[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 156 (Friday, August 15, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39418-39419]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-15511]
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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION
[Investigation No. 1205-14]
Recommended Modifications in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule
AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.
ACTION: Notice of investigation.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. International Trade Commission (Commission) has
instituted investigation No. 1205-14, Recommended Modifications in the
Harmonized Tariff Schedule, pursuant to section 1205 of the Omnibus
Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988, in order to recommend to the
President certain modifications to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of
the United States (HTS) recommended by the World Customs Organization
(WCO).
DATES:
January 2026: Posting of the WCO's Recommendation, on the
Commission's website.
February 2026: Posting of the Commission's proposed recommendations
on the Commission's website.
September 2026: Transmittal of the Commission's report to the
President.
Note: These dates are subject to change.
ADDRESSES: All Commission offices, including the Commission's hearing
rooms, are located in the U.S. International Trade Commission Building,
500 E Street SW, Washington, DC. All written submissions should be
addressed to the Secretary, 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
(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 Edward Petronzio, Nomenclature
Analyst, Office of Tariff Affairs and Trade Agreements ((202) 205-3033,
or [email protected]). The media should contact Jennifer
Andberg, Office of External Relations ((202) 205-3404, 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 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.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background: Section 1205(a) of the Omnibus
Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 (the 1988 Act) (19 U.S.C. 3005)
requires that the Commission keep the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States (Harmonized Tariff Schedule or 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. The World Customs Organization (WCO) administers and
maintains the Harmonized System and has completed six systematic
reviews of the Harmonized System nomenclature since 1988. The reviews
are conducted to ensure that the Harmonized System is kept up to date
in light of changes in technology or patterns of international trade.
The Harmonized System nomenclature provides uniform product
architecture for the customs tariffs and statistical nomenclatures of
all major trading countries of the world, including the United States.
The
[[Page 39419]]
Harmonized System establishes the general arrangement or structure of
product categories, set forth in chapters, 4-digit headings, and 6-
digit subheadings. It also includes the general rules of
interpretation, and section and chapter legal notes that define the
scope of sections, chapters, 4-digit headings, and 6-digit subheadings.
The HTS is based on the Harmonized System nomenclature. The HTS
includes additional national subdivisions (8-digit subheadings and 10-
digit statistical annotations), as well as additional U.S. chapter
notes, and other national provisions that facilitate the administration
of U.S. customs, tariff, and statistical programs.
In January 2026, the WCO is expected to publish recommended
amendments to the Harmonized System nomenclature that the WCO proposes
will enter into force on January 1, 2028. The amendments are the
seventh in a series of such amendments and are part of the WCO's
ongoing program of periodically reviewing and updating the Harmonized
System nomenclature. The Commission will post a copy of the WCO
recommended amendments on its website at www.usitc.gov, once they
become available, likely in January 2026. A copy of the current HTS,
which incorporates the Harmonized System nomenclature in its overall
structure, is available on the Commission's website at https://hts.usitc.gov.
Proposed recommendations; opportunity for submission of views by
Federal agencies and the public: In preparing its recommended
modifications to the HTS to the President, the Commission will post the
proposed recommendations on its website, likely in February 2026. The
Commission will publish a notice in the Federal Register at that time
providing notice of their availability and notice of procedures for
filing written views, including the date by which such written views
must be filed. To assist the public in understanding the proposed
changes and in developing comments, the Commission will include, with
the proposed recommendations, a non-authoritative cross-reference table
linking the proposed headings, subheadings, and statistical annotations
to the corresponding current headings, subheadings, and statistical
annotations. Persons using the cross-reference table should be aware
that the cross-references shown are subject to change during the course
of the investigation.
Recommendations to the President: The Commission will submit its
recommended modifications to the HTS to the 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 September
2026.
By order of the Commission.
Issued: August 12, 2025.
Lisa Barton,
Secretary to the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2025-15511 Filed 8-14-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P