03-29423. Announcement of Import Restraint Limits and Guaranteed Access Levels for Certain Cotton, Wool, Man-Made Fiber and Other Vegetable Fiber Textiles and Textile Products Produced or Manufactured in Jamaica

November 20, 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 and guaranteed access levels.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

January 1, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Naomi Freeman, International Trade Specialist, Office of Textiles and Apparel, U.S. Department of Commerce, [phone]. 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 [phone], 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 and Guaranteed Access Levels (GALs) for textile products, produced or manufactured in Jamaica 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).

These specific limits and guaranteed access levels do not apply to goods that qualify for quota-free entry under the Trade and Development Act of 2000.

In the letter published below, the Chairman of CITA directs the Commissioner, Bureau of Customs and Border Protection to establish limits and guaranteed access levels for the period January 1, 2004 through December 31, 2004.

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.

Requirements for participation in the Special Access Program are available in Federal Register notice 63 FR 16474, published on April 3, 1998.

James C. Leonard III,

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

November 20, 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, wool, man-made fiber and other vegetable fiber textiles and textile products in the following categories, produced or manufactured in Jamaica and exported during the twelve-month period beginning on January 1, 2004 and extending through December 31, 2004, in excess of the following levels of restraint:

Category	Twelve-month restraint limit
331pt./631pt. 1	1,257,436 dozen pairs.
338/339/638/639	2,482,430 dozen.
340/640	1,160,849 dozen of which not more than 982,257 dozen shall be in shirts made from fabrics with two or more colors in the warp and/or the filling in Categories 340-Y/640-Y 2.
341/641	1,457,670 dozen.
345/845	359,686 dozen.
347/348/647/648	2,679,473 dozen.
352/652	4,003,636 dozen.
445/446	59,144 dozen.
1 Category 331pt.: all HTS numbers except 6116.10.1720, 6116.10.4810, 6116.10.5510, 6116.10.7510, 6116.92.6410, 6116.92.6420, 6116.92.6430, 6116.92.6440, 6116.92.7450, 6116.92.7460, 6116.92.7470, 6116.92.8800, 6116.92.9400 and 6116.99.9510; Category 631pt.: all HTS numbers except 6116.10.1730, 6116.10.4820, 6116.10.5520, 6116.10.7520, 6116.93.8800, 6116.93.9400, 6116.99.4800, 6116.99.5400 and 6116.99.9530.
2 Category 340-Y: only HTS numbers 6205.20.2015, 6205.20.2020, 6205.20.2046, 6205.20.2050 and 6205.20.2060; Category 640-Y: only HTS numbers 6205.30.2010, 6205.30.2020, 6205.30.2050 and 6205.30.2060.

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 October 9, 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.

Also pursuant to the ATC; and under the terms of the Special Access Program, as set forth in 63 FR 16474 (April 3, 1998), you are directed to establish guaranteed access levels for properly certified cotton, wool, man-made fiber and other vegetable fiber textile products in the following categories which are assembled in Jamaica from fabric formed and cut in the United States and re-exported to the United States from Jamaica during the twelve-month period which begins on January 1, 2004 and extends through December 31, 2004:

Category	Guaranteed access level
331pt./631pt. 1	1,320,000 dozen pairs.
336/636	125,000 dozen.
338/339/638/639	1,500,000 dozen.
340/640	300,000 dozen.
341/641	375,000 dozen.
342/642	200,000 dozen.
345/845	50,000 dozen.
347/348/647/648	2,000,000 dozen.
352/652	10,500,000 dozen.
447	30,000 dozen.

Any shipment for entry under the Special Access Program which is not accompanied by a valid and correct certification in accordance with the provisions of the certification requirements established in the directive of February 19, 1987 (52 FR 6049) shall be denied entry unless the Government of Jamaica authorizes the entry and any charges to the appropriate specific limits. Any shipment which is declared for entry under the Special Access Program but found not to qualify shall be denied entry into the United States.

These specific limits and guaranteed access levels do not apply to goods that qualify for quota-free entry under the Trade and Development Act of 2000.

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 of the rulemaking provisions of U.S.C.553(a)(1).

Sincerely,

James C. Leonard III,

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.