[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 21 (Friday, January 31, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5704-5705]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-01799]
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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION
[Investigation No. 332-575]
Seafood Obtained via Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated
Fishing: U.S. Imports and Economic Impact on U.S. Commercial Fisheries;
Institution of Investigation and Scheduling of Hearing
AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.
ACTION: Notice of investigation and scheduling of a public hearing.
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SUMMARY: Following receipt of a request dated December 19, 2019 from
the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Ways and Means
(Committee) under section 332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930, the U.S.
International Trade Commission (Commission) instituted investigation
No. 332-575: Seafood Obtained via Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated
Fishing: U.S. Imports and Economic Impact on U.S. Commercial Fisheries.
DATES: April 21, 2020: Deadline for filing requests to appear at the
public hearing.
April 30, 2020: Deadline for filing pre-hearing briefs and
statements.
May 12, 2020: Public hearing.
May 22, 2020: Deadline for filing post-hearing briefs and
statements.
June 26, 2020: Deadline for filing all other written submissions.
December 21, 2020: Transmittal of Commission report to the
Committee.
ADDRESSES: All Commission offices, including the Commission's hearing
rooms, are located in the United States International Trade Commission
Building, 500 E Street SW, Washington, DC. All written submissions
should be addressed to the Secretary, United States International Trade
Commission, 500 E Street SW, Washington, DC 20436. The public record
for this investigation may be viewed on the Commission's electronic
docket (EDIS) at https://edis.usitc.gov/edis3-internal/app.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Project Leader Renee Berry (202-205-
3498 or [email protected]) or Deputy Project Leader Daniel Matthews
(202-205-5991 or [email protected]) for information specific to
this investigation. For information on the legal aspects of these
investigations, contact William Gearhart of the Commission's Office of
the General Counsel (202-205-3091 or [email protected]). The
media should contact Margaret O'Laughlin, Office of External Relations
(202-205-1819 or [email protected]). Hearing-impaired
individuals may obtain information on this matter by contacting the
Commission's TDD terminal at 202-205-1810. General information
concerning the Commission may also be obtained by accessing its
internet server (http://www.usitc.gov). Persons with mobility
impairments who will need special assistance in gaining access to the
Commission should contact the Office of the Secretary at 202-205-2000.
Background: As requested by the Committee, the investigation will
cover the extent to which seafood products obtained from illegal,
unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing are imported into the United
States and the potential economic effects on U.S. fishermen of
competition with such imports. IUU seafood includes products obtained
in contravention of fisheries management regulations or in violation of
labor laws. The Commission's report will provide to the extent
practicable:
A review of the existing data and literature on the
prevalence of IUU products in the U.S. import market, and an overview
of international mechanisms for monitoring and enforcement to address
IUU fishing;
A description of the size and structure of the U.S.
commercial fishing industry;
A description of the major global producers of IUU
products, including but not limited to China, and country practices
related to IUU production and exports.
An analysis of the extent to which IUU product is imported
into the United States, as well as major U.S. import sources and the
global supply chains of such products; and
A quantitative analysis of the economic impact of IUU
imports on U.S. commercial fishermen and U.S. commercial fishing
production, trade, and prices.
The Committee asked that the Commission transmit its report not
later than 12 months after receipt of the request, and the Commission
will transmit its report by December 21, 2020. The Committee also
stated that it intends to make the Commission's report available to the
public in its entirety and asked that the report not include any
confidential business information.
Public Hearing: A public hearing in connection with this
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
May 12, 2020. Requests to appear at the public hearing should be filed
with the Secretary, no later than 5:15 p.m., April 21, 2020 in
accordance with the requirements in the ``Submissions'' section below.
All pre-hearing briefs and statements should be filed no later than
5:15 p.m., April 30, 2020; and all post-hearing briefs and statements
should be filed not later than 5:15 p.m., May 22, 2020. In the event
that, as of the close of business on April 28, 2020, 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
nonparticipant should contact the Office of the Secretary at 202-205-
2000 after April 28, 2020, for information concerning whether the
hearing will be held.
Written Submissions: In lieu of or in addition to participating in
the hearing, interested parties are invited to file written submissions
concerning this investigation. All written submissions should be
addressed to the Secretary, and should be received not later than 5:15
p.m., June 26, 2020. All written submissions must conform to the
provisions of section 201.8 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and
Procedure (19 CFR 201.8). Section 201.8 and the Commission's Handbook
on Filing Procedures require that interested parties file documents
electronically on or before the filing deadline and submit eight (8)
true paper copies by 12:00 p.m. eastern time on the next business day.
In the event that confidential treatment of a document is requested,
interested parties must file, at the same time as the eight paper
copies, at least four (4) additional true paper copies in which the
confidential information must be deleted (see the following paragraphs
for further information regarding confidential business information).
Persons with questions regarding electronic filing should contact the
Office of the Secretary, Docket Services Division (202-205-1802).
Confidential Business Information. Any submissions that contain
confidential business information must also conform to the requirements
of section 201.6 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure
(19 CFR 201.6). Section 201.6 of the rules requires that the cover of
the document and the individual pages be clearly marked as to whether
they are the
[[Page 5705]]
``confidential'' or ``non-confidential'' version, and that the
confidential business information is clearly identified by means of
brackets. All written submissions, except for confidential business
information, will be made available for inspection by interested
parties.
As requested by the Committee, the Commission will not include any
confidential business information in the report that it sends to the
Committee or makes available to the public. However, all information,
including confidential business information, submitted in this
investigation may be disclosed to and used: (i) By the Commission, its
employees and Offices, and contract personnel (a) for developing or
maintaining the records of this or a related proceeding, or (b) in
internal investigations, audits, reviews, and evaluations relating to
the programs, personnel, and operations of the Commission including
under 5 U.S.C. Appendix 3; or (ii) by U.S. government employees and
contract personnel for cybersecurity purposes. The Commission will not
otherwise disclose any confidential business information in a manner
that would reveal the operations of the firm supplying the information.
Summaries of Written Submissions: The Commission intends to publish
summaries of the positions of interested persons in an appendix to the
report. Persons wishing to have a summary of their position included in
the report should include a summary with their written submission,
titled ``Public Summary,'' and should mark the summary as having been
provided for that purpose. The summary may not exceed 500 words, should
be in a format that can be easily converted to MS Word, and should not
include any confidential business information. The summary will be
published as provided if it meets these requirements and is germane to
the subject matter of the investigation. The Commission will identify
the name of the organization furnishing the summary and will include a
link to the Commission's Electronic Document Information System (EDIS)
where the full written submission can be found.
By order of the Commission.
Issued: January 27, 2020.
Katherine Hiner,
Supervisory Attorney.
[FR Doc. 2020-01799 Filed 1-30-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P