[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 28 (Thursday, February 10, 2022)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 7777-7779]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-02870]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Bureau of Industry and Security

15 CFR Chapter VII

[Docket No. 220204-0041]
RIN 0694-XC086


Request for Public Comments on the Section 232 Exclusions Process

AGENCY: Bureau of Industry and Security, Commerce.

ACTION: Request for public comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is hereby seeking 
public comments regarding the Section 232 exclusions process. A 
presidential proclamation (Adjusting Imports of Steel into the United 
States), published on January 3, 2022, directed the Secretary of 
Commerce to seek public comment on the Section 232 exclusions process, 
including the responsiveness of the exclusions process to market

[[Page 7778]]

demand and enhanced consultation with U.S. firms and labor 
organizations.

DATES: The due date for filing comments is March 28, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Submissions: All written comments on this request must be 
filed through the Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. To submit comments via https://www.regulations.gov, enter the docket number BIS-2021-0042 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 document and click the button entitled ``Comment.'' (For further 
information on using https://www.regulations.gov, please consult the 
resources provided on the website by clicking on ``FAQ'').

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erika Maynard by telephone at 202-482-
5642 or by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Presidential Proclamations 10327 (87 FR 1) and 10328 (87 FR 11) 
published on January 3, 2022, implemented an understanding reached 
between the United States and the European Union including the 
establishment of tariff rate quotas for steel and aluminum articles 
imported from the European Union member countries. Proclamation 10328 
also directed the Secretary of Commerce to seek public comment on the 
Section 232 exclusions process, including the responsiveness of the 
exclusions process to market demand and enhanced consultation with U.S. 
firms and labor organizations.
    Since March 19, 2018, Commerce has published five interim final 
rules that established and made various revisions to the Section 232 
exclusions process, as well as a Notice of Inquiry seeking public 
comment on certain aspects of the Section 232 exclusions process.
    On March 19, 2018, Commerce issued an interim final rule, 
Requirements for Submissions Requesting Exclusions from the Remedies 
Instituted in Presidential Proclamations Adjusting Imports of Steel 
into the United States and Adjusting Imports of Aluminum into the 
United States; and the filing of Objections to Submitted Exclusion 
Requests for Steel and Aluminum (83 FR 12106), laying out procedures 
for the Section 232 exclusions process.
    On September 11, 2018, Commerce issued a second interim final rule, 
Submissions of Exclusion Requests and Objections to Submitted Requests 
for Steel and Aluminum (83 FR 46026), which revised the two supplements 
added by the March 19 rule with revisions designed to further ensure a 
transparent, fair, and efficient exclusions process.
    On June 10, 2019, Commerce issued a third interim final rule, 
Implementation of New Commerce Section 232 Exclusions Portal (84 FR 
26751), that revised the two supplements added by the March 19 and 
September 11 rules to grant the public the ability to submit new 
exclusion requests through the Section 232 Exclusions Portal while 
still allowing the opportunity for public comment on the portal.
    On May 26, 2020, Commerce issued a notice of inquiry with request 
for comment, Notice of Inquiry Regarding the Exclusions process for 
Section 232 Steel and Aluminum Import Tariffs and Quotas (85 FR 31441), 
that sought public comment on the appropriateness of the information 
requested and considered in applying the exclusion criteria and the 
efficiency and transparency of the process employed.
    On December 14, 2020, Commerce issued a fourth interim final rule, 
Implementation of New Commerce Section 232 Exclusions Portal (85 FR 
81060), which established General Approved Exclusions (GAEs) to reduce 
the number of exclusion requests for products consistently found not to 
be produced in the United States, reducing the submission burden on 
both industry and the Section 232 exclusions process. The December 14, 
2020, Interim Final Rule identified 123 GAEs that had never received an 
objection via the Section 232 exclusions process. GAEs are available to 
all requestors for steel and aluminum products imported under 10-Digit 
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States classifications without 
quantity limit or expiration date.
    On December 9, 2021, BIS subsequently suspended 30 GAEs in its 
fifth Interim Final Rule (86 FR 70003) on the Section 232 Exclusions 
process because some exclusion requests subsequently received 
objections under the associated HTSUS Classifications.

