[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 40, Number 52 (Monday, December 27, 2004)]
[Pages 3010-3011]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 7858--To Take Certain Actions Under the African Growth and 
Opportunity Act

 December 21, 2004

 By the President of the United States

 of America

 A Proclamation

    1. In Proclamation 7561 of May 16, 2002, I designated the Republic 
of Cote d'Ivoire as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country pursuant 
to section 506A(a)(1) of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended, (the ``1974 
Act'') (19 U.S.C. 2466a(a)(1)), as added by section 111(a) of the 
African Growth and Opportunity Act (title I of Public Law 106-200) 
(AGOA)). I also provided that Cote d'Ivoire would be considered a lesser 
developed beneficiary sub-Saharan African country for purposes of 
section 112(b)(3)(B) of the AGOA (19 U.S.C. 3721(b)(3)(B)).
    2. In Proclamation 7350 of October 2, 2000, President Clinton 
delegated to the United States Trade Representative (USTR) the authority 
to perform the function specified in section 113(b)(1)(B) of the AGOA 
(19 U.S.C. 3722(b)(1)(B)). In a Federal Register notice dated December 
17, 2003, the USTR determined that Cote d'Ivoire had adopted an 
effective visa system and related procedures to prevent unlawful 
transshipment and the use of counterfeit documents and that Cote 
d'Ivoire had implemented and followed, or was making substantial 
progress toward implementing and following, certain customs procedures 
that assist the United States Customs Service in verifying the origin of 
the products.
    3. Section 506A(a)(3) of the 1974 Act (19 U.S.C. 2466a(a)(3)) 
authorizes the President to 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 1974 
Act, effective on January 1 of the year following the year in which such 
determination is made.
    4. Pursuant to section 506A(a)(3) of the 1974 Act, I have determined 
that Cote d'Ivoire is not making continual progress in meeting the 
requirements described in section 506A(a)(1) of the 1974 Act. 
Accordingly, I have decided to terminate the designation of Cote 
d'Ivoire as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country for purposes of 
section 506A of the 1974 Act, effective on January 1, 2005.
    5. Section 604 of the 1974 Act (19 U.S.C. 2483) authorizes the 
President to embody in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United 
States (HTS) the substance of the relevant provisions of that Act, and 
of other acts affecting import treatment, and actions thereunder, 
including the removal, modification, continuance, or imposition of any 
rate of duty or other import restriction.
    Now, Therefore, I, George W. Bush, President of the United States of 
America, acting under the authority vested in me by the Constitution and 
the laws of the United States, including sections 506A and 604 of the 
1974 Act and section 301 of title 3, United States Code, do proclaim 
that:
    (1) The designation of Cote d'Ivoire as a beneficiary sub-Saharan 
African country for purposes of section 506A of the 1974 Act is 
terminated, effective on January 1, 2005.
    (2) In order to reflect in the HTS that beginning January 1, 2005, 
Cote d'Ivoire 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 Cote d'Ivoire'' from the list of beneficiary sub-Saharan 
African countries. Further, U.S. note 2(d) to subchapter XIX of chapter 
98 is modified by removing ``Cote d'Ivoire'' from the list of lesser 
developed beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries, and U.S. note 7(a) 
to subchapter II and U.S. note 1 to subchapter XIX of chapter 98 of the 
HTS are modified by deleting ``Cote d'Ivoire'' from the list of 
beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries eligible for certain textile 
and apparel benefits.
    (3) The modification to the HTS made by this proclamation shall be 
effective with respect to articles entered, or withdrawn from warehouse 
for consumption, on or after January 1, 2005.
    (4) Any provisions of previous proclamations and executive orders 
that are inconsistent with this proclamation are superseded to the 
extent of such inconsistency.

[[Page 3011]]

    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-first 
day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand four, and of the 
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and twenty-
ninth.
                                                George W. Bush

 [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 8:45 a.m., December 23, 
2004]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on 
December 27.