03-21455. The Economic Effects of Significant U.S. Import Restraints: Fourth Update

AGENCY:

United States International Trade Commission.

ACTION:

Notice of fourth update report and scheduling of public hearing.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

August 14, 2003.

SUMMARY:

The Commission has announced the schedule for its fourth update report in investigation No. 332-325, The Economic Effects of Significant U.S. Import Restraints, and has established deadlines for the submission of requests to appear at the hearing and for the filing of written submissions as set forth below. The investigation was requested by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) in May 1992. That request called for an initial investigation and subsequent updates, under section 332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1332(g)).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Soamiely Andriamananjara, Project Leader [phone] or Marinos Tsigas, Deputy Project Leader [phone], Office of Economics, U.S. International Trade Commission, Washington, DC 20436. For information on the legal aspects of this investigation, contact William Gearhart of the Office of the General Counsel [phone]. Hearing impaired individuals are advised that information on this matter can be obtained by contacting the TDD terminal on [phone]. Persons with mobility impairments who will need special assistance in gaining access to the Commission should contact the Office of the Secretary at [phone]. General information concerning the Commission may also be obtained by accessing its Internet server (http://www.usitc.gov). The public record for these investigations may be viewed on the Commission's electronic docket (EDIS-ON-LINE) at http://dockets.usitc.gov/​eol/​public.

Background

The Commission instituted this investigation following receipt on May 15, 1992 of a request from the USTR. The request asked that the Commission conduct an investigation assessing the quantitative economic effects of significant U.S. import restraints on the U.S. economy, and prepare periodic update reports following the submission of the first report. The first report was delivered to the USTR in November 1993, the first update in December 1995, the second update in May 1999, and the third update in June 2002.

In this fourth update report, the Commission will assess the economic effects of significant tariff and non-tariff U.S. import restraints on U.S. consumers, on the activities of U.S. firms, on the income and employment of U.S. workers, and on the net economic welfare of the United States. The assessment will not include import restraints resulting from final antidumping or countervailing duty investigations, section 337 and 406 investigations, or section 301 actions.

The initial notice of institution of this investigation was published in the Federal Register of June 17, 1992 (57 FR 27063).

Public Hearing

A public hearing in connection with the 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 December 9, 2003. All persons shall have the right to appear, by counsel or in person, to present information and to be heard. Requests to appear at the public hearing should be filed with the Secretary, United States International Trade Commission, 500 E Street SW., Washington, DC 20436, no later than 5:15 p.m., November 14, 2003. Any prehearing briefs (original and 14 copies) should be filed not later than close of business, November 17, 2003; the deadline for filing post-hearing briefs or statements is the close of business, January 10, 2004. In the event that, as of the close of business on November 14, 2003, no witnesses are scheduled to appear at the hearing, the hearing will be canceled. Any person interested in attending the hearing as an observer or non-participant may call the Secretary to the Commission [phone] after November 20, 2003, to determine whether the hearing will be held.

Written Submissions

In lieu of or in addition to participating in the hearing, interested parties are invited to submit written statements (original and 14 copies) concerning the matters to be addressed by the Commission in its report on this investigation. Commercial or financial information that a submitter desires the Commission to treat as confidential must be submitted on separate sheets of paper, each clearly marked “Confidential Business Information” at the top. All submissions requesting confidential treatment must conform with the requirements of section 201.6 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 CFR 201.6). All written submissions, except for confidential business information, will be made available in the Office of the Secretary for inspection by interested parties. To be assured of consideration by the Commission, written statements relating to the Commission's report should be submitted to the Commission at the earliest practical date and should be received no later than the close of business on January 10, 2004. All submissions should be addressed to the Secretary, United States International Trade Commission, 500 E St. SW., Washington, DC 20436. The Commission's rules do not authorize filing submissions with the Secretary by facsimile or electronic means, except to the extent permitted by section 201.8 of the Commission's Rules (19 CFR 201.8) (see Handbook for Electronic Filing Procedures, ftp://ftp.usitc.gov/pub/reports/electronic_filing_handbook.pdf).

Hearing-impaired persons are advised that information on this matter can be obtained by contacting the Commission's TDD terminal on [phone]. Persons with mobility impairments who will need special assistance in gaining access to the Commission should contact the Office of the Secretary at [phone]. General information concerning the Commission may be obtained by accessing its Internet server (http://www.usitc.gov). The public record for this investigation may be viewed on the Commission's electronic docket (EDIS) at http://edis.usitc.gov.

List of Subjects: U.S. Import Restraints, Nontariff measures (NTM), Tariffs, Imports.

By order of the Commission.

Issued: August 15, 2003.

Marilyn R. Abbott,

Secretary.