The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of June 11-17:
Harmonized Tariff Schedule
The Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) is a reference manual that provides duty rates for almost every item that exists. It is a system of classifying and taxing all goods imported into the United States. The HTS is based on the international Harmonized System, which is a global standard for naming and describing trade products, and consists of a hierarchical structure that assigns a specific code and rate to each type of merchandise for duty, quota, and statistical purposes. The HTS was made effective on January 1, 1989, replacing the former Tariff Schedules of the United States. It is maintained by the U.S. International Trade Commission, but the Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security is responsible for interpreting and enforcing the HTS.
The U.S. will begin collecting an additional 25 percent in tariffs on 818 lines of the original 1,333 tariff lines proposed in April, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative announced June 15. The tariffs will take effect July 6. Televisions, one of the most significant consumer products on the original list, are no longer facing tariffs.
The Commerce Department issued Federal Register notices on its recently initiated antidumping duty investigations on steel propane cylinders from China, Taiwan and Thailand (A-570-086, A-583-864, A-549-839), and countervailing duty investigation on steel propane cylinders from China (C-570-087).
Fossil watches that are dependent on a Bluetooth connection to a smartphone for timekeeping are best classified based on the radio transceiver, CBP said in an April 30 ruling. CBP issued ruling HQ H282905 in response to a tariff classification ruling request from Grunfeld Desiderio. Unlike this ruling, CBP has previously said that the watch function of wristwatches is determinative of the classification, even if the watch has Bluetooth capabilities (see 1606280030). On the other hand, a 2015 CBP ruling found that the essential character of smartwatches is based upon the radio transceiver that makes Bluetooth connections possible (see 1508050029).
Eight House Republicans, including seven from the Texas delegation, went to bat for constituent tech companies trying to fend off Trade Act Section 301 tariffs of 25 percent on imports from China, with the final tariffs list due out this week (see 1805290010). The eighth GOP member said he wants to protect one company, Cree, from paying higher duties on the LED wafers that it makes in North Carolina, ships to China, and re-imports to the U.S. as finished, packaged chips.
The use of a "fixed bed dryer" within a garlic processing process does not result in "toasting," CBP said in HQ H289310. CBP's March 5 ruling was in response to a protest and application for further review through the Port of Newark from FFI Group. FFI Group argued that the garlic at issue is classifiable as “Other vegetables prepared or preserved otherwise than by vinegar or acetic acid, not frozen, other than products of heading 2006: Other vegetables and mixtures of vegetables: Other: Other” in Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading 2005.99.97.
The International Trade Commission began a Section 337 investigation into allegations that imports of blood cholesterol testing strips by ACON infringe patents held by Polymer Technology Systems, the ITC said in a press release. In a complaint filed April 30 (see 1805070013), PTS said the Mission Cholesterol Monitoring System imported and sold by ACON Laboratories and its affiliate ACON Biotech (Hangzhou) Co., Ltd. infringe patents associated with PTS’s CardioChek cholesterol test strip system. The accused products come in under Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheadings 9027.80.4530 and 9027.50.4015. The ITC will consider whether to issue a limited exclusion order and cease and desist orders banning importation and sale of infringing merchandise by the following respondents:
The International Trade Commission issued Revision 5 to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule late on May 31. Most changes are intended to implement the end of temporary country exemptions for the European Union, Canada and Mexico and new agreements subjecting steel from Argentina and Brazil, and aluminum from Argentina, to quotas. Quotas on steel are also changed to implement a new lower threshold for three-month quota provisions. All changes take effect June 1.
New tariffs on U.S. goods exported to the European Union and Canada touch on a wide range of products, with a heavy focus on steel and aluminum products. The EU and Canadian tariffs are meant as a response to the Trump administration's decision to end the exemptions from tariffs on steel and aluminum goods from the EU, Canada and Mexico (see 1805310028). Mexico also plans to initiate new tariffs on U.S. goods, though it has not yet publicly released a list of Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheadings, a spokeswoman for the Mexican Embassy in the U.S. said. China put new tariffs in place in April in response to the Section 232 tariffs.
A May 29 quota status report lists one more Korean steel quota category that has been filled since May 1, bringing the total number of filled quotas to 13. The Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) subheadings for the filled quotas are: