81 FR 86575 - FOIA Improvement Act; Rules of General Application

INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 231 (December 1, 2016)

The United States International Trade Commission (``Commission'') issues a final rule amending its Rules of Practice and Procedure concerning rules of general application to reflect amendments to the Freedom of Information Act (``FOIA'') made by the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 (``Improvement Act''). Among other things, the Improvement Act requires the Commission to amend its FOIA regulations to extend the deadline for administrative appeals for FOIA decisions, to add information on dispute resolution services, and to amend the way the Commission charges fees for FOIA requests.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 231 (Thursday, December 1, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 86575-86577]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-28819]


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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

19 CFR Part 201


FOIA Improvement Act; Rules of General Application

AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The United States International Trade Commission 
(``Commission'') issues a final rule amending its Rules of Practice and 
Procedure concerning rules of general application to reflect amendments 
to the Freedom of Information Act (``FOIA'') made by the FOIA 
Improvement Act of 2016 (``Improvement Act''). Among other things, the 
Improvement Act requires the Commission to amend its FOIA regulations 
to extend the deadline for administrative appeals for FOIA decisions, 
to add information on dispute resolution services, and to amend the

[[Page 86576]]

way the Commission charges fees for FOIA requests.

DATES: This regulation is effective January 3, 2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lisa R. Barton, Secretary, telephone 
(202) 205-2000 or Brian R. Battles, Esquire, Office of the General 
Counsel, United States International Trade Commission, telephone (202) 
708-4737. Hearing-impaired individuals are advised that information on 
this matter can be obtained by contacting the Commission's TDD terminal 
at 202-205-1810. General information concerning the Commission may also 
be obtained by accessing its Web site at https://www.usitc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The preamble below is designed to assist 
readers in understanding these amendments to the Commission's Rules of 
Practice and Procedure.

Background

    Section 335 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1335) authorizes 
the Commission to adopt such reasonable procedures, rules, and 
regulations as it deems necessary to carry out its functions and 
duties.
    This rulemaking amends the Commission's existing Rules of Practice 
and Procedure and reflects changes to the FOIA by the Improvement Act. 
The Improvement Act addresses a range of procedural issues. Among other 
things, it requires that agencies establish a minimum of 90 days for 
requesters to file an administrative appeal and that they provide 
dispute resolution services at various times throughout the FOIA 
process. The Improvement Act also updates how fees are charged.
    The United States International Trade Commission amends 19 CFR part 
201 as follows:
     By amending Sec.  201.18:
    [cir] To change the appeals deadline from sixty days to ninety 
days;
    [cir] To indicate that the Commission's FOIA Public Liaison is 
available to offer dispute resolution services and to provide contact 
information for the Commission's FOIA Public Liaison and the Office of 
Government Information Services.
     By amending Sec.  201.20, to add new paragraphs (c)(5), 
(c)(6), and (c)(7) to provide additional limitations on the fees 
charged by the Commission.

Good Cause for Final Adoption

    The Commission ordinarily promulgates amendments to the Code of 
Federal Regulations in accordance with the notice-and-comment 
rulemaking procedure in section 553 of the Administrative Procedure Act 
(APA) (5 U.S.C. 553). That procedure entails publication of notice of 
proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register that solicits public 
comment on the proposed amendments, consideration by the Commission of 
public comments on the content of the amendments, and publication of 
the final amendments at least 30 days prior to their effective date.
    In this instance, however, the Commission has determined that the 
notice and public comment procedure is unnecessary. Section 
553(b)(3)(B) of the APA authorizes agencies to dispense with notice and 
comment procedures for rules when the agency finds that there is ``good 
cause'' in concluding that those procedures are ``impracticable, 
unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest.'' Under this section, 
an agency, upon finding good cause, may issue a final rule without 
seeking comment prior to the rulemaking. The proposed amendments are 
required by statute, do not involve Commission discretion, and provide 
additional protections to the public. Given these factors, the 
Commission finds good cause to conclude that the notice and public 
comment procedure are unnecessary.

