[United States Statutes at Large, Volume 133, 116th Congress, 1st Session]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

 
Proclamation 9974 of December 26, 2019

To Take Certain Actions Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act and
for Other Purposes

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

1. In Proclamation 7350 of October 2, 2000, the President designated the
Republic of Cameroon (Cameroon) as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African
country for purposes of section 506A(a)(1) of the Trade Act of 1974, as
amended (the ``Trade Act''), as added by section 111(a) of the African
Growth and Opportunity Act (the ``AGOA'') (title I of Public Law 106-
200, 114 Stat. 251, 257-58 (19 U.S.C. 2466a(a)(1)).
2. Section 506A(a)(3) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2466a(a)(3)) provides
that the President shall terminate the designation of a country as a
beneficiary sub-Saharan African country for purposes of section 506A if
he determines that the country is not making continual progress in
meeting the requirements described in section 506A(a)(1) of the Trade
Act.
3. Pursuant to section 506A(a)(3) of the Trade Act, I have determined
that Cameroon is not making continual progress in meeting the
requirements described in section 506A(a)(1) of the Trade Act.
Accordingly, I have decided to terminate the designation of Cameroon as
a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country for purposes of section 506A
of the Trade Act, effective January 1, 2020.
4. I have determined that the Republic of Niger (Niger), the Central
African Republic, and the Republic of The Gambia (The Gambia) have not
established effective visa systems and related customs procedures
meeting the requirements of section 113 of the AGOA (19 U.S.C. 3722),
which are required in order for a beneficiary sub-Saharan African
country to receive the preferential treatment provided for under section
112(a) of the AGOA (19 U.S.C. 3721(a)). Therefore, Niger, the Central
African Republic, and The Gambia are not eligible for the treatment
provided for under section 112(a).
5. Section 112(c) of the AGOA, as amended in section 6002 of the Africa
Investment Incentive Act of 2006 (division D, title VI, Public Law 109-
432, 120 Stat. 2922, 3190-93 (19 U.S.C. 3721(c)), provides special rules
for certain apparel articles imported from ``lesser developed
beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries.''

