[Federal Register: December 9, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 236)]
[Notices]               
[Page 68601]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr09de03-58]                         

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COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS

 
Announcement of Import Restraint Limits for Certain Cotton and 
Man-Made Fiber Textile Products Produced or Manufactured in Qatar

December 3, 2003.
AGENCY: Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA).

ACTION: Issuing a directive to the Commissioner, Bureau of Customs and 
Border Protection establishing limits.

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EFFECTIVE DATE: January 1, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Roy Unger, International Trade 
Specialist, Office of Textiles and Apparel, U.S. Department of 
Commerce, (202) 482-4212. For information on the quota status of these 
limits, refer to the Quota Status Reports posted on the bulletin boards 
of each Customs port, call (202) 927-5850, or refer to the Bureau of 
Customs and Border Protection Web site at http://www.customs.gov. For 
information on embargoes and quota re-openings, refer to the Office of 
Textiles and Apparel Web site at http://otexa.ita.doc.gov.

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.
    The import restraint limits for textile products, produced or 
manufactured in Qatar and exported during the period January 1, 2004 
through December 31, 2004 are based on limits notified to the Textiles 
Monitoring Body pursuant to the Uruguay Round Agreement on Textiles and 
Clothing (ATC).
    In the letter published below, the Chairman of CITA directs the 
Commissioner, Bureau of Customs and Border Protection to establish the 
limits for the 2004 period.
    These limits are subject to adjustment pursuant to the provisions 
of the ATC and administrative arrangements notified to the Textiles 
Monitoring Body. However, as the ATC and all restrictions thereunder 
will terminate on January 1, 2005, no adjustment for carryforward 
(borrowing from next year's limits for use in the current year) will be 
available.
    A description of the textile and apparel categories in terms of HTS 
numbers is available in the CORRELATION: Textile and Apparel Categories 
with the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (see Federal 
Register notice 68 FR 1599, published on January 13, 2003). Information 
regarding the 2004 CORRELATION will be published in the Federal 
Register at a later date.

James C. Leonard III,
Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

December 3, 2003.

Commissioner,
Bureau of Customs and Border Protection, Washington, DC 20229.
    Dear Commissioner: Pursuant to section 204 of the Agricultural 
Act of 1956, as amended (7 U.S.C. 1854); Executive Order 11651 of 
March 3, 1972, as amended; and the Uruguay Round Agreement on 
Textiles and Clothing (ATC), you are directed to prohibit, effective 
on January 1, 2004, entry into the United States for consumption and 
withdrawal from warehouse for consumption of cotton and man-made 
fiber textile products in the following categories, produced or 
manufactured in Qatar and exported during the twelve-month period 
beginning on January 1, 2004 through December 31, 2004, in excess of 
the following levels of restraint:

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                 Category                   Twelve-month restraint limit
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340/640...................................  806,934 dozen.
341/641...................................  372,431 dozen.
347/348...................................  918,663 dozen.
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    The limits set forth above are subject to adjustment pursuant to 
the provisions of the ATC and administrative arrangements notified 
to the Textiles Monitoring Body.
    Products in the above categories exported during 2003 shall be 
charged to the applicable category limits for that year (see 
directive dated November 1, 2002) to the extent of any unfilled 
balances. In the event the limits established for that period have 
been exhausted by previous entries, such products shall be charged 
to the limits set forth in this directive.
    In carrying out the above directions, the Commissioner, Bureau 
of Customs and Border Protection should construe entry into the 
United States for consumption to include entry for consumption into 
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
    The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements has 
determined that these actions fall within the foreign affairs 
exception to the rulemaking provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1).
    Sincerely,
James C. Leonard III,
Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.
[FR Doc. 03-30483 Filed 12-8-03; 8:45 am]