Exclusions Process

    As of January 30, 2022, BIS has processed over 382,000 exclusion 
requests and has rejected or made determinations on more than 369,000 
requests. Approximately seventy percent of exclusion requests do not 
receive objections. The most recent average processing time for 
exclusion requests that do not receive objections is 43 days. The most 
recent average processing time for exclusion requests that receive 
objections is 98 days. Less than ten percent of the volume of steel 
(about eight percent) and aluminum (about seven percent) articles 
granted exclusions is utilized with the articles being imported into 
the United States.
    BIS seeks public comment on the Section 232 exclusions process. In 
particular, as directed in Proclamation 10327, BIS seeks public comment 
on the responsiveness of the exclusions process to market demand and 
enhanced consultation with U.S. firms and labor organizations.
    BIS also welcomes comment on more specific aspects of the Section 
232 exclusions process, including: Potential changes to the associated 
forms and required information; the request, objection, rebuttal, and 
surrebuttal process; the standards of review; General Approved 
Exclusions; and the overall transparency of the process. Specific 
topics include:
    (1) How to reduce the volume of submission errors and rejected 
filings in the Section 232 Exclusions Portal;
    (2) how to address the time for processing of exclusion requests, 
including but not limited to reducing length or type of attachments;
    (3) requiring public summaries of any confidential business 
information in exclusion requests and objections, similar to the 
existing requirement for rebuttal and surrebuttals;
    (4) requiring public disclosure of delivery times on the Exclusion 
Request and Objection Forms;
    (5) requiring recent (i.e., from the last quarter or 90 days) 
evidence supporting claims made in a Request or Objection;
    (6) streamlining the online forms or otherwise reducing 
administrative burden; and
    (7) assessing the General Approved Exclusions' (GAEs) criteria and 
identification of specific products.
    Commenters are encouraged to identify which of these particular 
issues their comments are related to. Commenters are requested to 
provide information supporting their stance on that issue.

Requirements for Written Comments

    The https://www.regulations.gov website allows users to provide 
comments by filling in a ``Type Comment'' field or by attaching a 
document using an ``Upload File'' field. BIS prefers that comments be 
provided in an attached document. BIS prefers submissions in Microsoft 
Word (.doc) or Adobe Acrobat (.pdf). If the submission is in an 
application format other than Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat, please 
indicate the name of the application in the ``Type Comment'' field. 
Please do not attach separate cover letters to electronic submissions; 
rather, include any information that might

[[Page 7779]]

appear in a cover letter within the comments. Similarly, to the extent 
possible please include any exhibits, annexes, or other attachments in 
the same file, so that the submission consists of one instead of 
multiple files. Comments will be placed in the docket and open to 
public inspection, except information determined to be confidential. 
Comments may be viewed on https://www.regulations.gov by entering 
docket number BIS-2021-0042 in the search field on the home page.
    All filers should name their files using the name of the person or 
entity submitting the comments. Communications from agencies of the 
United States Government will not be made available for public 
inspection.
    Material submitted by members of the public that is properly marked 
as business confidential information with a valid statutory basis for 
confidentiality and which is accepted as such by BIS will not be 
disclosed publicly. Guidance on submitting business confidential 
information is as follows: Anyone submitting business confidential 
information should clearly identify the business confidential portion 
at the time of submission, include a statement justifying nondisclosure 
and referring to the specific legal authority claimed with the 
submission, and provide a non-confidential version of the submission 
which will be placed in the public file on https://www.regulations.gov. 
For comments submitted electronically containing business confidential 
information, the file name of the business confidential version should 
begin with the characters ``BC''. Any page containing business 
confidential information must be clearly marked ``BUSINESS 
CONFIDENTIAL'' on the top of that page. The file name of the non-
confidential version should begin with the character ``P''. The non-
confidential version must be clearly marked ``PUBLIC'' on the top of 
the first page. The ``BC'' and ``P'' should be followed by the name of 
the person or entity submitting the comments or rebuttal comments.

Matthew S. Borman,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Export Administration.
[FR Doc. 2022-02870 Filed 2-9-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-33-P