import restriction.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the 
                United States of America, acting under the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the 
                United States, including but not limited to sections 
                203, 204, and 604 of the Trade Act, do proclaim that:

                    (1) In order to modify the quantitative limitations 
                applicable to imports of washers under HTS subheadings 
                8450.11.00 and 8450.20.00, by allocating the within-
                quota quantities for the third quota year on a 
                quarterly basis, subchapter III of chapter 99 of the 
                HTS is modified as set forth in the Annex to this 
                proclamation.
                    (2) Any provision of previous proclamations and 
                Executive Orders that is inconsistent with the actions 
                taken in this proclamation is superseded to the extent 
                of such inconsistency.
                    (3) The modifications to the HTS made by this 
                proclamation, including the Annex hereto, shall be 
                effective with respect to goods entered for 
                consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for 
                consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern standard 
                time on February 7, 2020, and shall continue in effect 
                as provided in the Annex to this proclamation, unless 
                such actions are earlier expressly reduced, modified, 
                or terminated. One year from the termination of the 
                safeguard measure established in this proclamation, the 
                U.S. note and tariff provisions established in the 
                Annex to this proclamation shall be deleted from the 
                HTS.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                twenty-third day of January, in the year of our Lord 
                two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                fourth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

Billing code 3295-F0-P



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[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TD28JA20.036


[FR Doc. 2020-01650
Filed 1-27-20; 11:15 a.m.]
Billing code 7020-02-C