[Federal Register: May 21, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 98)]
[Notices]
[Page 27787-27789]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr21my03-25]
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COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS
Procedures for Considering Requests from the Public for Textile
and Apparel Safeguard Actions on Imports from China
May 19, 2003.
AGENCY: The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (The
Committee).
ACTION: Notice of Procedures
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SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the procedures the Committee for the
Implementation of Textile Agreements (the Committee) will follow in
considering requests from the public for textile and apparel safeguard
actions as provided for in the Report of the Working Party on the
Accession of China to the World Trade Organization (the Accession
Agreement). The Committee hereby notifies interested parties of the
procedures it will follow in considering requests.
EFFECTIVE DATE: May 21, 2003.
ADDRESS: Request must be submitted to: the Chairman, Committee for the
Implementation of Textile Agreements, Room H3100, U.S. Department of
Commerce, 14th and Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20230.
Ten copies of any such request must be provided.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William Dulka, Office of Textiles and
Apparel, U.S. Department of Commerce, (202) 482-4058.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Authority: Section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as
amended (7 U.S.C. 1854); Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as
amended.
BACKGROUND:
The Accession Agreement textile and apparel safeguard allows the
United States and other World Trade Organization Member countries that
believe imports of Chinese origin textile and apparel products are, due
to market disruption, threatening to impede the orderly development of
trade in these
[[Page 27788]]
products to request consultations with China with a view to easing or
avoiding such market disruption. Upon receipt of the request, China has
agreed to hold its shipments to a level no greater than 7.5 percent (6
percent for wool product categories) above the amount entered during
the first 12 months of the most recent 14 months preceding the request
for consultations. The United States may implement such a limit.
Consultations with China will be held within 30 days of receipt of the
request for consultations, and every effort will be made to reach
agreement on a mutually satisfactory solution within 90 days of receipt
of the request for consultations. If agreement on a different limit is
reached, the Committee will issue a Federal Register Notice containing
a directive to the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection that
implements the negotiated limit.
The limit is effective beginning on the date of the request for
consultations and ending on December 31 of the year in which
consultations were requested, or where three or fewer months remained
in the year at the time of the request for consultations, for the
period ending 12 months after the request for consultations. No limit
may remain in effect beyond one year, without reapplication, unless
otherwise agreed between the United States and China. No limit may be
applied to the same product at the same time under these procedures and
under the product-specific China safeguard implemented by Section 421
of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2451).
In order to facilitate the implementation of the Accession
Agreement textile and apparel safeguard, the Committee has determined
that it is appropriate to publish procedures it will follow in
considering requests for Accession Agreement textile and apparel
safeguard actions. However, the Committee has determined that actions
taken under this safeguard fall within the foreign affairs exception to
the rulemaking provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1), and this notice does
not waive that determination. These procedures are not subject to the
requirement to provide prior notice and opportunity for public comment,
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1) and 553(b)(A).
1. Requirements for Requests.
The Committee will review requests from the public for Accession
Agreement textile and apparel safeguard actions on imports of Chinese
origin textile and apparel products (such products must have been
covered by the WTO Agreement on Textiles and Clothing as of the date
the WTO Agreement entered into force) sent to the Chairman, Committee
for the Implementation of Textile Agreements, Room H3100, U.S.
Department of Commerce, 14th and Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington,
DC 20230. Ten copies of any such request must be provided. The
Committee will protect any business confidential information that is
marked business confidential from disclosure to the full extent
permitted by law. To the extent that business confidential information
is provided, two copies of a non-confidential version must also be
provided, in which business confidential information is summarized or,
if necessary, deleted. Within 15 working days of receipt of a request,
the Committee will determine whether the request provides the
information necessary for the Committee to consider the request in
light of the considerations set forth below. If the request does not,
the Committee will promptly notify the requester of the reasons for
this determination and the request will not be considered. However, the
Committee will reevaluate any request that is resubmitted with
additional information.