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6. I have determined that Guinea-Bissau and Niger satisfy the criterion
for treatment as ``lesser developed beneficiary sub-Saharan African
countries'' under section 112(c) of the AGOA.
7. On April 22, 1985, the United States and Israel entered into the
Agreement on the Establishment of a Free Trade Area between the
Government of the United States of America and the Government of Israel
(the ``USIFTA''), which the Congress approved in section 3 of the United
States-Israel Free Trade Area Implementation Act of 1985 (the ``USIFTA
Act'') (Public Law 99-47, 99 Stat. 82 (19 U.S.C. 2112 note)).
8. Section 4(b) of the USIFTA Act provides that, whenever the President
determines that it is necessary to maintain the general level of
reciprocal and mutually advantageous concessions with respect to Israel
provided for by the USIFTA, the President may proclaim such withdrawal,
suspension, modification, or continuance of any duty, or such
continuance of existing duty-free or excise treatment, or such
additional duties, as the President determines to be required or
appropriate to carry out the USIFTA.
9. In order to maintain the general level of reciprocal and mutually
advantageous concessions with respect to agricultural trade with Israel,
on July 27, 2004, the United States entered into an agreement with
Israel concerning certain aspects of trade in agricultural products
during the period January 1, 2004, through December 31, 2008 (the ``2004
Agreement'').
10. In Proclamation 7826 of October 4, 2004, consistent with the 2004
Agreement, the President determined, pursuant to section 4(b) of the
USIFTA Act, that, in order to maintain the general level of reciprocal
and mutually advantageous concessions with respect to Israel provided
for by the USIFTA, it was necessary to provide duty-free access into the
United States through December 31, 2008, for specified quantities of
certain agricultural products of Israel.
11. Each year from 2008 through 2018, the United States and Israel
entered into agreements to extend the period that the 2004 Agreement was
in force for 1-year periods to allow additional time for the two
governments to conclude an agreement to replace the 2004 Agreement.
12. To carry out the extension agreements, the President in Proclamation
8334 of December 31, 2008; Proclamation 8467 of December 23, 2009;
Proclamation 8618 of December 21, 2010; Proclamation 8770 of December
29, 2011; Proclamation 8921 of December 20, 2012; Proclamation 9072 of
December 23, 2013; Proclamation 9223 of December 23, 2014; Proclamation
9383 of December 21, 2015; Proclamation 9555 of December 15, 2016;
Proclamation 9687 of December 22, 2017; and Proclamation 9834 of
December 21, 2018, modified the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United
States (the ``HTS'') to provide duty-free access into the United States
for specified quantities of certain agricultural products of Israel,
each time for an additional 1-year period.
13. On December 4, 2019, the United States entered into an agreement
with Israel to extend the period that the 2004 Agreement is in force
through December 31, 2020, and to allow for further negotiations on an
agreement to replace the 2004 Agreement.
14. Pursuant to section 4(b) of the USIFTA Act, I have determined that
it is necessary, in order to maintain the general level of reciprocal
and mutually advantageous concessions with respect to Israel provided
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by the USIFTA, to provide duty-free access into the United States
through the close of December 31, 2020, for specified quantities of
certain agricultural products of Israel, as provided in Annex I of this
proclamation.
15. On September 16, 2019, in accordance with section 103(a)(2) of the
Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015
(the ``Trade Priorities Act'') (title I of Public Law 114-26, 129 Stat.
319, 333 (19 U.S.C. 4202(a)(2)), I notified the Congress that I intended
to enter into an agreement regarding tariff barriers with Japan under
section 103(a) of the Trade Priorities Act. On October 7, 2019, the
United States and Japan entered into the Trade Agreement between the
United States and Japan.
16. Section 103(a)(1) of the Trade Priorities Act authorizes the
President to proclaim such modification of any existing duty as the
President determines to be required or appropriate to carry out a trade
agreement entered into under section 103(a). The President generally may
proclaim such modification provided that the modification does not
reduce the rate of duty to a rate that is less than 50 percent of the
date of such duty that applied on June 29, 2015; does not reduce the
rate of duty below that applicable under the Uruguay Round Agreements or
a successor agreement on any import-sensitive agricultural product; and
does not increase the rate of duty above the rate of such duty that
applied on June 29, 2015.
17. Pursuant to section 103(a) of the Trade Priorities Act, I have
determined that it is required and appropriate to modify existing duties
with respect to certain goods to carry out the Trade Agreement between
the United States and Japan.
18. In Proclamation 6763 of December 23, 1994, the President established
a tariff-rate quota for beef. Section 404(d)(3) of the Uruguay Round
Agreements Act (title IV of Public Law 103-465, 108 Stat. 4809, 4960 (19
U.S.C. 3601(d)(3)) authorizes the President to allocate the in-quota
quantity of a tariff-rate quota for any agricultural product among
supplying countries or customs areas and to modify any allocation as the
President determines appropriate. Pursuant to section 404(d)(3) of the
Uruguay Round Agreements Act, I have determined that it is appropriate
to modify the tariff-rate quota allocation for beef by providing that
the tariff-rate quota allocation for Japan will become part of the total
tariff-rate quota allocation for other countries or areas.
19. Section 1206(a) of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988
(the ``1988 Act'') (title I of Public Law 100-418, 102 Stat. 1107, 1151
(19 U.S.C. 3006(a)) authorizes the President to proclaim modifications
to the HTS based on the recommendations of the United States
International Trade Commission (the ``Commission'') under section 1205
of the 1988 Act (19 U.S.C. 3005) if the President determines that the
modifications are in conformity with United States obligations under the
International Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description and
Coding System (the ``Convention'') and do not run counter to the
national economic interest of the United States.
20. In Proclamation 9549 of December 1, 2016, pursuant to section
1206(a) of the 1988 Act, the President proclaimed modifications to the
HTS to conform it to the Convention, to promote the uniform application
of the Convention, to establish additional subordinate tariff
categories, and to make technical and conforming changes to existing pro

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visions. These modifications to the HTS were set out in Annex I of
Publication 4653 of the Commission, which was incorporated by reference
into the proclamation.
21. Proclamation 7746 of December 30, 2003, implemented the United
States-Chile Free Trade Agreement (the ``USCFTA'') with respect to the
United States and, pursuant to the United States-Chile Free Trade
Agreement Implementation Act (the ``USCFTA Act'') (Public Law 108-77,
117 Stat. 909 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note)), incorporated in the HTS the
schedule of duty reductions and rules of origin necessary or appropriate
to carry out the USCFTA.
22. In order to ensure the continuation of such staged reductions in
rates of duty for originating goods of Chile in tariff categories that
were modified to reflect amendments to the Convention, Proclamation 9549
made modifications to the HTS that the President determined were
necessary or appropriate to carry out the duty reductions proclaimed in
Proclamation 7746. The United States and Chile are parties to the
Convention.
23. Section 201 of the USCFTA Act authorizes the President to proclaim
such modifications or continuation of any duty, such continuation of
duty-free or excise treatment, or such additional duties, as the
President determines to be necessary or appropriate to carry out or
apply Articles 3.3, 3.7, 3.9, Article 3.20(8), (9), (10), and (11), and
Annex 3.3 (including the schedule of United States duty reductions with
respect to originating goods) of the USCFTA.
24. I have determined that, pursuant to section 201 of the USCFTA Act
and section 1206(a) of the 1988 Act, modifications to the HTS are
necessary or appropriate to ensure the continuation of tariff and
certain other treatment accorded to originating goods under tariff
categories modified in Proclamation 9549 and to carry out the duty
reductions proclaimed in Proclamation 7746.
25. Section 604 of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2483) authorizes the
President to embody in the HTS the substance of the relevant provisions
of that Act, and of other acts affecting import treatment, and actions
thereunder, including removal, modification, continuance, or imposition
of any rate of duty or other import restriction.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of
America, acting under the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
the laws of the United States of America, including sections 506A(a)(1)
and 506A(a)(3) of the Trade Act; sections 111(a) and 112(c) of the AGOA;
section 6002 of the Africa Investment Incentive Act of 2006; section
4(b) of the USIFTA Act; section 103(a) of the Trade Priorities Act;
section 404(d)(3) of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act; section 1206(a)
of the 1988 Act; section 201 of the USCFTA Act; and section 604 of the
Trade Act, do proclaim that:
(1) The designation of Cameroon as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African
country for purposes of section 506A of the Trade Act is terminated,
effective January 1, 2020.
(2) In order to reflect in the HTS that beginning January 1, 2020,
Cameroon shall no longer be designated as a beneficiary sub-Saharan
African country, general note 16(a) to the HTS is modified by deleting
``Republic of Cameroon'' from the list of beneficiary sub-Saharan
African countries. Note 7(a) to subchapter II and note 1 to subchapter
XIX

