[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 106 (Friday, May 31, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47198-47206]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-12003]


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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE

[Docket Number USTR-2024-0008]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Request for Comments--
Reinstatement of the Collection of Information, 301 Exclusion Requests

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is 
submitting a request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to 
reinstate an information collection request (ICR) entitled 301 
Exclusion Requests for three years under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995 (PRA) and its implementing regulations.

DATES: Submit comments no later than July 30, 2024.

ADDRESSES: USTR strongly prefers electronic submissions made through 
the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. See the 
submission instructions below. The Docket Number is USTR-2024-0008. For 
alternatives to on-line submissions, please contact the Section 301 
hotline at (202) 395-5725 before transmitting a comment and in advance 
of the deadline.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Assistant General Counsel Rachel 
Hasandras at (202) 395-5725, or by email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Comments

    Submit written comments and suggestions addressing one or more of 
the following:
    (1) Whether the ICR is necessary for the proper performance of 
USTR's functions, including whether the information will have practical 
utility.
    (2) The accuracy of USTR's estimate of the burden of the ICR, 
including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used.
    (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the ICR.
    (4) Ways to minimize the burden of the ICR 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.

B. Overview of This Information Collection

    Title: 301 Exclusion Requests.
    OMB Control Number: 0350-0015, which expired on January 31, 2023.
    Form Number(s): 301 Exclusion Request/Response/Reply Form.
    Description: Following a comprehensive review of the July 6, 2018 
and the August 23, 2018 actions, as modified, in the Section 301 
Investigation of China's Acts, Policies, and Practices Related to 
Technology Transfer, Intellectual Property, and Innovation, the U.S. 
Trade Representative determined, among other findings, to establish an 
exclusion process limited to machinery used in domestic manufacturing 
and under certain 8-digit tariff lines in Chapters 84 and 85 of the 
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). See 89 FR 
46252 (May 28, 2024). A mockup of the 301 Exclusion Request/Response/
Reply Form is attached as an annex to this notice.
    OMB initially approved an information collection request for 
Section 301 Exclusion Requests on June 20, 2019, and assigned Control 
Number 0350-0015, which expired on December 31, 2019.
    OMB approved a prior extension for this collection that expired in 
January 2023. USTR now is seeking to reinstate the expired collection 
and to extend the approval for three years.
    Affected Public: U.S. stakeholders who want to request that certain 
enumerated subheadings under Chapters 84 and 85 of the HTSUS for 
machinery used in domestic manufacturing be excluded from the 
additional duties on products of China.
    Frequency of Submission: One submission per request.
    Respondent Universe: U.S. stakeholders.
    Reporting Burden:
    Total Estimated Responses: 5,000 requests to exclude a particular 
product. 1,000 responses in support or opposition to exclude a 
particular product.
    Total Estimated Annual Burden: USTR estimates that preparing and 
submitting a request to exclude a particular product will take 
approximately 60 minutes, and the total time burden for the public to 
submit requests is 5,000 hours. USTR estimates that preparing and 
submitting a response to a product exclusion request will take 
approximately 30 minutes, and the total time burden for responses is 
approximately 500 hours.
    USTR estimates that the cost to the Federal government to evaluate 
each request is 1.0 hours, for a total time burden of 5,300 hours and 
will cost about $150 per submission. The estimated total cost is 
$813,000. The total cost estimate includes the average annual salary 
plus benefits, for the federal employees and contractors expected to 
work on the exclusion process. The process is expected to continue on a 
rolling basis.
    Status: After reviewing comments received in response to this 
notice, under the PRA and its implementing regulations, USTR plans to 
submit a request to OMB to reinstate the ICR for three years.

C. Requirements for Submissions

    You must submit written comments by the deadline set forth in this 
notice. You must make all submissions in English via http://www.regulations.gov, using Docket Number USTR-2024-0008. USTR will not 
accept hand-delivered submissions. To make a submission using http://www.regulations.gov, enter the appropriate docket number in the `search 
for' field 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 notice by selecting `notice' under `document 
type' in the `filter results by' section on the left side of the screen 
and click on the link entitled `comment now.' The regulations.gov 
website offers the option of providing comments by filling in a `type 
comment' field or by attaching a document using the `upload file(s)' 
field. USTR prefers that you provide submissions in an attached 
document and note `see attached' in the `type comment' field on the 
online submission form. Include any data attachments to the submission 
in the same file as the submission itself, and not as separate files.
    You will receive a tracking number upon completion of the 
submission procedure at http://www.regulations.gov. The tracking

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number is confirmation that regulations.gov received the submission. 
Keep the confirmation for your records. USTR is not able to provide 
technical assistance for the website. USTR may not consider documents 
you do not submit in accordance with these instructions. If you are 
unable to provide submissions as requested, please contact the Section 
301 hotline at (202) 395-5725 before transmitting a comment and in 
advance of the deadline. General information concerning USTR is 
available at www.ustr.gov.

Juan Millan,
Acting General Counsel, Office of the United States Trade 
Representative.
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[FR Doc. 2024-12003 Filed 5-30-24; 8:45 am]
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