2018-04392. Wooden Bedroom Furniture From the People's Republic of China: Notice of Covered Merchandise Referral

AGENCY:

Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.

SUMMARY:

Pursuant to the Enforce and Protect Act of 2015 (EAPA), the Department of Commerce (Commerce) received a covered merchandise referral from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in connection with a CBP Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) investigation concerning the antidumping duty (AD) order on wooden bedroom furniture (WBF) from the People's Republic of China (China). In accordance with EAPA, Commerce intends to determine whether the merchandise subject to the referral is covered by the scope of the order and promptly transmit its determination to CBP. Commerce is providing notice of the referral and inviting participation from interested parties.

DATES:

Applicable March 5, 2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Ariela Garvett at [phone] or Howard Smith at [phone], AD/CVD Operations Office IV, Enforcement & Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

On February 24, 2016, the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 was signed into law, which contains Title IV-Prevention of Evasion of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Orders (short title “Enforce and Protect Act of 2015” or “EAPA”) (Pub. L. 114-125, 130 Stat. 122, 155, Feb. 24, 2016). Effective August 22, 2016, section 421 of the EAPA added section 517 to the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), which establishes a formal process for CBP to investigate allegations of the evasion of antidumping and countervailing duty (AD/CVD) orders. Section 517(b)(4)(A) of the Act provides a procedure whereby if, during the course of an EAPA investigation, CBP is unable to determine whether the merchandise at issue is covered merchandise within the meaning of section 517(a)(3) of the Act, it shall refer the matter to Commerce to make such a determination. Section 517(a)(3) of the Act defines covered merchandise as merchandise that is subject to an antidumping duty order issued under section 736 of the Act or a countervailing duty order issued under section 706 of the Act. Section 517(b)(4)(B) of the Act states that Commerce, after receiving a covered merchandise referral from CBP, shall determine whether the merchandise is covered merchandise and promptly transmit its determination to CBP. The Act does not establish a deadline within which Commerce must issue its determination.

On December 22, 2017, Commerce received a covered merchandise referral from CBP regarding CBP EAPA Investigation No. 7189 ^[1] which concerns the AD order on WBF from China.^[2] Specifically, based on an allegation by the American Furniture Manufacturers Committee for Legal Trade, CBP has requested that Commerce issue a determination as to whether certain merchandise imported by Aspects Furniture International, Inc. is subject to the AD order on WBF from China:

(1) Desk/Console table with drawers;

(2) Credenza/Trunk Storage/Cabinet with minibar;

(3) Consoles/Custom Dresser/Console; and

(4) Bed Bench Base.

Notification to Interested Parties

Commerce is hereby notifying interested parties that it has received the covered merchandise referral referenced above, will begin a new segment of the proceeding, and intends to issue a determination regarding whether the merchandise subject to the referral is covered merchandise within the meaning of section 517(a)(3) of the Act. Additionally, Commerce intends to provide interested parties with the opportunity to participate in this segment of the proceeding, including through the submission of comments, and, if appropriate, new factual information and verification. Specifically, Commerce will notify parties on the segment-specific service list for this segment of the proceeding of a schedule for comments. In addition, Commerce may request factual information from any person to assist in making its determination and may verify submissions of factual information, if Commerce determines that such verification is appropriate. Commerce intends to issue a final determination within 120 days of the publication of this notice (this deadline may be extended if it is not practicable to complete the final determination within 120 days), and will promptly transmit its final determination to CBP in accordance with section 517(b)(4)(B) of the Act.

Parties are also hereby notified that this is the only notice that Commerce intends to publish in the Federal Register concerning this covered merchandise referral. Therefore, interested parties that wish to participate in this segment of the proceeding, and receive notice of the final determination, must submit their letters of appearance as discussed below. Further, any party desiring access to business proprietary information in this segment of the proceeding must file an application for access to business proprietary information under administrative protective order (APO), as discussed below.

Finally, we note that covered merchandise referrals constitute a new type of segment of a proceeding at Commerce and, therefore, Commerce will continue to develop its practice and procedures in this area.

Scope of the AD Order Wooden Bedroom Furniture From People's Republic of China

The product covered by the order is wooden bedroom furniture. Wooden bedroom furniture is generally, but not exclusively, designed, manufactured, and offered for sale in coordinated groups, or bedrooms, in which all of the individual pieces are of approximately the same style and approximately the same material and/or finish. The subject merchandise is made substantially of wood products, including both solid wood and also engineered wood products made from wood particles, fibers, or other wooden materials such as plywood, strand board, particle board, and fiberboard, with or without wood veneers, wood overlays, or laminates, with or without non-wood components or trim such as metal, marble, leather, glass, plastic, or other resins, and whether or not assembled, completed, or finished.

