[United States Statutes at Large, Volume 132, 115th Congress, 2nd Session]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

 
Proclamation 9705 of March 8, 2018

Adjusting Imports of Steel Into the United States

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

1. On January 11, 2018, the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary)
transmitted to me a report on his investigation into the effect of
imports of steel mill articles (steel articles) on the national security
of the United States under section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of
1962, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1862).
2. The Secretary found and advised me of his opinion that steel articles
are being imported into the United States in such quantities and under
such circumstances as to threaten to impair the national security of the
United States. The Secretary found that the present quantities of steel
articles imports and the circumstances of global excess capacity for
producing steel are ``weakening our internal economy,''; resulting in
the persistent threat of further closures of domestic steel production
facilities and the ``shrinking [of our] ability to meet national
security production requirements in a national emergency.''; Because of
these risks and the risk that the United States may be unable to ``meet
[steel] demands for national defense and critical industries in a
national emergency,''; and taking into account the close relation of the
economic welfare of the Nation to our national security, see 19 U.S.C.
1862(d), the Secretary concluded that the present quantities and
circumstances of steel articles imports threaten to impair the national
security as defined in section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962,
as amended.
3. In reaching this conclusion, the Secretary considered the previous
U.S. Government measures and actions on steel articles imports and
excess capacity, including actions taken under Presidents Reagan, George
H.W. Bush, Clinton, and George W. Bush. The Secretary also considered
the Department of Commerce's narrower investigation of iron ore and
semi-finished steel imports in 2001, and found the recommendations in
that report to be outdated given the dramatic changes in the steel
industry since 2001, including the increased level of global excess
capacity, the increased level of imports, the reduction in basic oxygen
furnace facilities, the number of idled facilities despite increased
demand for steel in critical industries, and the potential impact of
further plant closures on capacity needed in a national emergency.
4. In light of this conclusion, the Secretary recommended actions to
adjust the imports of steel articles so that such imports will not
threaten to impair the national security. Among those recommendations
was a global tariff of 24 percent on imports of steel articles in order
to reduce imports to a level that the Secretary assessed would enable
domestic steel producers to use approximately 80 percent of existing
domestic production capacity and thereby achieve long-term economic
viability through increased production. The Secretary has also
recommended that I authorize him, in response to specific requests from
affected domestic parties, to exclude from any adopted import
restrictions those steel articles for which the Secretary determines
there is a lack of sufficient U.S. production capacity of comparable
products, or to exclude steel articles from such restrictions for
specific national security-based considerations.

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5. I concur in the Secretary's finding that steel articles are being
imported into the United States in such quantities and under such
circumstances as to threaten to impair the national security of the
United States, and I have considered his recommendations.
6. Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, as amended,
authorizes the President to adjust the imports of an article and its
derivatives that are being imported into the United States in such
quantities or under such circumstances as to threaten to impair the
national security.
7. Section 604 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended (19 U.S.C. 2483),
authorizes the President to embody in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of
the United States (HTSUS) the substance of acts affecting import
treatment, and actions thereunder, including the removal, modification,
continuance, or imposition of any rate of duty or other import
restriction.
8. In the exercise of these authorities, I have decided to adjust the
imports of steel articles by imposing a 25 percent ad valorem tariff on
steel articles, as defined below, imported from all countries except
Canada and Mexico. In my judgment, this tariff is necessary and
appropriate in light of the many factors I have considered, including
the Secretary's report, updated import and production numbers for 2017,
the failure of countries to agree on measures to reduce global excess
capacity, the continued high level of imports since the beginning of the
year, and special circumstances that exist with respect to Canada and
Mexico. This relief will help our domestic steel industry to revive
idled facilities, open closed mills, preserve necessary skills by hiring
new steel workers, and maintain or increase production, which will
reduce our Nation's need to rely on foreign producers for steel and
ensure that domestic producers can continue to supply all the steel
necessary for critical industries and national defense. Under current
circumstances, this tariff is necessary and appropriate to address the
threat that imports of steel articles pose to the national security.
9. In adopting this tariff, I recognize that our Nation has important
security relationships with some countries whose exports of steel
articles to the United States weaken our internal economy and thereby
threaten to impair the national security. I also recognize our shared
concern about global excess capacity, a circumstance that is
contributing to the threatened impairment of the national security. Any
country with which we have a security relationship is welcome to discuss
with the United States alternative ways to address the threatened
impairment of the national security caused by imports from that country.
Should the United States and any such country arrive at a satisfactory
alternative means to address the threat to the national security such
that I determine that imports from that country no longer threaten to
impair the national security, I may remove or modify the restriction on
steel articles imports from that country and, if necessary, make any
corresponding adjustments to the tariff as it applies to other countries
as our national security interests require.
10. I conclude that Canada and Mexico present a special case. Given our
shared commitment to supporting each other in addressing national
security concerns, our shared commitment to addressing global excess
capacity for producing steel, the physical proximity of our respective
industrial bases, the robust economic integration between our

