[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 98 (Wednesday, May 20, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30736-30737]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-10893]


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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

[Investigation No. 332-577]


Raspberries for Processing: Conditions of Competition Between 
U.S. and Foreign Suppliers, With a Focus on Washington State

ACTION: Notice of Investigation and Scheduling of a Public Hearing.

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SUMMARY: Following receipt on April 9, 2020, of a request from the U.S. 
Trade Representative (USTR), under section 332(g) of the Tariff Act of 
1930, the U.S. International Trade Commission (Commission) instituted 
Investigation No. 332-577, Raspberries for Processing: Conditions of 
Competition between U.S. and Foreign Suppliers, with a Focus on 
Washington State, for the purpose of providing a report that provides 
an overview of the U.S. raspberry industry in Washington state and 
assesses the conditions of competition between U.S. and foreign 
suppliers of raspberries meant for processing. The USTR requests that 
the Commission transmit its report no later than 14 months following 
receipt of this request.

DATES: 
    August 27, 2020: Deadline for filing requests to appear at the 
public hearing.
    September 8, 2020: Deadline for filing prehearing briefs and 
statements.
    September 17, 2020: Public hearing.
    September 24, 2020: Deadline for filing post-hearing briefs and 
statements.
    December 6, 2020: Deadline for filing all other written 
submissions.
    June 9, 2021: Transmittal of Commission report to the Committee.

ADDRESSES: All Commission offices, including the Commission's hearing 
rooms, are located in the U.S. International Trade Commission Building, 
500 E Street SW, Washington, DC. All written submissions should be 
addressed to the Secretary, U.S. 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Project Leader Jessica Pugliese 
([email protected]) or Deputy Project Leader Mary Roop (202-
708-2277 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 
(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

    As requested by the USTR, the Commission will conduct an 
investigation and prepare a report that provides, to the extent 
practical, the following information:
    (1) An overview of the U.S. raspberry industry in Washington 
State--including fresh raspberries for processing, frozen raspberries, 
and raspberry juice--as well as an overview of the industries producing 
fresh and processed raspberries in major producing and exporting 
countries. The overviews should include information on production and 
processing volumes and trends, planted acreage, processing capacity, 
supply chains, domestic consumption, and imports and exports of fresh 
and processed raspberries.
    (2) Production, pricing, and consumption trends for fresh and 
processed raspberries in the United States and other major producing 
and exporting countries over the last five years. Pricing analysis 
should include the relationship between prices of domestic products and 
imports of fresh and processed raspberries in the U.S. market to the 
extent such data is available.
    (3) An overview of U.S. imports of fresh and processed raspberries 
including information on the main country sources of supply, trade 
patterns, and supply chains of major suppliers to the United States, as 
well as an overview of country of origin labeling practices in major 
U.S. supplier countries.
    (4) A description of foreign government policies, financial aid, 
and programs that directly or indirectly affect production, 
infrastructure, exports, and imports of fresh and processed 
raspberries, including product labeling and food safety regulations, 
producer support, and tariff and nontariff measures.
    (5) A comparison of the competitive strengths and weaknesses of 
production and exports of fresh and processed raspberries in the United 
States and other major producing and exporting countries, including 
such factors as costs of production, industry structure, technology, 
product innovation, exchange rates, supply chains and distribution, 
pricing, marketing regimes, and government policies.
    (6) A qualitative and, to the extent possible, quantitative 
assessment of the economic impact of imports from major producing and 
exporting countries on production and prices of U.S. fresh and 
processed raspberries.
    The USTR requested that the report primarily focus on the 2015 to 
2019 time period. The USTR requested that the Commission transmit its 
report no later than 14 months following receipt of this request. In 
his request letter, the USTR stated that his office intends to make the 
Commission's report available to the public in its entirety and asked 
that the Commission 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 September 17, 2020. Requests 
to appear at the public hearing should be filed with the Secretary no 
later than 5:15 p.m., August 27, 2020, in accordance with the 
requirements in the ``Written Submissions'' section below. All 
prehearing briefs and statements should be filed not later than 5:15 
p.m., September 8, 2020, and all post-hearing briefs and statements 
should be filed not later than 5:15 p.m., September 24, 2020. Post-
hearing briefs and statements should address matters raised at the 
hearing. In the event that, as of the close of business on September 8, 
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 September 8, 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

[[Page 30737]]

should be addressed to the Secretary, and should be received not later 
than 5:15 p.m., December 6, 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), as temporarily amended by 85 FR 
15798 (March 19, 2020). Under that rule waiver, the Office of the 
Secretary will accept only electronic filings at this time. Filings 
must be made through the Commission's Electronic Document Information 
System (EDIS, https://edis.usitc.gov). No in-person paper-based filings 
or paper copies of any electronic filings will be accepted until 
further notice. Persons with questions regarding electronic filing 
should contact the Office of the Secretary, Docket Services Division 
(202-205-1802) or consult the Commission's Handbook on Filing 
Procedures.

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 
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 USTR, the Commission will not include any 
confidential business information in its report. 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 way that 
would reveal the operations of the firm supplying the information.

Summaries of Written Submissions

    Persons wishing to have a summary of their position included in the 
report should include a summary with their written submission and 
should mark the summary as having been provided for that purpose. The 
summary should be clearly marked as ``summary for inclusion in the 
report'' at the top of the page. The summary may not exceed 500 words, 
should be in MS Word format or 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 list 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: May 15, 2020.
Lisa Barton,
Secretary to the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2020-10893 Filed 5-19-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P