The subject merchandise includes the following items: (1) Wooden beds such as loft beds, bunk beds, and other beds; (2) wooden headboards for beds (whether stand-alone or attached to side rails), wooden footboards for beds, wooden side rails for beds, and wooden canopies for beds; (3) night tables, night stands, dressers, commodes, bureaus, mule chests, gentlemen's chests, bachelor's chests, lingerie chests, wardrobes, vanities, chessers, chifforobes, and wardrobe-type cabinets; (4) dressers with framed glass mirrors that are attached to, incorporated in, sit on, or hang over the dresser; (5) chests-on-chests,^[3] highboys,^[4] lowboys,^[5] chests of drawers,^[6] chests,^[7] door chests,^[8] chiffoniers,^[9] hutches,^[10] and armoires; ^[11] (6) desks, computer stands, filing cabinets, book cases, or writing tables that are attached to or incorporated in the subject merchandise; and (7) other bedroom furniture consistent with the above list.

The scope of the order excludes the following items: (1) Seats, chairs, benches, couches, sofas, sofa beds, stools, and other seating furniture; (2) mattresses, mattress supports (including box springs), infant cribs, water beds, and futon frames; (3) office furniture, such as desks, stand-up desks, computer cabinets, filing cabinets, credenzas, and bookcases; (4) dining room or kitchen furniture such as dining tables, chairs, servers, sideboards, buffets, corner cabinets, china cabinets, and china hutches; (5) other non-bedroom furniture, such as television cabinets, cocktail tables, end tables, occasional tables, wall systems, book cases, and entertainment systems; (6) bedroom furniture made primarily of wicker, cane, osier, bamboo or rattan; (7) side rails for beds made of metal if sold separately from the headboard and footboard; (8) bedroom furniture in which bentwood parts predominate; ^[12] (9) jewelry armories; ^[13] (10) cheval mirrors; ^[14] (11) certain metal parts; ^[15] (12) mirrors that do not attach to, incorporate in, sit on, or hang over a dresser if they are not designed and marketed to be sold in conjunction with a dresser as part of a dresser-mirror set; (13) upholstered beds; ^[16] (14) toy boxes; ^[17] (15) certain enclosable wall bed units; ^[18] (16) certain shoe cabinets; ^[19] and (17) certain bed bases.^[20]

Imports of subject merchandise are classified under subheadings 9403.50.9042 and 9403.50.9045 of the HTSUS as “wooden . . . beds” and under subheading 9403.50.9080 of the HTSUS as “other . . . wooden furniture of a kind used in the bedroom.” In addition, wooden headboards for beds, wooden footboards for beds, wooden side rails for beds, and wooden canopies for beds may be entered under subheadings 9403.90.7005 or 9403.90.7080 of the HTSUS. Subject merchandise may also be entered under subheadings 9403.50.9041, 9403.60.8081, 9403.20.0018, or 9403.90.8041. Further, framed glass mirrors may be entered under subheading 7009.92.1000 or 7009.92.5000 of the HTSUS as “glass mirrors . . . framed.” The order covers all wooden bedroom furniture meeting the above description, regardless of tariff classification. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, our written description of the scope of this proceeding is dispositive.

Filing Requirements

All submissions to Commerce must be filed electronically using ACCESS.^[21] An electronically filed document must be received successfully in its entirety by the time and date it is due. Documents exempted from the electronic submission requirements must be filed manually (i.e., in paper form) with Enforcement and Compliance's APO/Dockets Unit, Room 18022, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230, and stamped with the date of receipt by the applicable deadlines.

Letters of Appearance and Administrative Protective Order

Interested parties that wish to participate in this segment of the proceeding and be added to the public service list for this segment of the proceeding must file a letter of appearance in accordance with 19 CFR 351.103(d)(1), with one exception: the parties publicly identified by CBP in the covered merchandise referral (referenced above) are not required to submit a letter of appearance, and will be added to the public service list for this segment of the proceeding by Commerce.

Commerce placed an APO on the record on January 11, 2018,^[22] and established the APO service list for use in this segment. Commerce intends to place the business proprietary versions of the documents contained in the covered merchandise referral on the record of this proceeding in ACCESS within five days of publication of this notice.

Interested parties must submit applications for disclosure under the APO in accordance with the procedures outlined in Commerce's regulations at 19 CFR 351.305. Those procedures apply to this segment of the proceeding, with one exception: APO applicants representing the parties that have been identified by CBP as an importer in the covered merchandise referral (referenced above) are exempt from the additional filing requirements for importers pursuant to 19 CFR 351.305(d).

Dated: February 22, 2018.

Christian Marsh,

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Footnotes

1.  See Letter from CBP, “EAPA Case Number: 7189; Scope Referral Request for merchandise under EAPA Investigation 7189, imported by Aspects Furniture International, Inc. and concerning evasion of the antidumping duty order on Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People's Republic of China,” dated December 22, 2017. This document and any supporting documents will be available electronically on Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping Duty and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS) within five days of publication of this notice.

2.  See Notice of Amended Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Antidumping Duty Order: Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People's Republic of China, 70 FR 329 (January 4, 2005).

3.  A chest-on-chest is typically a tall chest-of-drawers in two or more sections (or appearing to be in two or more sections), with one or two sections mounted (or appearing to be mounted) on a slightly larger chest; also known as a tallboy.

4.  A highboy is typically a tall chest of drawers usually composed of a base and a top section with drawers, and supported on four legs or a small chest (often 15 inches or more in height).

5.  A lowboy is typically a short chest of drawers, not more than four feet high, normally set on short legs.

6.  A chest of drawers is typically a case containing drawers for storing clothing.

7.  A chest is typically a case piece taller than it is wide featuring a series of drawers and with or without one or more doors for storing clothing. The piece can either include drawers or be designed as a large box incorporating a lid.

8.  A door chest is typically a chest with hinged doors to store clothing, whether or not containing drawers. The piece may also include shelves for televisions and other entertainment electronics.

9.  A chiffonier is typically a tall and narrow chest of drawers normally used for storing undergarments and lingerie, often with mirror(s) attached.

10.  A hutch is typically an open case of furniture with shelves that typically sits on another piece of furniture and provides storage for clothes.

11.  An armoire is typically a tall cabinet or wardrobe (typically 50 inches or taller), with doors, and with one or more drawers (either exterior below or above the doors or interior behind the doors), shelves, and/or garment rods or other apparatus for storing clothes. Bedroom armoires may also be used to hold television receivers and/or other audio-visual entertainment systems.

12.  As used herein, bentwood means solid wood made pliable. Bentwood is wood that is brought to a curved shape by bending it while made pliable with moist heat or other agency and then set by cooling or drying. See CBP's Headquarters Ruling Letter 043859, dated May 17, 1976.

13.  Any armoire, cabinet or other accent item for the purpose of storing jewelry, not to exceed 24 inches in width, 18 inches in depth, and 49 inches in height, including a minimum of 5 lined drawers lined with felt or felt-like material, at least one side door or one front door (whether or not the door is lined with felt or felt-like material), with necklace hangers, and a flip-top lid with inset mirror. See Issues and Decision Memorandum from Laurel LaCivita to Laurie Parkhill, Office Director, concerning “Jewelry Armoires and Cheval Mirrors in the Antidumping Duty Investigation of Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People's Republic of China,” dated August 31, 2004. See also Wooden Bedroom Furniture f rom the People' s Republic of China: Final Changed Circumstances Review, and Determination To Revo ke Order in Part, 71 FR 38621 (July 7, 2006).

14.  Cheval mirrors are any framed, tiltable mirror with a height in excess of 50 inches that is mounted on a floor-standing, hinged base. Additionally, the scope of the order excludes combination cheval mirror/jewelry cabinets. The excluded merchandise is an integrated piece consisting of a cheval mirror, i.e., a framed tiltable mirror with a height in excess of 50 inches, mounted on a floor-standing, hinged base, the cheval mirror serving as a door to a cabinet back that is integral to the structure of the mirror and which constitutes a jewelry cabinet line with fabric, having necklace and bracelet hooks, mountings for rings and shelves, with or without a working lock and key to secure the contents of the jewelry cabinet back to the cheval mirror, and no drawers anywhere on the integrated piece. The fully assembled piece must be at least 50 inches in height, 14.5 inches in width, and 3 inches in depth. See Wooden Bedroom Furniture f rom the People' s Republic of China: Final Changed Circumstances Review and Determination T o Revoke Order in Part, 72 FR 948 (January 9, 2007).

