[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 21 (Friday, January 31, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5704-5705]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-01799]


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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

[Investigation No. 332-575]


Seafood Obtained via Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated 
Fishing: U.S. Imports and Economic Impact on U.S. Commercial Fisheries; 
Institution of Investigation and Scheduling of Hearing

AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice of investigation and scheduling of a public hearing.

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SUMMARY: Following receipt of a request dated December 19, 2019 from 
the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Ways and Means 
(Committee) under section 332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930, the U.S. 
International Trade Commission (Commission) instituted investigation 
No. 332-575: Seafood Obtained via Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated 
Fishing: U.S. Imports and Economic Impact on U.S. Commercial Fisheries.

DATES: April 21, 2020: Deadline for filing requests to appear at the 
public hearing.
    April 30, 2020: Deadline for filing pre-hearing briefs and 
statements.
    May 12, 2020: Public hearing.
    May 22, 2020: Deadline for filing post-hearing briefs and 
statements.
    June 26, 2020: Deadline for filing all other written submissions.
    December 21, 2020: Transmittal of Commission report to the 
Committee.

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 20436. The public record 
for this investigation may be viewed on the Commission's electronic 
docket (EDIS) at https://edis.usitc.gov/edis3-internal/app.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Project Leader Renee Berry (202-205-
3498 or [email protected]) or Deputy Project Leader Daniel Matthews 
(202-205-5991 or [email protected]) for information specific to 
this investigation. For information on the legal aspects of these 
investigations, 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 
internet server (http://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: As requested by the Committee, the investigation will 
cover the extent to which seafood products obtained from illegal, 
unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing are imported into the United 
States and the potential economic effects on U.S. fishermen of 
competition with such imports. IUU seafood includes products obtained 
in contravention of fisheries management regulations or in violation of 
labor laws. The Commission's report will provide to the extent 
practicable:
     A review of the existing data and literature on the 
prevalence of IUU products in the U.S. import market, and an overview 
of international mechanisms for monitoring and enforcement to address 
IUU fishing;
     A description of the size and structure of the U.S. 
commercial fishing industry;
     A description of the major global producers of IUU 
products, including but not limited to China, and country practices 
related to IUU production and exports.
     An analysis of the extent to which IUU product is imported 
into the United States, as well as major U.S. import sources and the 
global supply chains of such products; and
     A quantitative analysis of the economic impact of IUU 
imports on U.S. commercial fishermen and U.S. commercial fishing 
production, trade, and prices.
    The Committee asked that the Commission transmit its report not 
later than 12 months after receipt of the request, and the Commission 
will transmit its report by December 21, 2020. The Committee also 
stated that it intends to make the Commission's report available to the 
public in its entirety and asked that the report not include any 
confidential business information.
    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 12, 2020. Requests to appear at the public hearing should be filed 
with the Secretary, no later than 5:15 p.m., April 21, 2020 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., April 30, 2020; and all post-hearing briefs and statements 
should be filed not later than 5:15 p.m., May 22, 2020. In the event 
that, as of the close of business on April 28, 2020, 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 April 28, 2020, 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. All written submissions should be 
addressed to the Secretary, and should be received not later than 5:15 
p.m., June 26, 2020. 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 and submit eight (8) 
true paper copies by 12:00 p.m. 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 paragraphs 
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

[[Page 5705]]

``confidential'' or ``non-confidential'' version, and that the 
confidential business information is clearly identified by means of 
brackets. All written submissions, except for confidential business 
information, will be made available for inspection by interested 
parties.
    As requested by the Committee, the Commission will not include any 
confidential business information in the report that it sends to the 
Committee 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 the positions of interested persons in an appendix to the 
report. Persons wishing to have a summary of their position included in 
the report should include a summary with their written submission, 
titled ``Public Summary,'' and should mark the summary as having been 
provided for that purpose. The summary may not exceed 500 words, should 
be in a format that can be easily converted to MS Word, 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: January 27, 2020.
Katherine Hiner,
Supervisory Attorney.
[FR Doc. 2020-01799 Filed 1-30-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7020-02-P