94-11410. Public Hearings on Section 232 National Security Investigation of Imports of Crude Oil and Petroleum Products  

  • [Federal Register Volume 59, Number 90 (Wednesday, May 11, 1994)]
    [Unknown Section]
    [Page 0]
    From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
    [FR Doc No: 94-11410]
    
    
    [[Page Unknown]]
    
    [Federal Register: May 11, 1994]
    
    
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    DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
    
    Bureau of Export Administration
    
     
    
    Public Hearings on Section 232 National Security Investigation of 
    Imports of Crude Oil and Petroleum Products
    
    AGENCY: Bureau of Export Administration, Commerce.
    
    ACTION: Notice of public hearings.
    
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    SUMMARY: The Bureau of Export Administration (BXA) is holding public 
    hearings on the investigation that the Department of Commerce 
    initiated, on April 5, 1994, to determine the effects on the national 
    security of imports of crude oil and refined petroleum products under 
    section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, as amended. This notice 
    identifies the issues on which the Department is interested in 
    obtaining the public's views. It also sets forth the procedures for 
    public participation in the hearings.
    
    DATES: The hearings will be held in New York, New York, on Monday, June 
    6, 1994; in Dallas, Texas, on Monday, June 13, 1994; and in Santa 
    Clara, California, on Thursday, June 16, 1994. Requests to speak are 
    due by Monday, May 23, 1994. The hearing in New York will be held in 
    the Ceremonial Courtroom of the U.S. Court of International Trade, One 
    Federal Plaza. The hearing in Dallas will be held at the Joe C. 
    Thompson Amphitheatre, Cityplace Center East, 2711 N. Haskill. The 
    hearing in Santa Clara will be held at the City of Santa Clara Council 
    Chambers, 1500 Wurburton Avenue.
    
    ADDRESSES: Send requests to speak and written copies of the oral 
    presentation to Steven C. Goldman, Deputy Director, Office of 
    Industrial Resource Administration, room 3878, U.S. Department of 
    Commerce, 14th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 
    20230.
    
    FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bernard Kritzer, Senior Industry 
    Analyst, Office of Foreign Availability, Telephone: (202) 482-0074.
    
    SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    
    I. Background and Specific Comments Requested
    
        On March 11, 1994, the Independent Petroleum Association of America 
    petitioned the Department of Commerce to initiate an investigation 
    under section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, as amended (19 
    U.S.C. 1862), to determine the effects on the national security of 
    imports of crude oil and petroleum products.
        On April 5, 1994, the Department of Commerce formally accepted the 
    petition and initiated an investigation. The findings and 
    recommendations of the investigation are to be reported by the 
    Secretary of Commerce to the President no later than December 31, 1994 
    (i.e., within 270 days). For further details on this investigation, see 
    the Federal Register of April 12, 1994 (59 FR 17335).
        Consistent with the interest of the U.S. Department of Commerce in 
    soliciting public comments on issues affecting U.S. industry and 
    national security, the Bureau of Export Administration (BXA) is holding 
    public hearings as part of the investigation. The presentations at the 
    hearings will assist the Department in determining whether imports of 
    crude oil and petroleum products constitute a threat to the national 
    security and in formulating remedies if such a threat is found to 
    exist.
        The Department is particularly interested in comments and 
    information directed to the criteria listed in Sec. 705.4 of the 
    National Security Industrial Base Regulations (15 CFR parts 700 to 709) 
    (the ``regulations'') as they affect national security, including the 
    following:
        (a) Quantity of the articles subject to the investigation and other 
    circumstances related to the importation of such articles;
        (b) Domestic production and productive capacity needed for these 
    articles to meet projected national defense requirements;
        (c) Existing and anticipated availability of human resources, 
    products, raw materials, production equipment, facilities, and other 
    supplies and services needed to produce these articles;
        (d) Growth requirements of domestic industries needed to meet 
    national defense requirements and the supplies and services (including 
    investment, exploration and development) necessary to assure such 
    growth;
        (e) The impact of foreign competition on the economic welfare of 
    the domestic industry;
        (f) The displacement of any domestic products causing substantial 
    unemployment, decrease in the revenues of government, loss of 
    investment or specialized skills and productive capacity, or other 
    serious effects; and
        (g) Any other factors that are causing, or will cause, a weakening 
    of our national economy.
    