15.  Metal furniture parts and unfinished furniture parts made of wood products (as defined above) that are not otherwise specifically named in this scope (i.e., wooden headboards for beds, wooden footboards for beds, wooden side rails for beds, and wooden canopies for beds) and that do not possess the essential character of wooden bedroom furniture in an unassembled, incomplete, or unfinished form.

16.  Upholstered beds that are completely upholstered, i.e., containing filling material and completely covered in sewn genuine leather, synthetic leather, or natural or synthetic decorative fabric. To be excluded, the entire bed (headboards, footboards, and side rails) must be upholstered except for bed feet, which may be of wood, metal, or any other material and which are no more than nine inches in height from the floor. See Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People' s Republic of China: Final Results of Changed Circumstances Review and Determination to Revoke Order in Part, 72 FR 7013 (February 14, 2007).

17.  To be excluded the toy box must: (1) Be wider than it is tall; (2) have dimensions within 16 inches to 27 inches in height, 15 inches to 18 inches in depth, and 21 inches to 30 inches in width; (3) have a hinged lid that encompasses the entire top of the box; (4) not incorporate any doors or drawers; (5) have slow-closing safety hinges; (6) have air vents; (7) have no locking mechanism; and (8) comply with American Society for Testing and Materials (“ASTM”) standard F963-03. Toy boxes are boxes generally designed for the purpose of storing children's items such as toys, books, and playthings. See Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People' s Republic of China: Final Results of Changed Circumstances Review and Determination to Revoke Order in Part, 74 FR 8506 (February 25, 2009). Further, as determined in the scope ruling memorandum “Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People's Republic of China: Scope Ruling on a White Toy Box,” dated July 6, 2009, the dimensional ranges used to identify the toy boxes that are excluded from the wooden bedroom furniture order apply to the box itself rather than the lid.

18.  Excluded from the scope are certain enclosable wall bed units, also referred to as murphy beds, which are composed of the following three major sections: (1) A metal wall frame, which attaches to the wall and uses coils or pistons to support the metal mattress frame; (2) a metal frame, which has euro slats for supporting a mattress and two legs that pivot; and (3) wood panels, which attach to the metal wall frame and/or the metal mattress frame to form a cabinet to enclose the wall bed when not in use. Excluded enclosable wall bed units are imported in ready-to-assemble format with all parts necessary for assembly. Enclosable wall bed units do not include a mattress. Wood panels of enclosable wall bed units, when imported separately, remain subject to the order.

19.  Excluded from the scope are certain shoe cabinets 31.5-33.5 inches wide by 15.5-17.5 inches deep by 34.5-36.5 inches high. They are designed strictly to store shoes, which are intended to be aligned in rows perpendicular to the wall along which the cabinet is positioned. Shoe cabinets do not have drawers, rods, or other indicia for the storage of clothing other than shoes. The cabinets are not designed, manufactured, or offered for sale in coordinated groups or sets and are made substantially of wood, have two to four shelves inside them, and are covered by doors. The doors often have blinds that are designed to allow air circulation and release of bad odors. The doors themselves may be made of wood or glass. The depth of the shelves does not exceed 14 inches. Each shoe cabinet has doors, adjustable shelving, and ventilation holes.

20.  Excluded from the scope are certain bed bases consisting of: (1) A wooden box frame, (2) three wooden cross beams and one perpendicular center wooden support beam, and (3) wooden slats over the beams. These bed bases are constructed without inner springs and/or coils and do not include a headboard, footboard, side rails, or mattress. The bed bases are imported unassembled.

21.  See Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings: Electronic Filing Procedures; Administrative Protective Order Procedures, 76 FR 39263 (July 6, 2011), as amended in Enforcement and Compliance; Change of Electronic Filing System Name, 79 FR 69046 (November 20, 2014) for details of Commerce's electronic filing requirements, effective August 5, 2011. Information on help using ACCESS can be found at https://access.trade.gov/​help.aspx and a handbook can be found at https://access.trade.gov/​help/​Handbook%20on%20Electronic%20Filing%20Procedures.pdf.

22.  See the Administrative Protective Order “In the Matter of the Scope Inquiry of the Antidumping Duty Order on Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People's Republic of China (A-570-890) (CBP EAPA Inv. No. 7189)”, dated January 11, 2018.