CITA Issues Procedures for Considering Requests for "Duty Rate" Safeguards for Australia FTA Textiles and Apparel

CITA to determine whether request contains necessary information within 15 working days of receipt. Within 15 working days of receipt of a request, CITA will determine whether the request provides the necessary information. If it does not, CITA will promptly notify the requester of its reasons for this determination and the request will not be considered. However, CITA will reevaluate any request that is resubmitted with additional information.

30-day comment period on request. If CITA determines that the request provides the necessary information, it will publish a notice seeking public comments within 30 calendar days regarding the request in the Federal Register.

10-day rebuttal period in certain cases. CITA states that if public comments are submitted less than 10 days before, or on, the applicable public comment deadline, an interested party may submit information to rebut, clarify, or correct the public comments no later than 10 days after the public comment deadline.

CITA to make determination within 60 day of end of comment period. Within 60 days of the end of the comment period, CITA will make its determination of whether, as a result of the reduction or elimination of a duty under the AFTA, an Australian textile or apparel article is being imported into the U.S. in such increased quantities, in absolute terms or in relative to the domestic market for that article, and under such conditions as to cause serious damage, or actual threat thereof, to a domestic industry producing an article that is like, or directly competitive with, the imported article.

If CBP is unable to make a determination within that period, it will publish a notice in the Federal Register announcing the date by which it will make a determination.

If CITA makes a negative determination, it will publish the negative determination and the reasons therefore in the Federal Register.

Import tariff relief may be provided if CITA's determination is affirmative. If CITA's determination is affirmative, it may provide relief to a U.S. industry for a two-year period (which may be extended an additional two years) which may consist of an increase in the duty rate on the imported article to the lower of:

1. the normal trade relations (NTR)/most-favored nation (MFN) duty rate in place for the textile or apparel article at the time the relief is granted; or
2. the NTR/MFN duty rate for that article on the day before the AFTA enters into force.

In addition, the U.S. must provide "mutually agreed" compensation to Australia if a safeguard action is taken.

CITA states that it will, without delay, provide written notice of its decision to the Government of Australia and will consult with Australia upon its request.

Import tariff relief begins the day CITA publishes its affirmative determination. The import tariff relief is effective beginning on the date that CITA's affirmative determination is published in the Federal Register.

Interested parties may allege "critical circumstances." CITA states that the AFTA allows an interested party filing a request for a textile or apparel safeguard measure to allege that "critical circumstances" exist. Within 60 days of filing the request, CITA will determine whether there is clear evidence that (1) imports from Australia have increased as the result of the reduction or elimination of a customs duty under the AFTA; (2) such imports are causing serious damage, or actual threat thereof, to the domestic industry producing an article like or directly competitive with the imported article; and (3) delay in providing import tariff relief would cause damage to a U.S. industry that would be difficult to repair.

If critical circumstances determination is affirmative, "provisional relief" may be provided. If CITA's determination is affirmative, it shall determine the extent of provisional relief that is necessary to remedy or prevent the serious damage, or actual threat thereof. Any such relief shall be provided within 30 days of the determination. In addition, liquidation will be suspended if provisional relief is provided.(See CITA notice for details regarding how provisional relief is terminated, etc.)

CITA may self-initiate an investigation. CITA may, on its own initiative, consider whether imports of a textile or apparel article from Australia are being imported into the U.S. in such increased quantities, in absolute terms or relative to the domestic market for that article, and under such conditions as to cause serious damage, or actual threat thereof to a U.S. industry producing a like or directly competitive article.

(CITA adds that its authority to provide "duty rate" safeguard relief to a textile or apparel article will expire 10 years after duties on the article are eliminated.)

CITA contact - Maria D'Andrea (202) 482-4058

CITA notice (FR Pub 04/28/06) available at http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/pdf/E6-6456.pdf.

BP Note

CITA has also published its "duty rate" safeguard procedures for textiles and apparel under the Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement and the U.S.-Morocco Free Trade Agreement. See future issues of ITT for highlights of those procedures.