[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 167 (Tuesday, August 30, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 52851-52852]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-18751]



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 Rules and Regulations
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 167 / Tuesday, August 30, 2022 / 
Rules and Regulations  

[[Page 52851]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Foreign Agricultural Service

7 CFR Part 6

RIN 0551-AB03


Dairy Tariff-Rate Quota Import Licensing Program

AGENCY: Foreign Agricultural Service, USDA.

ACTION: Interim final rule; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: This interim final rule amends the regulations that provide 
for the issuance of licenses to import certain dairy articles under 
tariff-rate quotas (TRQs) as set forth in the Harmonized Tariff 
Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). The rule suspends for an 
additional year the historical license reduction provision which would 
otherwise apply beginning with the 2023 quota year. This change will 
allow license holders additional time to adjust to challenging market 
conditions impacting the dairy sector.

DATES: Effective August 30, 2022. Send comments on or before September 
29, 2022.

ADDRESSES: You may send comments, identified by [docket number and/or 
RIN number], by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for sending comments.
     Email: [email protected]. Include [docket number and/
or RIN number] in the subject line of the message.
     Mail: Dairy Import Programs, Multilateral Affairs, Trade 
Policy and Geographic Affairs, Foreign Agricultural Service, United 
States Department of Agriculture; 1400 Independence Avenue SW, STOP 
1070; Washington, DC 20250.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: Dairy Import Programs, Multilateral 
Affairs, Trade Policy and Geographic Affairs, Foreign Agricultural 
Service, United States Department of Agriculture; 1400 Independence 
Avenue SW, STOP 1070; Washington, DC 20250.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and docket number or Regulatory Information Number (RIN) for this 
interim final rule. Comments will be available for inspection online at 
www.regulations.gov and at the mail address listed above between 8 a.m. 
and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elizabeth Riley, (202) 720 6868; or by 
email at: [email protected]. Persons with disabilities who 
require an alternative means for communication of information (e.g., 
Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact [email protected] or Cynthia Stewart (Reasonable 
Accommodation Coordinator), [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), 
under a delegation of authority from the Under Secretary of 
Agriculture, administers the Dairy Tariff-Rate Quota Import Licensing 
regulations codified at 7 CFR 6.20 through 6.36 that provide for the 
issuance of licenses to import certain dairy articles under TRQs as set 
forth in certain notes in Chapter 4 of the HTSUS. These dairy articles 
may be entered into the United States at the low-tier tariff only by or 
for the account of a person, as defined in the regulations, to whom 
such licenses have been issued and only in accordance with the terms 
and conditions of the regulations. Licenses are issued on a calendar 
year basis and each license authorizes the licensee to import a 
specified quantity and type of dairy article from a specified country 
of origin.
    FAS issues three types of dairy import licenses: historical, non-
historical (lottery), and designated. For all three license types, 
persons must apply each year between September 1 and October 15. 
Historical and designated licensees may apply for lottery licenses 
subject to certain conditions. Licensees may fail to qualify for a 
license for a specific item from a specific country in the following 
year if they do not meet certain requirements. Licensees must (i) apply 
for the license each year, (ii) pay an annual fee, and (iii) have 
imported at least 85 percent of the final license amount from the 
previous year. To avoid ineligibility due to the 85-percent rule, 
licensees may surrender up to 100 percent of the license, but must 
import 85 percent of any quantity not surrendered.
    Section 6.25(b) of the regulations provides that beginning with the 
2023 quota year, any historical licensee who surrenders more than 50 
percent of the license amount for the same item from the same country 
during at least three of the most recent five years will be issued a 
historical license thereafter in an amount equal to the average amount 
imported under that license for those five quota years. FAS has 
suspended Sec.  6.25(b) on four previous occasions, most recently for 
an additional seven years encompassing the 2016-2022 quota years.
    This rule provides historical license holders additional time to 
adjust to changing market conditions by suspending implementation of 
Sec.  6.25(b) through the end of quota year 2023. FAS recognizes that 
COVID-19 pandemic-related shipping delays have made economic conditions 
difficult for several of the past years. In addition, the United States 
imposed retaliatory tariffs on certain EU exports from October 2019 
until June 2021, including certain dairy products, in response to the 
EU's failure to implement the World Trade Organization Dispute 
Settlement Body's recommendations in the dispute EC and Certain member 
States--Measures Affecting Trade in Large Civil Aircraft (DS316). The 
duties on dairy products, levied at 25% ad valorem, contributed to the 
volatile market conditions U.S. dairy importers have recently faced. 
Several dairy commodities that were subject to these retaliatory 
tariffs stand to lose historical quantity if Sec.  6.25(b) is not 
suspended. Overall, FAS estimates that allowing Sec.  6.25(b) to go 
into effect in quota year 2023 would result in the reduction or 
elimination of approximately 18% of historical licenses. In addition, 
FAS analysis shows that fill rates for the lottery category for those 
commodities that stand to lose the most historical licenses remain low, 
when viewed over the course of the past five quota years.

