82 FR 25327 - North American Free Trade Agreement: Advice on the Probable Economic Effect of Providing Duty-Free Treatment for Currently Dutiable Imports Institution of Investigation and Scheduling of Hearing

INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 104 (June 1, 2017)

Following receipt on May 18, 2017, of a request from the United States Trade Representative (USTR), the Commission instituted Investigation Nos. TA-131-042 and TPA-105-002, North American Free Trade Agreement: Advice on the Probable Economic Effect of Providing Duty-free Treatment for Currently Dutiable Imports.

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 104 (Thursday, June 1, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25327-25328]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-11311]


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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

[Investigation Nos. TA-131-042 and TPA-105-002]


North American Free Trade Agreement: Advice on the Probable 
Economic Effect of Providing Duty-Free Treatment for Currently Dutiable 
Imports 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 on May 18, 2017, of a request from the 
United States Trade Representative (USTR), the Commission instituted 
Investigation Nos. TA-131-042 and TPA-105-002, North American Free 
Trade Agreement: Advice on the Probable Economic Effect of Providing 
Duty-free Treatment for Currently Dutiable Imports.

DATES: 
    June 7, 2017: Deadline for filing requests to appear at the public 
hearing.
    June 13, 2017: Deadline for filing prehearing briefs and 
statements.
    June 20, 2017: Public hearing.
    June 26, 2017: Deadline for filing post-hearing briefs and 
submissions.
    June 26, 2017: Deadline for filing all other written statements.
    August 16, 2017: Transmittal of Commission report to the USTR.

ADDRESSES: All Commission offices, including the Commission's hearing 
rooms, are located in the U.S. International Trade Commission Building, 
500 E Street SW., Washington, DC. All written submissions should be 
addressed to the Secretary, U.S. 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Project Leader Jessica Pugliese (202-
205-3064 or [email protected]) or Deputy Project Leader Diana 
Friedman (202-205-3433 or [email protected]) for information 
specific to this investigation. For information on the legal aspects of 
this investigation, 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 Web site (https://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.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Background: In his letter of May 18, 2017, the USTR requested that 
the Commission provide certain advice under section 131 of the Trade 
Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2151) and an assessment under section 105 
(a)(2)(B)(i)(III) of the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and 
Accountability Act of 2015 with respect to the effects of providing 
duty-free treatment for imports of products from Canada and Mexico.
    More specifically, the USTR, under authority delegated by the 
President and pursuant to section 131 of the Trade Act of 1974, 
requested that the Commission provide a report containing its advice as 
to the probable economic effect of providing duty-free treatment for 
imports of currently dutiable products from Canada and Mexico on (i) 
industries in the United States producing like or directly competitive 
products, and (ii) consumers. The USTR asked that the Commission's 
analysis consider each article in chapters 1 through 97 of the 
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS) for which tariffs 
will remain, taking into account implementation of U.S. commitments in 
the World Trade Organization. The USTR asked that the advice be based 
on the HTS in effect during 2017 and trade data for 2016.
    In addition, the USTR requested that the Commission prepare an 
assessment, as described in section 105(a)(2)(B)(i)(III) of the 
Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 
2015, of the probable economic effects of eliminating tariffs on 
imports from Canada and Mexico of any agricultural products currently 
still subject to U.S. tariffs under the North American Free Trade 
Agreement and described in the list attached to the USTR's request 
letter on (i) industries in the United States producing the products 
concerned, and (ii) the U.S. economy as a whole. The USTR's request 
letter and list of agricultural products are posted on the Commission's 
Web site at https://www.usitc.gov.
    As requested, the Commission will provide its report to the USTR by 
August 16, 2017. The USTR indicated that those sections of the 
Commission's report that relate to the advice and assessment of 
probable economic effects will be classified. The USTR also indicated 
that he considers the Commission's report to be an interagency 
memorandum that will contain pre-decisional advice and be subject to 
the deliberative process privilege.
    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 
June 20, 2017. Requests to appear at the public hearing should be filed 
with the Secretary no later than 5:15 p.m., June 7, 2017, in accordance 
with the requirements in the ``Submissions'' section below. All 
prehearing briefs and statements should be filed not later than 5:15 
p.m., June 13, 2017, and all post-hearing briefs and statements should 
be filed not later than 5:15 p.m., June 26, 2017. For further 
information, call 202-205-2000.
    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 5:15 
p.m., June 26, 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

[[Page 25328]]

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.
    The Commission may include some or all of the confidential business 
information submitted in the course of this investigation in the report 
it sends to the USTR. Additionally, 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 (a) for cybersecurity purposes or (b) in monitoring user 
activity on U.S. government classified networks. The Commission will 
not otherwise disclose any confidential business information in a way 
that would reveal the operations of the firm supplying the information.
    Summaries of Written Submissions: Persons wishing to have a summary 
of their position included in the report should include a summary with 
their written submission. The summaries will be published in an 
appendix to the report. 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 list 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: May 26, 2017.
Lisa Barton,
Secretary to the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2017-11311 Filed 5-31-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7020-02-P