[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 190 (Wednesday, September 30, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61763-61764]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-21585]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

[1651-0131]


Agency Information Collection Activities: e-Allegations 
Submission

AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Department of 
Homeland Security.

ACTION: 30-Day notice and request for comments; Extension of an 
existing collection of information.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection will be submitting the following information collection 
request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and 
approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). 
The information collection is published in the Federal Register to 
obtain comments from the public and affected agencies. Comments are 
encouraged and must be submitted (no later than October 30, 2020) to be 
assured of consideration.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of 
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular 
information collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--
Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional PRA 
information should be directed to Seth Renkema, Chief, Economic Impact 
Analysis Branch, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Trade, 
Regulations and Rulings, 90 K Street NE, 10th Floor, Washington, DC 
20229-1177, Telephone number 202-325-0056 or via email 
[email protected]. Please note that the contact information provided 
here is solely for questions regarding this notice. Individuals seeking 
information about other CBP programs should contact the CBP National 
Customer Service Center at 877-227-5511, (TTY) 1-800-877-8339, or CBP 
website at https://www.cbp. gov/.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: CBP invites the general public and other 
Federal agencies to comment on the proposed and/or continuing 
information collections pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). This proposed information collection was 
previously published in the Federal Register (85 FR 39206) on June 30, 
2020, allowing for a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an 
additional 30 days for public comments. This process is conducted in 
accordance with 5 CFR 1320.8. Written comments and suggestions from the 
public and affected agencies should address one or more of the 
following four points: (1) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (3) suggestions to enhance the 
quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and 
(4) suggestions to minimize the burden of the collection of information 
on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting 
electronic submission of responses. The comments that are submitted 
will be summarized and included in the request for approval. All 
comments will become a matter of public record.

Overview of This Information Collection

    Title: e-Allegations Submission.
    OMB Number: 1651-0131.
    Form Number: None.
    Current Action: CBP proposes to extend the expiration date of this 
information collection. The time burden hours have been adjusted to 
account for the addition of the EAPA Allegations that have been added 
to this collection.
    Type of Review: Extension (with change).
    Affected Public: Businesses, Individuals.
    Abstract: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) established the 
e-Allegations program in June 2008 to create a central location for the 
public to report allegations of trade law violations. The information 
provided by the public enables CBP, in collaboration with our partners, 
to protect our economy from the effects of unfair trade practices and 
guard against the entry of products that could pose a threat to health 
and safety. The information collected through the portal includes the 
name individual filing the allegation (this individual may remain 
anonymous), their contact information, and information pertinent to the 
allegation of a trade law violation.
    This collection of this information is authorized by the Tariff Act 
of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C.1202 et seq.), the Homeland Security Act 
of 2002 (Title 6, U.S.C. 101), and the Security and Accountability for 
Every Port Act of 2006 [``SAFE Port Act''] (Pub. L. 109-347, Oct. 13, 
2006). The e-Allegations website is accessible at https://www.cbp.gov/
trade/e-allegations/.
    Congress passed the Enforce and Protect Act (``EAPA''), in February 
2016, as a part of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act 
(``TFTEA'') of 2015 (Pub. L. 114-125, Feb. 24, 2016). The EAPA 
legislation specifically was intended to improve trade law enforcement 
and duty collection for antidumping and countervailing duty orders, 
thus helping to create a level-playing field for U.S. businesses. To 
that end, CBP designed an investigative process that provides for a 
multi-party, transparent, on-the-record

[[Page 61764]]

administrative proceeding, where parties can both participate in and 
learn the outcome of the investigation.
    The information collected through the EAPA allegation submissions 
portal includes the following: Filer category, name of individual 
filing the allegation and their contact information, the name and 
address of the company they represent, and their interested party 
designation; information related to the alleged evasion scheme, 
including products, type of scheme and AD/CVD Order information; the 
name and address of the company engaging in the alleged evasion scheme; 
and various certifications regarding the truthfulness of the allegation 
and how notifications about how the information will be used during the 
investigation.
    The EAPA Allegation form has been modified from the original 
version to provide clarifying information which validates that the 
allegation qualifies as an EAPA allegation. Additions to the form 
include alleger and violating importer email and phone number, optional 
representing attorney contact information, and selecting the type of 
violation and the corresponding details. The updated form also requires 
users to upload at least one document to the allegation submission and 
select a document category in addition the existing classification for 
confidentiality status. Users will have the option to select additional 
categories including document date and if a document has been served 
after upload. Harmonized Tariff Schedule product categories and 
questions that would make an allegation non-qualifying for an EAPA 
allegation have been removed and replaced by system validations or 
additional instructions.
    Collection of information for an EAPA investigation is authorized 
by the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19, U.S.C. 1517), Section 421 of 
the TFTEA (Pub. L. 114-125, Feb. 24, 2016), and 19 CFR 165. The EAPA 
portal is accessed through the e-Allegations website at https://eallegations.cbp.gov/Home/Index2.

e-Allegations

    Estimated Number of Respondents: 1,088.
    Estimated Number of Annual Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Estimated Number of Total Annual Responses: 1,088.
    Estimated Time per Response: 15 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 272.

EAPA Allegations

    Estimated Number of Respondents: 67.
    Estimated Number of Annual Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Estimated Number of Total Annual Responses: 67.
    Estimated Time per Response: 15 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 17.

    Dated: September 25, 2020.
Seth D. Renkema,
Branch Chief, Economic Impact Analysis Branch, U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection.
[FR Doc. 2020-21585 Filed 9-29-20; 8:45 am]
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