81 FR 21591 - Aluminum: Competitive Conditions Affecting the U.S. Industry Institution of Investigation and Scheduling of Hearing

INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 70 (April 12, 2016)

Following receipt of a request dated February 24, 2016 from the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Ways and Means (Committee) under section 332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1332(g)), the U.S. International Trade Commission (Commission) instituted investigation No. 332-557: Aluminum: Competitive Conditions Affecting the U.S. Industry.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 70 (Tuesday, April 12, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21591-21592]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-08269]


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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

[Investigation No. 332-557]


Aluminum: Competitive Conditions Affecting the U.S. Industry 
Institution of Investigation and Scheduling of Hearing

AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice of investigation and scheduling of a public hearing.

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SUMMARY: Following receipt of a request dated February 24, 2016 from 
the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Ways and Means 
(Committee) under section 332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
1332(g)), the U.S. International Trade Commission (Commission) 
instituted investigation No. 332-557: Aluminum: Competitive Conditions 
Affecting the U.S. Industry.

DATES: 
    September 5, 2016: Deadline for filing requests to appear at the 
public hearing.
    September 12, 2016: Deadline for filing pre-hearing briefs and 
statements.
    September 29, 2016: Public hearing.
    October 7, 2016: Deadline for filing post-hearing briefs and 
submissions.
    February 21, 2017: Deadline for filing all other written 
statements.
    June 26, 2017: Transmittal of Commission report to the Committee.

ADDRESSES: All Commission offices, including the Commission's hearing 
rooms, are located in the United States International Trade Commission 
Building, 500 E Street SW., Washington, DC. All written submissions 
should be addressed to the Secretary, United States International Trade 
Commission, 500 E Street SW., Washington, DC 20436. The public record 
for this investigation may be viewed on the Commission's electronic 
docket (EDIS) at https://edis.usitc.gov/edis3-internal/app.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Project Leader Karl Tsuji (202-205-
3434 or [email protected]) for information specific to this 
investigation. For information on the legal aspects of these 
investigations, contact William Gearhart of the Commission's Office of 
the General Counsel (202-205-3091 or [email protected]). The 
media should contact Margaret O'Laughlin, Office of External Relations 
(202-205-1819 or [email protected]). Hearing-impaired 
individuals may obtain information on this matter by contacting the 
Commission's TDD terminal at 202-205-1810. General information 
concerning the Commission may also be obtained by accessing its 
Internet server (http://www.usitc.gov). Persons with mobility 
impairments who will need special assistance in gaining access to the 
Commission should contact the Office of the Secretary at 202-205-2000.
    Background: As requested by the Committee, the investigation will 
cover unwrought (e.g., primary and secondary) and wrought (e.g., semi-
finished) aluminum products. The Commission's report will provide, to 
the extent that information is available:
     An overview of the aluminum industry in the United States 
and other major global producing and exporting countries, including 
production, production capacity, capacity utilization, employment, 
wages, inventories, supply chains, domestic demand, and exports;
     Information on recent trade trends and developments in the 
global market for aluminum, including U.S. and other major foreign 
producer imports and exports, and trade flows through third countries 
for further processing and subsequent exports;
     A comparison of the competitive strengths and weaknesses 
of aluminum production and exports in the United States and other major 
producing and exporting countries, including such factors as producer 
revenue and production costs, industry structure, input prices and 
availability, energy costs and sources, production technology, product 
innovation, exchange rates, and pricing, as well as government policies 
and programs that directly or indirectly affect aluminum production and 
exporting in these countries;
     In countries where unwrought aluminum capacity has 
significantly increased, identify factors driving those capacity and 
related production changes; and
     A qualitative and, to the extent possible, quantitative 
assessment of the impact of government policies and programs in major 
foreign aluminum producing and exporting countries on their aluminum 
production, exports, consumption, and domestic prices, as well as on 
the U.S. aluminum industry and on aluminum markets worldwide.

