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 Korea and exported during the period January 1, 2002 through December 31, 2002 are based on limits notified to the Textiles Monitoring Body pursuant to the Uruguay Round Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC). Pursuant to the provisions of the ATC, the third stage of the integration of textile and apparel products into the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 will take place on January 1, 2002 ( printed page 59579) (see 60 FR 21075, published on May 1, 1995). Accordingly, certain previously restrained categories have been modified or eliminated and certain limits have been revised. Integrated products will no longer be subject to quota. In the letter published below, the Chairman of CITA directs the Commissioner of Customs to establish the 2002 limits. 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 65 FR 82328, published on December 28, 2000). Information regarding the 2002 CORRELATION will be published in the Federal Register at a later date.

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

November 23, 2001.

Commissioner of Customs,

Department of the Treasury, 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, 2002, entry into the United States for consumption and withdrawal from warehouse for consumption of cotton, wool, man-made fiber, silk blend and other vegetable fiber textiles and textile products in the following categories, produced or manufactured in the Republic of Korea and exported during the twelve-month period beginning on January 1, 2002 and extending through December 31, 2002, in excess of the following levels of restraint:

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 2001 shall be charged to the applicable category limits for that year (see directive dated November 14, 2000 ) 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.

Products to be integrated into the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 on January 1, 2002 (listed in the Federal Register notice published on May 1, 1995, 60 FR 21075) which are exported during 2001 shall be charged to the applicable 2001 limits to the extent of any unfilled balances. After January 1, 2002, should those 2001 limits be filled, such products shall no longer be charged to any limit.

The conversion factors for the following merged categories are listed below:

In carrying out the above directions, the Commissioner of Customs 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 of the rulemaking provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1).

Sincerely,

Jim Bennett,

Acting Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.

66 FR 59578