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of chapter 98 of the HTS are modified to delete ``Cameroon'' from the
list of beneficiary countries. Further, note 2(d) to subchapter XIX of
chapter 98 of the HTS is modified by deleting ``Republic of Cameroon''
from the list of lesser developed beneficiary sub-Saharan African
countries.
(3) In order to provide the tariff treatment intended under sections
112(a) and 113 of the AGOA, note 1 to subchapter XIX of Chapter 98 of
the HTS is modified by deleting ``Niger'', ``Central African Republic'',
and ``The Gambia'' from the list of beneficiary sub-Saharan African
countries. Further, note 7(a) to subchapter II of chapter 98 of the HTS
is modified by deleting ``Niger'' from the list of beneficiary sub-
Saharan African countries.
(4) For purposes of section 112(c) of the AGOA, Guinea-Bissau and
Niger are lesser developed beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries.
(5) In order to provide for Guinea-Bissau and Niger the tariff
treatment intended under section 112(c) of the AGOA, note 2(d) to
subchapter XIX of chapter 98 of the HTS is modified by inserting in
alphabetical sequence in the list of lesser developed beneficiary sub-
Saharan African countries ``Guinea-Bissau'' and ``Niger''.
(6) The modifications to the HTS set forth in paragraphs (1) through
(5) of this proclamation shall be effective with respect to articles
that are entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for
consumption, on or after January 1, 2020.
(7) In order to implement United States tariff commitments under the
2004 Agreement through December 31, 2020, the HTS is modified as
provided in Annex I of this proclamation.
(8) The modifications to the HTS set forth in Annex I of this
proclamation shall be effective with respect to eligible agricultural
products of Israel that are entered for consumption, or withdrawn from
warehouse for consumption, on or after January 1, 2020.
(9) The provisions of subchapter VIII of chapter 99 of the HTS, as
modified by Annex I of this proclamation, shall continue in effect
through December 31, 2020.
(10) In order to modify tariffs on certain goods to carry out the
Trade Agreement between the United States and Japan, the HTS is modified
as set forth in Annex II of this proclamation.
(11) The modifications to the HTS set forth in Annex II of this
proclamation shall be effective with respect to originating goods, as
defined in the Trade Agreement between the United States and Japan,
effective on the dates specified in Annex II and on any subsequent dates
set forth for such duty reductions in Annex II.
(12) The Secretary of the Treasury shall use existing authority to
issue any regulations necessary to implement the modifications made
pursuant to paragraphs (10) and (11) of this proclamation.
(13) Additional U.S. note 3 to chapter 2 of the HTS is modified as
specified in Annex III of this proclamation. The modifications to the
HTS set forth in Annex III of this proclamation shall be effective with
respect to goods that are entered for consumption, or withdrawn from
warehouse for consumption, on or after January 1, 2020.

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(14) In order to reflect in the HTS the modifications to the rules
of origin under the USCFTA, general note 26 to the HTS is modified as
provided in Annex IV of this proclamation.
(15) The modifications to the HTS made by paragraph (14) of this
proclamation shall enter into effect on April 1, 2020.
(16) Any provisions of previous proclamations and Executive Orders
that are inconsistent with the actions taken in this proclamation are
superseded to the extent of such inconsistency.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-sixth day of
December, in the year of our Lord two thousand nineteen, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
fourth.
DONALD J. TRUMP

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