[[Page 52852]]

Regulatory Analysis

Administrative Procedure Act

    Pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), notice and 
comment are not required prior to the issuance of a final rule if an 
agency, for good cause, finds that ``notice and public procedure 
thereon are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public 
interest.'' (5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B)). As discussed above, FAS has 
determined that recent market events warrant suspending Sec.  6.25(b) 
for quota year 2023.
    To have a meaningful effect, the amendment suspending Sec.  6.25(b) 
for the next quota year must take effect prior to the application 
period for quota year 2023, which begins September 1, 2022, and ends on 
October 15, 2022. For this reason, FAS finds good cause exists to issue 
the rule without notice and comment pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), and 
without a delayed effective date pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3). 
Although this rule will take immediate effect, FAS invites interested 
persons to submit comments on the rule and will consider all relevant 
comments when determining whether further amendments to the regulation 
are needed.

Executive Order 12866

    The rule has been determined to be not significant under E.O. 12866 
and has been reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) ensures that 
regulatory and information requirements are tailored to the size and 
nature of small businesses, small organizations, and small governmental 
jurisdictions. The Administrator certifies that this rule will not have 
a significant economic impact on small businesses participating in the 
program.

Executive Order 12988

    This rule has been reviewed under E.O. 12988. This rule meets the 
applicable standards in sections 3(a) and 3(b)(2) of E.O. 12988, Civil 
Justice Reform, to minimize litigation, eliminate ambiguity, and reduce 
burden. The provisions of this rule would not have a preemptive effect 
with respect to any State or local laws, regulations, or policies which 
conflict with such provision or which otherwise impede their full 
implementation. This rule will not have a retroactive effect. Before 
any judicial action may be brought forward regarding this rule, all 
administrative remedies must be exhausted.

Executive Order 13132

    FAS has reviewed this rule in accordance with E.O. 13132 regarding 
federalism and has determined that it does not have ``federalism 
implications.'' The rule will not ``have substantial direct effects on 
the states, on the relationship between the national government and the 
states, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the 
various levels of government.''

Executive Order 13175

    This rule does not have tribal implications under E.O. 13175, 
Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments, because 
it does not have a substantial direct effect on one or more Indian 
tribes, on the relationship between the Federal government and Indian 
tribes, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities between 
the Federal Government and Indian tribes.

National Environmental Policy Act

    The Administrator has determined that this action will not have a 
significant effect on the quality of the human environment. Therefore, 
neither an Environmental Assessment nor an Environmental Impact 
Statement is necessary for this rule.

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act

    This rule does not impose an unfunded mandate or any other 
requirement on state, local, or tribal governments. Accordingly, these 
programs are not subject to the provisions of the Unfunded Mandates 
Reform Act (2 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.).

Executive Order 12630

    This Executive Order requires careful evaluation of governmental 
actions that interfere with constitutionally protected property rights. 
This rule does not interfere with any property rights and, therefore, 
does not need to be evaluated on the basis of the criteria outlined in 
E.O. 12630.

Congressional Review Act

    Pursuant to the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801 et seq.), 
OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has determined that 
this is not a ``major rule'' as defined by the Congressional Review Act 
(5 U.S.C. 804(2)).

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 6

    Agricultural commodities, Dairy, Cheese, Imports, Procedural rules, 
Application requirements, Tariff-rate quota, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements.

    Accordingly, for these reasons, 7 CFR part 6 is amended as follows:

PART 6--IMPORT QUOTAS AND FEES

Subpart B--Dairy Tariff-Rate Quota Import Licensing

0
1. The authority citation for subpart B continues to read as follows:

    Authority: Additional U.S. Notes 6, 7, 8, 12, 14, 16-23 and 25 
to Chapter 4 and General Note 15 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule 
of the United States (19 U.S.C. 1202), Pub. L. 97-258, 96 Stat. 
1051, as amended (31 U.S.C. 9701), and secs. 103 and 404, Pub. L. 
103-465, 108 Stat. 4819 (19 U.S.C. 3513 and 3601).

0
2. Amend Sec.  6.25 by revising paragraph (b) to read as follows:


Sec.  6.25  Allocation of licenses.

* * * * *
    (b) Historical licenses for the 2016 and subsequent quota years 
(Appendix 1). A person issued a historical license for the current 
quota year will be issued a historical license in the same amount for 
the same article from the same country for the next quota year except 
that beginning with the 2024 quota year, a person who has surrendered 
more than 50 percent of such historical license in at least three of 
the prior 5 quota years will thereafter be issued a license in an 
amount equal to the average annual quantity entered during those 5 
quota years.
* * * * *

Daniel Whitley,
Administrator, Foreign Agricultural Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-18751 Filed 8-25-22; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3410-10-P