    II. Public Hearings and Comment Procedures
    
        The public hearings are scheduled to be held in New York, New York 
    on Monday, June 6, 1994; in Dallas, Texas, on Monday, June 13, 1994; 
    and in Santa Clara, California, on Thursday, June 16, 1994. The 
    hearings will commence at 8:30 a.m. and end at 5 p.m. The New York 
    hearing will be held in the ceremonial courtroom of the U.S. Court of 
    International Trade, One Federal Plaza. The Dallas hearing will be held 
    at the Joe C. Thompson Amphitheatre, Cityplace Center East, 2711 N. 
    Haskill. The Santa Clara hearing will be held at the City of Santa 
    Clara Council Chambers, 1500 Wurburton Avenue.
    
    A. Procedure for Requesting Participation
    
        The Department encourages interested public participants to present 
    their views orally at the hearings. Any person wishing to make an oral 
    presentation at the hearings must submit a written request to the 
    Department of Commerce at the address indicated in the ADDRESS section 
    of this notice. The request to participate in the hearings must be 
    accompanied by 10 copies of a summary of the oral presentation. The 
    written request and summary must be received by the Department no later 
    than Monday, May 23, 1994. In addition, the request to speak should 
    contain a daytime phone number where the person who will be making the 
    oral presentation may be contacted before the hearing. Please note that 
    the submission of comments for presentation at the public hearings is 
    separate from the request for written comments contained in the April 
    12, 1994, Federal Register notice.
        Since it may be necessary to limit the number of persons making 
    presentations, the written request to participate in the public 
    hearings should describe the individual's interest in the hearings and, 
    where appropriate, explain why the individual is a proper 
    representative of a group or class of persons that has such an 
    interest. If all interested parties cannot be accommodated at the 
    hearings, the summaries of the oral presentations will be used to 
    allocate speaking time and to ensure that a full range of comments are 
    heard.
        Each person selected to make a presentation will be notified by the 
    Department of Commerce no later than 5 p.m. on Thursday, May 26, 1994. 
    The Department will arrange the presentation times for the speakers. 
    Attendees will be seated on a first-come, first-served basis. On the 
    day of the hearing, persons selected to be heard should bring 100 
    copies of the summary of their oral presentation to the hearing address 
    indicated in the DATES section of this notice.
        Copies of the requests to participate in the public hearings and 
    the summaries of the oral presentations will be maintained at the 
    Bureau of Export Administration's Freedom of Information Records 
    Inspection Facility, room 4525, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th 
    Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230, telephone 
    (202) 482-5653. The records in this facility may be inspected and 
    copied in accordance with the regulations published in part 4 of title 
    15 of the Code of Federal Regulations (15 CFR 4.1 et seq.) Information 
    about the inspection and copying of records at the facility may be 
    obtained from Ms. Margaret Cornejo, the Bureau of Export 
    Administration's Freedom of Information Officer, at the above address 
    and telephone number, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., 
    Monday through Friday.
    
    B. Conduct of the Hearing
    
        The Department reserves the right to select the persons to be heard 
    at the hearings, to schedule their respective presentations, and to 
    establish the procedures governing the conduct of the hearing. Each 
    speaker will be limited to 10 minutes, and comments must be directly 
    related to the criteria listed in Sec. 705.4 of the ``regulations''.
        A Commerce official will be designated to preside at the hearings. 
    Representatives from the Departments of Energy and Interior will also 
    participate in the hearings. This will not be a judicial or 
    evidentiary-type hearing. Only those conducting the hearing may ask 
    questions, and there will be no cross-examination of persons presenting 
    statements.
        Any further procedural rules for the proper conduct of the hearing 
    will be announced by the presiding officer.
    
        Dated: May 6, 1994.
    Sue E. Eckert,
    Assistant Secretary for Export Administration.
    [FR Doc. 94-11410 Filed 5-6-94; 3:08 pm]
    BILLING CODE 3510-DT-P