As requested, the report will focus primarily on the 2011-2015 time 
period, but examine longer term trends since 2001 when appropriate.
    The Committee asked that the Commission transmit its report not 
later than 16 months after receipt of the request, and the Commission 
will transmit its report by June 26, 2017. The Committee also stated 
that it intends to make the Commission's report available to the public 
in its entirety and asked that the report not include any confidential 
business information.
    Public Hearing: A public hearing in connection with this 
investigation will be held at the U.S. International Trade Commission 
Building, 500 E Street SW., Washington, DC, beginning at 9:30 a.m. on 
September 29, 2016. Requests to appear at the public hearing should be 
filed with the Secretary, no later than 5:15 p.m., September 5, 2016 in 
accordance with the requirements in the ``Submissions'' section below. 
All pre-hearing briefs and statements should be filed not later than 
5:15 p.m., September 12, 2016; and all post-hearing briefs and 
statements should be filed not later than 5:15 p.m., October 7, 2016. 
In the event that, as of the close of business on September 5, 2016, no 
witnesses are scheduled to appear at the hearing, the hearing will be 
canceled. Any person interested in attending the hearing as an observer 
or nonparticipant should contact the Office of the Secretary at 202-
205-2000 after September 5, 2016, for information concerning whether 
the hearing will be held.
    Written Submissions: In lieu of or in addition to participating in 
the hearing, interested parties are invited to file written submissions 
concerning this investigation. All written submissions should be 
addressed to the Secretary, and should be received not later than

[[Page 21592]]

5:15 p.m., February 21, 2017. All written submissions must conform to 
the provisions of section 201.8 of the Commission's Rules of Practice 
and Procedure (19 CFR 201.8). Section 201.8 and the Commission's 
Handbook on Filing Procedures require that interested parties file 
documents electronically on or before the filing deadline and submit 
eight (8) true paper copies by 12:00 p.m. eastern time on the next 
business day. In the event that confidential treatment of a document is 
requested, interested parties must file, at the same time as the eight 
paper copies, at least four (4) additional true paper copies in which 
the confidential information must be deleted (see the following 
paragraphs for further information regarding confidential business 
information). Persons with questions regarding electronic filing should 
contact the Office of the Secretary, Docket Services Division (202-205-
1802).
    Confidential Business Information. Any submissions that contain 
confidential business information must also conform to the requirements 
of section 201.6 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure 
(19 CFR 201.6). Section 201.6 of the rules requires that the cover of 
the document and the individual pages be clearly marked as to whether 
they are the ``confidential'' or ``non-confidential'' version, and that 
the confidential business information is clearly identified by means of 
brackets. All written submissions, except for confidential business 
information, will be made available for inspection by interested 
parties.
    As requested by the Committee, the Commission will not include any 
confidential business information in the report that it sends to the 
Committee or makes available to the public. However, all information, 
including confidential business information, submitted in this 
investigation may be disclosed to and used: (i) By the Commission, its 
employees and Offices, and contract personnel (a) for developing or 
maintaining the records of this or a related proceeding, or (b) in 
internal investigations, audits, reviews, and evaluations relating to 
the programs, personnel, and operations of the Commission including 
under 5 U.S.C. Appendix 3; or (ii) by U.S. government employees and 
contract personnel for cybersecurity purposes. The Commission will not 
otherwise disclose any confidential business information in a manner 
that would reveal the operations of the firm supplying the information.
    Summaries of Written Submissions: The Commission intends to publish 
summaries of the positions of interested persons. Persons wishing to 
have a summary of their position included in the report should include 
a summary with their written submission. The summary may not exceed 500 
words, should be in MS Word format or a format that can be easily 
converted to MS Word, and should not include any confidential business 
information. The summary will be published as provided if it meets 
these requirements and is germane to the subject matter of the 
investigation. The Commission will identify the name of the 
organization furnishing the summary and will include a link to the 
Commission's Electronic Document Information System (EDIS) where the 
full written submission can be found.

    By order of the Commission.

    Issued: April 6, 2016.
Lisa Barton,
Secretary to the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2016-08269 Filed 4-11-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P