[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 141 (Wednesday, July 22, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44354-44355]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-15891]


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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE

[Docket Number USTR-2020-0010]


Hearings Regarding Trade Distorting Policies That May Be 
Affecting Seasonal and Perishable Products in U.S. Commerce

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.

ACTION: Notice of public hearing and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) 
and the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture will convene virtual 
public hearings to hear firsthand from interested persons on trade 
distorting policies that may be causing harm to U.S. seasonal and 
perishable producers (namely, of fresh fruits and vegetables) and 
contributing to unfair pricing in the U.S. market, and to solicit 
feedback on how the Administration can better support these producers 
and redress any unfair harm.

DATES: 

Virtual hearing dates

    August 13, 2020 at 9:00 a.m. EST.
    August 20, 2020 at 9:00 a.m. EST.

Submission deadlines

    July 27, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. EST: Deadline for submission of 
requests to provide virtual testimony during either hearing.
    August 3, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. EST: Deadline for submission of 
hearing statements and written comments.

ADDRESSES: USTR strongly prefers electronic submissions made through 
the Federal eRulemaking portal: http://www.regulations.gov 
(Regulations.gov). Follow the instructions for submission in section II 
below. The docket number is USTR-2020-0010. For alternatives to online 
submissions, please contact Trey Forsyth in advance of the submission 
deadline at (202) 395-8583.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Contact Trey Forsyth at (202) 395-8583 
or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    USTR and the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture will convene 
public hearings to hear firsthand from interested persons regarding 
trade-distorting policies that may be affecting seasonal and perishable 
products in U.S. commerce. The public hearings will be viewable online 
and USTR will provide information about viewing the hearings before the 
hearing dates. USTR invites all interested persons to participate in 
the hearings, but slots to participate may be limited due to time 
constraints and the number of requests. Unless circumstances warrant 
otherwise, USTR will process requests to participate and provide 
testimony at the hearing on a first come, first served basis. 
Instructions on how to submit a request to participate at the hearing 
are in section II below.
    USTR invites comments and supporting documentation from interested 
persons on the following issues:
     Trade distorting policies that may be contributing to 
unfair pricing in the U.S. market and causing harm to U.S. seasonal and 
perishable producers in U.S. commerce.
     How the Administration can better support these producers 
and redress unfair harm.

II. Hearing Participation--Submission Requirements

    The instructions for submitting requests to participate at the 
hearings and to make written submissions are the same as those included 
in the March 10, 2020 Federal Register notice (85 FR 13973) (March FRN) 
announcing hearing dates that were postponed due to COVID-19. Those 
instructions are included below with new deadlines. Please note the 
following:
     To ensure that USTR has a correct count of requests to 
testify, everyone who wants to participate in the virtual hearings in 
August must submit a request to testify by the July 27, 2020, 11:59 
p.m. EST deadline. This applies to those who submitted a request to 
participate pursuant to the March FRN. If you submitted a request to 
testify pursuant to the March FRN but do not want to testify virtually 
at an August hearing, you do not need to take any further action.
     You do not have to resubmit written submissions that you 
submitted in response to the March FRN. You can update or supplement a 
prior submission, by following the instructions for written statements 
below.
     All parties who would like to provide testimony during 
either hearing

[[Page 44355]]

must submit a request to do so by the July 27, 2020, 11:59 p.m. EST 
deadline.
     All parties who wish to testify also must submit the 
statement they intend to present at the hearing by the August 3, 2020, 
11:59 p.m. EST deadline. Remarks at the hearing will be limited to five 
minutes, and might be further limited if circumstances warrant, to 
allow adequate time for questions from the panel.
     As noted above, USTR will process requests to participate 
and provide testimony at the hearing on a first come, first served 
basis unless circumstances warrant otherwise. If you submit a request 
to participate by the July 27, 2020 deadline, USTR will notify you as 
soon as practicable whether or not you have been selected to 
participate in the virtual hearings. If selected, USTR will provide 
further details and instructions on procedures for participating 
virtually. USTR will consider all written statements submitted by the 
August 3, 2020 deadline.
     Interested parties who do not want to testify virtually at 
either hearing may still submit written comments for consideration by 
the August 3, 2020 deadline.
    To submit a request to provide testimony virtually, go to 
www.regulations.gov. To make a submission via Regulations.gov, enter 
docket number USTR-2020-0010 in the `search for' field on the home page 
and click `search.' The site will provide a search-results page listing 
all documents associated with this docket. Find a reference to this 
notice by selecting `notice' under `document type' in the `filter 
results by' section on the left side of the screen and click on the 
link entitled `comment now.' In the ``comment'' field on the next page, 
identify the hearing at which you would like to testify and provide the 
full name, address, email address, and telephone number of the person 
who wishes to present the testimony. Parties who submit requests to 
testify without identifying a preferred date will be assigned a date to 
the extent there is availability and unless circumstances warrant 
otherwise.
    To submit a written statement, the Regulations.gov website allows 
users to provide comments by filling in a `type comment' field or by 
attaching a document using the `upload file(s)' field. USTR prefers 
that you provide submissions in an attached document. The file name 
should include the name of the person who will be presenting the 
testimony, or if not testifying, the name of the person submitting the 
statement. The name of the presenter also should be clear in the 
content of the file itself. All submissions must be in English and be 
prepared in (or be compatible with) Microsoft Word (.doc) or Adobe 
Acrobat (.pdf) formats. Include any data attachments to the submission 
in the same file as the submission itself, and not as separate files.
    For additional information on using the Regulations.gov website, 
please consult the resources provided on the website by clicking on 
`how to use this site' on the left side of the home page.
    You must clearly designate business confidential information (BCI) 
by marking the submission `BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL' at the top and bottom 
of the cover page and each succeeding page, and indicating, via 
brackets, the specific information that is confidential. A submitter 
requesting that USTR treat information in a submission as BCI must 
certify that the information is business confidential and would not 
customarily be released to the public by the submitter. You must 
include `business confidential' in the `type comment' field, and must 
add `business confidential' to the end of your file name for any 
attachments. For any submission containing BCI, you also must attach a 
separate non-confidential version (i.e., not as part of the same 
submission with the BCI version), indicating where confidential 
information has been redacted. USTR will place the non-confidential 
version in the docket and it will be available for public inspection. 
USTR may not accept BCI submissions that do not have the required 
markings, or are not accompanied by a properly marked non-confidential 
version, and may consider the submission to be a public document.
    Submissions responding to this notice, except for information 
granted BCI status, will be available for public viewing at 
Regulations.gov upon completion of processing. You can view submissions 
by entering docket number USTR-2020-0010 in the search field at 
Regulations.gov.

Joseph Barloon,
General Counsel, Office of the United States Trade Representative.
[FR Doc. 2020-15891 Filed 7-21-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3290-F0-P