[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 210 (Thursday, October 29, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68563-68564]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-23924]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[C-201-846]


Agreement Suspending the Countervailing Duty Investigation on 
Sugar From Mexico: Final Results of the 2018 Administrative Review

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) continues to find that 
the respondents selected for individual examination were in compliance 
with the Agreement Suspending the Countervailing Duty Investigation on 
Sugar from Mexico (CVD Agreement), as amended on June 30, 2017 
(collectively, amended CVD Agreement), and that the amended CVD 
Agreement is meeting the statutory requirements under sections 704(c) 
and (d) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), during the 
period of review (POR) from January 1, 2018, through December 31, 2018.

DATES: Applicable October 29, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sally C. Gannon or David Cordell, 
Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 
20230; telephone: (202) 482-0162 or (202) 482-0408, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On February 6, 2020, Commerce published the Preliminary Results of 
this administrative review.\1\ On March 6, 2020, the American Sugar 
Coalition and its members (collectively ASC),\2\ the petitioners, filed 
a request for a hearing, which they later withdrew.\3\ On June 24, 
2020, Commerce set the briefing schedule for the final results of this 
review.\4\ On July 6, 2020, the ASC filed a case brief and the 
Government of Mexico (GOM) filed a letter in lieu of a case brief.\5\ 
On July 13, 2020, the respondents filed a letter in lieu of a rebuttal 
brief.\6\
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    \1\ See Suspension Agreement on Sugar From Mexico; 2018 
Administrative Review of the Agreement Suspending the Countervailing 
Duty Investigation on Sugar From Mexico (as Amended), 85 FR 6906 
(February 6, 2020) (Preliminary Results).
    \2\ The members of the ASC are as follows: American Sugar Cane 
League, American Sugarbeet Growers Association, American Sugar 
Refining, Inc., Florida Sugar Cane League, Rio Grande Valley Sugar 
Growers, Inc., Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative of Florida, and the 
United States Beet Sugar Association.
    \3\ See Petitioners' Letter, ``Sugar from Mexico: Request for 
Hearing'' dated March 6, 2020; see also ``Sugar from Mexico: 
Withdrawal of Request for a Hearing,'' dated July 16, 2020.
    \4\ See Memorandum, ``Establishment of Briefing Schedule for the 
2017-2018 Administrative Reviews of the Agreement Suspending the 
Antidumping Investigation on Sugar from Mexico and the Agreement 
Suspending the Countervailing Duty Investigation on Sugar from 
Mexico,'' dated June 24, 2020.
    \5\ See GOM Letter, ``Administrative Review of the Agreement 
Suspending the Countervailing Duty Investigation on Sugar from 
Mexico: Letter in Lieu of Case Brief,'' dated July 6, 2020; see also 
ASC Case Brief, ``Case Brief filed by the American Sugar Coalition 
and its Members,'' dated July 6, 2020.
    \6\ See Letter in Lieu of Rebuttal brief filed by C[aacute]mara 
Nacional de Las Industrias Azucarera y Alcoholera (C[aacute]mara) 
``Sugar from Mexico--Rebuttal Brief,'' dated July 13, 2020.
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    On April 24, 2020, Commerce tolled all deadlines in administrative 
reviews by 50 days.\7\ On July 14, 2020, Commerce extended the deadline 
for the

[[Page 68564]]

final results of this review by 30 days.\8\ On July 21, 2020, Commerce 
tolled all deadlines in administrative reviews by an additional 60 
days.\9\ As a result, the final results of this administrative review 
are due no later than October 23, 2020.
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    \7\ See Memorandum to the Record, from Jeffrey I. Kessler, 
``Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Administrative Reviews in Response to Operational Adjustments Due to 
COVID-19,'' dated April 24, 2020.
    \8\ See Memorandum to Joseph A. Laroski Jr., Deputy Assistant 
Secretary for Policy & Negotiations, ``Extension of Deadlines for 
Final Results of the Administrative Review of the Agreement 
Suspending the Antidumping Duty Investigation on Sugar from Mexico 
and for Final Results of the Administrative Review of the Agreement 
Suspending the Countervailing Duty Investigation on Sugar from 
Mexico,'' dated July 14, 2020.
    \9\ See Memorandum to the Record, from Jeffrey I. Kessler, 
``Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Administrative Reviews,'' dated July 21, 2020.
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Scope of Amended CVD Agreement