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countries, the export of steel articles produced in the United States to
Canada and Mexico, and the close relation of the economic welfare of the
United States to our national security, see 19 U.S.C. 1862(d), I have
determined that the necessary and appropriate means to address the
threat to the national security posed by imports of steel articles from
Canada and Mexico is to continue ongoing discussions with these
countries and to exempt steel articles imports from these countries from
the tariff, at least at this time. I expect that Canada and Mexico will
take action to prevent transshipment of steel articles through Canada
and Mexico to the United States.
11. In the meantime, the tariff imposed by this proclamation is an
important first step in ensuring the economic viability of our domestic
steel industry. Without this tariff and satisfactory outcomes in ongoing
negotiations with Canada and Mexico, the industry will continue to
decline, leaving the United States at risk of becoming reliant on
foreign producers of steel to meet our national security needs--a
situation that is fundamentally inconsistent with the safety and
security of the American people. It is my judgment that the tariff
imposed by this proclamation is necessary and appropriate to adjust
imports of steel articles so that such imports will not threaten to
impair the national security as defined in section 232 of the Trade
Expansion Act of 1962, as amended.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of
America, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws
of the United States of America, including section 301 of title 3,
United States Code, section 604 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended,
and section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, as amended, do
hereby proclaim as follows:
(1) For the purposes of this proclamation, ``steel articles''; are
defined at the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) 6-digit level as:
7206.10 through 7216.50, 7216.99 through 7301.10, 7302.10, 7302.40
through 7302.90, and 7304.10 through 7306.90, including any subsequent
revisions to these HTS classifications.
(2) In order to establish increases in the duty rate on imports of steel
articles, subchapter III of chapter 99 of the HTSUS is modified as
provided in the Annex to this proclamation. Except as otherwise provided
in this proclamation, or in notices published pursuant to clause 3 of
this proclamation, all steel articles imports specified in the Annex
shall be subject to an additional 25 percent ad valorem rate of duty
with respect to goods entered, or withdrawn from warehouse for
consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on March 23,
2018. This rate of duty, which is in addition to any other duties, fees,
exactions, and charges applicable to such imported steel articles, shall
apply to imports of steel articles from all countries except Canada and
Mexico.
(3) The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of State, the
Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Defense, the United States
Trade Representative (USTR), the Assistant to the President for National
Security Affairs, the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy,
and such other senior Executive Branch officials as the Secretary deems
appropriate, is hereby authorized to provide relief from the additional
duties set forth in clause 2 of this proclamation for any steel article
determined not to be produced in the United States in a suffi

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cient and reasonably available amount or of a satisfactory quality and
is also authorized to provide such relief based upon specific national
security considerations. Such relief shall be provided for a steel
article only after a request for exclusion is made by a directly
affected party located in the United States. If the Secretary determines
that a particular steel article should be excluded, the Secretary shall,
upon publishing a notice of such determination in the Federal Register,
notify Customs and Border Protection (CBP) of the Department of Homeland
Security concerning such article so that it will be excluded from the
duties described in clause 2 of this proclamation. The Secretary shall
consult with CBP to determine whether the HTSUS provisions created by
the Annex to this proclamation should be modified in order to ensure the
proper administration of such exclusion, and, if so, shall make such
modification to the HTSUS through a notice in the Federal Register.
(4) Within 10 days after the date of this proclamation, the Secretary
shall issue procedures for the requests for exclusion described in
clause 3 of this proclamation. The issuance of such procedures is exempt
from Executive Order 13771 of January 30, 2017 (Reducing Regulation and
Controlling Regulatory Costs).
(5) (a) The modifications to the HTSUS made by the Annex to this
proclamation shall be effective with respect to goods entered, or
withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern
daylight time on March 23, 2018, and shall continue in effect, unless
such actions are expressly reduced, modified, or terminated.
(b) The Secretary shall continue to monitor imports of steel
articles and shall, from time to time, in consultation with the
Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of
Defense, the USTR, the Assistant to the President for National Security
Affairs, the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, the
Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and such other senior
Executive Branch officials as the Secretary deems appropriate, review
the status of such imports with respect to the national security. The
Secretary shall inform the President of any circumstances that in the
Secretary's opinion might indicate the need for further action by the
President under section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, as
amended. The Secretary shall also inform the President of any
circumstance that in the Secretary's opinion might indicate that the
increase in duty rate provided for in this proclamation is no longer
necessary.
(6) Any provision of previous proclamations and Executive Orders that is
inconsistent with the actions taken in this proclamation is superseded
to the extent of such inconsistency.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighth day of
March, in the year of our Lord two thousand eighteen, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
second.
DONALD J. TRUMP


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