[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 222 (Tuesday, November 17, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73294-73295]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-25305]



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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

[Investigation No. 1205-13]


Recommended Modifications in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, 2020

AGENCY: U.S. International Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice of proposed recommendations and solicitation of public 
comments.

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SUMMARY: On October 1, 2019, the U.S. International Trade Commission 
(Commission) instituted Investigation No. 1205-13, Recommended 
Modifications in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, 2020. The Commission's 
proposed recommendations relating to Investigation No. 1205-13 have 
been posted on the Commission website. Interested Federal agencies and 
the public are invited to submit written comments on the proposed 
recommendations by December 14, 2020.

DATES: 
    November 16, 2020: Posting of the Commission's proposed 
recommendations on the Commission's website.
    December 14, 2020: Interested Federal agencies and the public may 
file written views with the Commission on the Commission's proposed 
recommendations.
    March 2021 (actual date to be announced later): Transmittal of the 
Commission's report to the President.

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 to the Commission, 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 Information System (EDIS) at https://edis.usitc.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Daniel P. Shepherdson, Attorney-
Advisor, Office of Tariff Affairs and Trade Agreements ((202) 205-2598, 
or [email protected]) or Vanessa Lee, Nomenclature Analyst, 
Office of Tariff Affairs and Trade Agreements ((202) 205-2053, 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 about the Commission is available 
by accessing the Commission website at 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: Section 1205(a) of the Omnibus Trade and 
Competitiveness Act of 1988 (the 1988 Act) (19 U.S.C. 3005(a)) requires 
that the Commission keep the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United 
States (HTS) under continuous review and periodically recommend to the 
President such modifications in the HTS as the Commission considers 
necessary or appropriate to conform the HTS with amendments made to the 
International Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description and 
Coding System (Convention), which contains the Harmonized System 
nomenclature in the Annex to the Convention.
    On June 28, 2019, the World Customs Organization (WCO) adopted 
recommended amendments to the Harmonized System nomenclature that are 
scheduled to enter into force on January 1, 2022. The Commission has 
posted a copy of the WCO amendments on its website at https://usitc.gov/harmonized_tariff_information. On October 1, 2019, the 
Commission instituted Investigation No. 1205-13 to prepare such 
modifications in the HTS as it considers necessary or appropriate to 
conform the HTS with such amendments to the Harmonized System.
    As part of this investigation, the Commission will also consider 
whether it is necessary or appropriate to recommend a modification to 
the HTS nomenclature for blanched peanuts to conform the HTS with a 
2018 opinion of the WCO's Harmonized System Committee, which classified 
certain blanched peanuts in heading 1202 of the Harmonized System. 
Prior to the WCO opinion, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has 
classified blanched peanuts in heading 2008 based in part on an HTS 
subheading in chapter 20 that provided for blanched peanuts.
    An up-to-date copy of the HTS, which incorporates the Harmonized 
System in its overall structure, is available on the Commission's 
website at https://hts.usitc.gov/current.
    Proposed Recommendations, Opportunity To Comment: The Commission's 
proposed recommendations relating to Investigation No. 1205-13 have 
been posted on the Commission website at https://www.usitc.gov. 
Interested Federal agencies and the public are invited to submit 
written comments on the proposed recommendations by December 14, 2020. 
To assist the public in understanding the proposed changes and in 
developing comments, the Commission has included, with the proposed 
recommendations, a non-authoritative concordance tables linking the 
proposed tariff codes to the corresponding current tariff codes. 
Persons using the concordance tables should be aware that the cross-
references shown are subject to change during the course of the 
investigation.
    Written Submissions: Interested Federal agencies and the public are 
invited to file written submissions concerning the proposed 
recommendations. All written submissions should be addressed to the 
Secretary, and should be received not later than 5:15 p.m., December 
14, 2020. All written submissions must conform with the provisions of 
Sec.  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. Submissions should 
refer to the docket number (``Docket No. 1205-013'') in a prominent 
place on the cover page and/or the first page. (See Handbook for 
Electronic Filing Procedures, Electronic Filing Procedures). Persons 
with questions regarding filing should contact the Secretary (202-205-
2000).
    Any submissions that contain confidential business information 
(CBI) must also conform with the requirements of Sec.  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 be clearly identified by means of 
brackets. All written submissions, except for confidential business 
information, will be made available for inspection by interested 
parties. The Commission may include some or all of the confidential 
business information submitted in the course of this investigation in 
the report it sends to the President and the U.S. Trade Representative. 
The Commission will not otherwise publish any confidential business 
information in a manner that would reveal the operations of the firm 
supplying the information.
    Recommendations to the President: After considering written public 
comments, the Commission will submit its recommended modifications to 
the

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President in the form of a report that will include a summary of the 
information on which the recommendations were based, together with a 
statement of the probable economic effect of each recommended change on 
any industry in the United States. The report also will include a copy 
of all written views submitted by interested Federal agencies and a 
copy or summary, prepared by the Commission, of the views of all other 
interested parties. The Commission expects to submit that report in 
March 2021.

    By order of the Commission.

    Issued: November 12, 2020.
Lisa Barton,
Secretary to the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2020-25305 Filed 11-16-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P