    The product covered by this amended CVD Agreement is raw and 
refined sugar of all polarimeter readings derived from sugar cane or 
sugar beets.
    Merchandise covered by this amended CVD Agreement is typically 
imported under the following headings of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule 
of the United States (HTSUS): 1701.12.1000, 1701.12.5000, 1701.13.1000, 
1701.13.5000, 1701.14.1000, 1701.14.1020, 1701.14.1040, 1701.14.5000, 
1701.91.1000, 1701.91.3000, 1701.99.1010, 1701.99.1015, 1701.99.1017, 
1701.99.1025, 1701.99.1050, 1701.99.5010, 1701.99.5015, 170.99.5017, 
1701.99.5025, 1701.99.5050, 1702.90.4000, and 1703.10.3000. The tariff 
classification is provided for convenience and customs purposes; 
however, the written description of the scope of this amended CVD 
Agreement is dispositive.
    A full description of the scope of the amended CVD Agreement is 
contained in the Issues and Decision Memorandum.\10\
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    \10\ See Memorandum to Jeffrey I. Kessler, Assistant Secretary 
for Enforcement and Compliance, from Joseph A. Laroski, Jr., Deputy 
Assistant Secretary for Policy & Negotiations, ``Issues and Decision 
Memorandum for the Final Results of the Administrative Review of the 
Agreement Suspending the Countervailing Duty Investigation on Sugar 
from Mexico, for the period January 1, 2018 through December 31, 
2018,'' dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice 
(Issues and Decision Memorandum).
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Analysis

    Commerce continues to find that the GOM and selected respondents, 
Ingenio Adolfo L[oacute]pez Mateos S.A. de C.V. and its affiliates \11\ 
(Grupo PIASA) and Ingenio P[aacute]nuco S.A.P.I. de C.V. 
(P[aacute]nuco), were in compliance with the terms of the amended CVD 
Agreement \12\ during the POR, and that the amended CVD Agreement is 
functioning as intended. Further, we continue to determine that the 
amended CVD Agreement is meeting its statutory requirements under 
sections 704(c) and (d) of the Act. Finally, we determine that the 
amended CVD Agreement can be effectively monitored, and there have been 
no violations by the selected respondents of the amended CVD Agreement 
during the POR.
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    \11\ The affiliates of Ingenio Adolfo L6pez Mateos, S.A. de C.V. 
are Ingenio Tres Valles, S.A. de C.V. and Piasa Ingenio Plan de San 
Luis, S.A. de C.V. (collectively, Grupo PIASA).
    \12\ See Agreement Suspending the Countervailing Duty 
Investigation of Sugar from Mexico, 79 FR 78044 (December 29, 2014) 
and Sugar From Mexico: Amendment to the Agreement Suspending the 
Countervailing Duty Investigation, 82 FR 31942 (July 11, 2017) (CVD 
Amendment). Consistent with a ruling from the Court of International 
Trade, Commerce published in the Federal Register a notice of the 
termination of the 2017 CVD Amendment (which was in effect during 
period of review), with an applicable date of December 7, 2019. See 
Sugar from Mexico: Notice of Termination of Amendment to the 
Agreement Suspending the Countervailing Duty Investigation, 84 FR 
67718 (December 11, 2019).
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    The issue raised in the case and rebuttal briefs is addressed in 
the accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum and business 
proprietary memorandum.\13\ The issue is also identified in the 
Appendix to this notice. The Issues and Decision Memorandum is a public 
document and is on file electronically via Enforcement and Compliance's 
Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service 
System (ACCESS). ACCESS is available to registered users at http://access.trade.gov. In addition, a complete version of the Issues and 
Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly on the internet at http://trade.gov/enforcement/frn/index.html. The signed Issues and Decision 
Memorandum and electronic versions of the Issues and Decision 
Memorandum are identical in content.
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    \13\ See Issues and Decision Memorandum; see also Memorandum to 
the File from David Cordell, through Sally C. Gannon, Director for 
Bilateral Agreements, ``Proprietary Analysis of Final Results of the 
Administrative Review of the Agreement Suspending the Countervailing 
Duty Investigation on Sugar from Mexico, for the Period January 1, 
2018, through December 31, 2018'' dated concurrently with, and 
hereby adopted by, this notice.
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Notification Regarding Administrative Protective Order

    This notice also serves as a reminder to parties subject to 
administrative protective order (APO) of their responsibility 
concerning the return or destruction of proprietary information 
disclosed under APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely 
written notification of the return or destruction of APO materials or 
conversion to judicial protective order is hereby requested. Failure to 
comply with the regulations and terms of an APO is a sanctionable 
violation.

Notification to Interested Parties

    We are issuing and publishing these results of review in accordance 
with sections 751(a)(l) and 777(i)(l) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.213 and 
19 CFR 351.221(b)(5).

    Dated: October 21, 2020.
Jeffrey I. Kessler,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix

Issues and Decision Memorandum

I. Summary
II. Scope of the Agreement
III. Background
IV. Discussion of the Issues
    Comment 1: Whether Certain Behavior of Mexican Sugar Mills 
Violated the Terms of the Amended CVD Agreement
V. Recommendation

[FR Doc. 2020-23924 Filed 10-28-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P