Regulatory Analysis of Proposed Amendments to the Commission's Rules

    The Commission has determined that these rules do not meet the 
criteria described in section 3(f) of Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 
51735, October 4, 1993) and thus do not constitute a ``significant 
regulatory action'' for purposes of the Executive Order.
    The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is 
inapplicable to this rulemaking because it is not one for which a 
notice of proposed rulemaking is required under 5 U.S.C. 553(b) or any 
other statute.
    These rules do not contain federalism implications warranting the 
preparation of a federalism summary impact statement pursuant to 
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 4, 1999).
    No actions are necessary under title II of the Unfunded Mandates 
Reform Act of 1995, Pubic Law 104-4 (2 U.S.C. 1531-1538) because the 
rules will not result in the expenditure by state, local, and tribal 
governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of 
$100,000,000 or more in any one year (adjusted annually for inflation), 
and will not significantly or uniquely affect small governments.
    These rules are not ``major rules'' as defined by section 251 of 
the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (5 
U.S.C. 801 et seq.). Moreover, they are exempt from the reporting 
requirements of that Act because they contain rules of agency 
organization, procedure, or practice that do not substantially affect 
the rights or obligations of non-agency parties.
    These rules are not subject to section 3504(h) of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), since they do not contain any 
new information collection requirements.

List of Subjects in 19 CFR Part 201

    Administrative practice and procedure, Claims, Classified 
information, Confidential business information, Freedom of information, 
Privacy, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    As stated in the preamble, part 201 of chapter II, title 19 of the 
Code of Federal Regulations is amended as follows:

PART 201--RULES OF GENERAL APPLICATION

0
1. The authority citation for part 201 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  19 U.S.C. 1335; 19 U.S.C. 2482, unless otherwise 
noted.


0
2. In Sec.  201.18, paragraphs (b) and (f) are revised to read as 
follows:


Sec.  201.18   Denial of requests, appeals from denial.

* * * * *
    (b) An appeal from a denial of a request must be received within 
ninety days of the date of the letter of denial and shall be made to 
the Commission and addressed to the Chairman, United States 
International Trade Commission, 500 E Street SW., Washington, DC 20436. 
Any such appeal shall be in writing, and shall indicate clearly in the 
appeal, and if the appeal is in paper form on the envelope, that it is 
a ``Freedom of Information Act Appeal.'' An appeal may be made either 
in paper form, or electronically by contacting the Commission at http://www.usitc.gov/foia.htm.
* * * * *
    (f) A response to an appeal will advise the requester that the 
Commission's FOIA Public Liaison officer and the Office of Government 
Information Services both offer mediation services to resolve disputes 
between FOIA requesters and Federal agencies as a non-exclusive 
alternative to litigation. The requester may contact the Commission's 
FOIA Public Liaison officer by telephone (202-205-2595) or email 
(foia.se.se@usitc.gov">foia.se.se@usitc.gov) or the Office of Government Information Services 
at National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road--
OGIS, College Park, Maryland 20740-6001.

[[Page 86577]]


0
3. In Sec.  201.20, add paragraphs (c)(5) through (7) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  201.20   Fees.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (5) The Commission will not charge fees if it fails to comply with 
any time limit under the FOIA or these regulations, and if it has not 
timely notified the requester, in writing, that an unusual circumstance 
exists. If an unusual circumstance exists, and timely written notice is 
given to the requester, the Commission will have an additional 10 
working days to respond to the request before fees are automatically 
waived under this paragraph.
    (6) If the Commission determines that unusual circumstances apply 
and that more than 5,000 pages are necessary to respond to a request, 
it may charge fees if it has provided a timely written notice to the 
requester and discusses with the requester via mail, Email, or 
telephone how the requester could effectively limit the scope of the 
request (or make at least three good faith attempts to do so).
    (7) If a court has determined that exceptional circumstances exist, 
a failure to comply with time limits imposed by these regulations or 
FOIA shall be excused for the length of time provided by court order.
* * * * *

    By order of the Commission.

    Issued: November 25, 2016.
Katherine M. Hiner,
Acting Supervisory Attorney.
[FR Doc. 2016-28819 Filed 11-30-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7020-02-P