The scope of an exemption for “finished merchandise” from antidumping and countervailing duties on aluminum extrusions from China is now becoming more clear as two court cases with the potential to shake up the Commerce Department’s finished merchandise definition are likely headed toward resolution. Commerce is now consistently using the same reasoning to find products made entirely of aluminum extrusions are subject to antidumping and countervailing duties. The agency’s newfound reliance on the actual language of the orders makes it more difficult for an importer to challenge that reasoning in court, said a lawyer who represents importers of aluminum products.
The FCC will start a proceeding on foreign broadcast ownership, in the wake of Monday evening's OK of Pandora's request it be allowed to exceed a 25 percent threshold (see 1505040065). Amid Republican commissioners' concern about the almost two-year process that led up to the declaratory ruling, industry lawyers expect the agency to begin a rulemaking soon on the waiver process for radio and TV stations. It may be an NPRM, said Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council senior adviser David Honig.
The FCC will start a proceeding on foreign broadcast ownership, in the wake of Monday evening's OK of Pandora's request it be allowed to exceed a 25 percent threshold (see 1505040065). Amid Republican commissioners' concern about the almost two-year process that led up to the declaratory ruling, industry lawyers expect the agency to begin a rulemaking soon on the waiver process for radio and TV stations. It may be an NPRM, said Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council senior adviser David Honig.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of April 27 - May 3:
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for April 27 - May 1 in case they were missed.
The Court of International Trade on May 1 dismissed an importers challenge of charges that it is circumventing antidumping duties, finding that the importer did not first fully argue its case at the Commerce Department (here). Commerce had found Ceramark Technology was circumventing the AD duty order on small diameter graphite electrodes from China by making 17-inch diameter electrodes that fell just outside the 16-inch maximum diameter in the scope of the AD duty order. According to Commerce, the change was minor enough that the electrodes should still be subject to AD duties. CIT at first sided with Ceramark, sending the anticircumvention determination back to Commerce in September so the agency could address Ceramark’s argument that the companies that originally requested the AD duties had chosen not to cover 17-inch diameter electrodes. However, after Commerce issued its redetermination making new arguments in favor of its finding of circumvention, Ceramark did not file a brief responding to the agency. As a result, the company did not fully argue its case at the administrative level and is not entitled to a judicial review of its case, said CIT.
Importers cannot be sued for False Claims Act violations related to failure to pay marking duties, said the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania as it denied a bid to reignite a whistleblower lawsuit from a company founded specifically to conduct "research and analysis on customs fraud" (here). The False Claims Act only applies to a false claim made to avoid an already existing obligation, while the obligation to pay marking duties is nonexistent until it is created by the failure to mark, said the court.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of April 20-26:
The U.S. government recently filed a lawsuit against Michaels Stores for the company’s late reporting of a consumer product safety hazard and failure to disclose that it was the importer of the unsafe product, said the Consumer Product Safety Commission in a press release issued April 22 (here). According to the complaint filed in Northern Texas U.S. District Court, Michaels knew glass vases it imported and sold in its stores were so thin that they would easily break and cut the hands of the person holding the vase, but failed to report the hazard to CPSC for over a year. When the company finally did report the problem, it said it was not the importer even though it was importer of record of the vases, allowing it to avoid legal and financial responsibility for the resulting recall, said the complaint.
The House Ways and Means Committee approved the four major trade bills up for consideration at its April 23 markup, following a full day of debate on the legislation. The committee ultimately sent to the House floor Trade Promotion Authority, Trade Adjustment Assistance, a preference package and a Customs Reauthorization bill. Committee lawmakers approved the same TPA, TAA and preference package bills the Senate Finance Committee endorsed the day before (see 1504230001). TPA passed in a partisan vote, with two Democrats joining Republicans in support. The other three bills passed by voice vote, a committee spokesman said.