U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC)

Customs and Trade Law Weekly Snapshot

Here is a recap of the latest customs and international trade law news:

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Catch Up on All DTL Blogs from 2021

We want to make sure you stay up to date with the hottest trade blogs from 2021. Below is a summary of what you missed by category. Enjoy!

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An Introduction to Safeguard Investigations

What is Section 201 ?

Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974 provides import relief measures (also known as Safeguards) for domestic industries. The measures provide temporary relief for U.S. industries when competitor imports increase so significantly that they cause serious injury or threat to the domestic industry. The Safeguard measures are temporary – they allow the U.S. President to raise import duties or impose nontariff barriers on goods entering the United States for a limited period so that domestic industry is given sufficient time to adjust to the competition.

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New Antidumping Petition Against Imports of Certain Honey Products

Background on AD/CVD Investigations

Antidumping duty (“AD”) and countervailing duty (“CVD”) investigations are brought jointly by the U.S. International Trade Commission (“USITC”) and the U.S. Department of Commerce (“Commerce”). AD investigations are triggered when a domestic industry alleges that it has been injured by competing imports of particular goods from specific countries being sold at less than a fair value. Meanwhile, CVD investigations are triggered when a domestic industry alleges that it has been injured by competing imports that are being unfairly subsidized by their governments. The domestic industry initiating the investigation is known as the petitioner while the foreign industry participating in the investigation is known as the respondent.

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The New Miscellaneous Tariff Bill Process Set to Begin

A detailed timeline of the process can be found here. The new MTB process, as set out in the law, runs from October 2019 through the end of 2020. The dates and time frames below have been calculated from the start date announced by the U.S. ITC and the text of the legislation:

  • October 11 – December 10, 2019: USITC MTB portal open for petition submission.
  • December 10, 2019 – January 11, 2020: USITC compiles petitions.
  • No later than January 11 – USITC issues Federal Register notice soliciting comments on product petitions.
  • January 11 – Late February, 2020 (45 days): USITC accepts public comments through online portal.
  • January 11 – Mid-April, 2020 (90 days): Commerce conducts its review of petitions, at the end of which it submits its report to the congressional committees and the USITC.
  • January 11 – Mid-June, 2020 (150 days): USITC conducts its review of petitions, at end of which it submits its Preliminary Report to the congressional committees, taking into consideration the Commerce Report.
  • Mid-June – mid-August, 2020 (60 days): USITC conducts re-review of individual petitions, based on information submitted by the congressional committees, at the end of which it submits its Final Report to the congressional committees.

A successful MTB petition will cover a “noncontroversial” or “noncompetitive” product. The guidelines defining those products are:

  • No domestic producer objects to the import duty elimination or reduction for the product;
  • The import duty elimination or reduction […]
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