Consistent with longstanding Committee practice in considering
textile safeguard actions, requests may be filed by an entity (which
may be a trade association, firm, certified or recognized union, or
group of workers) that is representative of either: (A) a domestic
producer or producers of a product that is a like or directly
competitive with the subject Chinese textile or apparel product; or (B)
a domestic producer or producers of a component used in the production
of a product that is like or directly competitive with the subject
Chinese textile or apparel product.
A request will only be considered if the request includes the
specific information set forth below in support of a claim that the
Chinese origin textile or apparel product is, due to market disruption,
threatening to impede the orderly development of trade in like or
directly competitive products.
A. Product description. Name and description of the imported
product concerned, including the category or categories or part thereof
of the U.S. Textile and Apparel Category System (see ``Textile
Correlation'' at http://otexa.ita.doc.gov/corr.htm) under which such
product is classified, the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United
States subheading(s) under which such product is classified, and the
name and description of the like or directly competitive domestic
product concerned.
B. Import data. The following data, in quantity by category unit
(see ``Textile Correlation''), on total imports into the United States
and imports from China into the United States:
* Annual data for the most recent five full calendar years for
which such data are available;
* Quarterly data for the most recent year for which such data are
partially available, and quarterly data for the same quarter(s) of the
previous year (e.g. January-March 2002, April-June 2002 and January-
March 2001, April-June 2001).
The data should demonstrate that imports of Chinese origin textile
and apparel products that are like or directly competitive with the
product produced by the domestic industry concerned are increasing
rapidly in absolute terms.
C. Production Data. The following data, in quantity by category
unit (see ``Textile Correlation''), on United States domestic
production of the like or directly competitive products of U.S. origin
indicating the nature and extent of market disruption:
* Annual data for the most recent five full calendar years for
which such data are available;
* Quarterly data for the most recent year for which such data are
partially available, and quarterly data for the same quarter(s) of the
previous year (e.g. January-March 2002, April-June 2002 and January-
March 2001, April-June 2001).
If the like or directly competitive product(s) of U.S. origin does
not correspond to a category or categories of the U.S. Textile and
Apparel Category system for which production data are available from
official statistics of the U.S. Department of Commerce (see ``U.S.
Imports, Production, Markets, Import Production Ratios and Domestic
Market Shares for Textile and Apparel Product Categories'' at website:
http://otexa.ita.doc.gov/ipbook.pdf), the requester must provide a
complete listing of all sources from which the data were obtained and
an affirmation that to the best of the requester's knowledge, the data
represent substantially all of the domestic production of the like or
directly competitive product(s) of U.S. origin. In such cases, data
should be reported in the first unit of quantity in the Harmonized
Tariff Schedule of the United States (http://dataweb.usitc.gov/SCRIPTS/tariff/toc.html
) for the Chinese origin textile and/or apparel products
and the like or directly competitive products of U.S. origin.
[[Page 27789]]
D. Market Share Data. The following data, in quantity by category
unit (see ``Textile Correlation''), on imports from China as a
percentage of the domestic market (defined as the sum of domestic
production of like or directly competitive products and total imports);
on total imports as a percentage of the domestic market; and on
domestic production of like or directly competitive products as a
percentage of the domestic market:
* Annual data for the most recent five full calendar years for
which such data are available;
* Quarterly data for the most recent year for which such data is
partially available, and quarterly data for the same quarter(s) of the
previous year (e.g. January-March 2002, April-June 2002 and January-
March 2001, April-June 2001).
E. Additional Information. A description of how the Chinese origin
textile and apparel product(s) have adversely affected the domestic
industry producing like or directly competitive articles, such as the
effect of imports from China on prices in the United States or any
other data deemed to be pertinent.
2. Consideration of Requests.
If the Committee determines that the request provides the
information necessary for it to be considered, the Committee will cause
to be published in the Federal Register a notice seeking public
comments regarding the request, which will include the request and the
date by which comments must be received. The Federal Register notice
and the request, with the exception of information marked ``business
confidential'', will be posted by the Department of Commerce's Office
of Textiles and Apparel on the Internet (otexa.ita.doc.gov). The
comment period shall be 30 calendar days. To the extent business
confidential information is provided, a non-confidential version must
also be provided, in which business confidential information is
summarized or, if necessary, deleted. Comments received, with the
exception of information marked ``business confidential'', will be
available in the Department of Commerce's Trade Reference Room for
review by the public. If a comment alleges that there is no market
disruption or that the subject imports are not the cause of market
disruption, the Committee will closely review any supporting
information and documentation, such as information about domestic
production or prices of like or directly competitive products. In the
case of requests submitted by entities that are not the actual
producers of a like or directly competitive product, particular
consideration will be given to comments representing the views of
actual producers in the United States of a like or directly competitive
product.
With respect to any request considered by the Committee, the
Committee will make a determination within 60 calendar days of the
close of the comment period as to whether the Committee will request
consultations with China. If the Committee is unable to make a
determination within 60 calendar days, it will cause to be published in
a notice in the Federal Register, including the date by which it will
make a determination. If the Committee makes a negative determination,
it will cause this determination and the reasons therefore to be
published in the Federal Register. If the Committee makes an
affirmative determination that imports of Chinese origin textiles and
apparel products are, due to market disruption, threatening to impede
the orderly development of trade in these products, the Committee will
request consultations with China with a view to easing or avoiding such
market disruption. Consultations with China will be held within 30 days
of receipt of the request for consultations, and every effort will be
made to reach agreement on a mutually satisfactory solution within 90
days of receipt of the request for consultations. Immediately after the
Chinese Government receives the requests for consultations, the
Committee will cause to be published a notice in the Federal Register
that such consultations have been requested. The notice will identify
quantitative limits on imports into the United States of Chinese origin
textile and apparel products subject to the request for consultations.
The notice will further provide that, absent a mutually satisfactory
solution, the limits will terminate on December 31 of the year in which
the request for consultations was made, unless three or fewer months
remain in that year at the time of the request. If three or fewer
months remain in the year at the time of the request, the notice will
provide that, absent a mutually satisfactory solution, the limits will
terminate one year from the date on which consultations were requested.
The quantitative limits identified in the notice shall be 7.5 percent
(6 percent for wool products) above the amount of Chinese origin
textile and apparel products subject to the request for consultations
entered into the United States during the first 12 months of the most
recent 14 months preceding the month in which the request for
consultations was made. The notice also will contain a summary
statement of the reasons and justifications for the request for
consultations with China.
3. Self Initiation. The Committee may, on its own initiative,
consider whether imports of Chinese origin textile and apparel products
are, due to market disruption, threatening to impede the orderly
development of trade in these products. In such considerations, the
Committee will follow procedures consistent with those set forth in
Section 2 of this notice, including causing to be published in the
Federal Register a notice seeking public comment regarding the action
it is considering.
4. Reapplication. Under the Accession Agreement, no action may
remain in effect beyond one year, without reapplication, unless
otherwise agreed between the United States and China. Reapplication
will only take place if the Committee makes a new affirmative
determination that imports of Chinese origin textiles and apparel
products are, due to market disruption, threatening to impede the
orderly development of trade in these products. In considering requests
or in considerations begun on its own initiative for reapplication, the
Committee will follow procedures consistent with those set forth in
this notice.
5. Business Confidential Information. Public Reading Room. The
Committee will protect any business confidential information that is
marked business confidential from disclosure to the full extent
permitted by law. To the extent that business confidential information
is provided, two copies of a non-confidential version must also be
provided, in which business confidential information is summarized or,
if necessary, deleted. The Committee will make available to the public
non-confidential versions of the request that is being considered, non-
confidential versions of any public comments received with respect to a
request, and, in the event consultations are requested, the statement
of the reasons and justifications for the request subsequent to the
delivery of the statement to China.
D. Michael Hutchinson,
Acting Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile
Agreements.
[FR Doc.03-12893 Filed 5-20-03; 8:45 am]