G/SG/N/1/USA/1/Suppl.1  
 
20 July 2015  
(15-3699)  Page: 1/8  
 Committee on Safeguards  Original: English  
 
 NOTIFICATION OF LAWS AND REGULATIONS UNDER 
ARTICLE 12.6 OF THE AGREEMENT ON SAFEGUARDS 
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA  
Supplement 
The following communication, dated 16 July 2015, is being circulated at the request of the 
Delegation of the United States. 
 
_______________ 
  
Pursuant to Article 12.6 of the Agreement on Safeguards, the United States hereby notifies: 
 Rules of General Application; Investigations Relating to Global and Bilateral Safeguard Actions, 
Market Disruption, Trade Diversion, and Review of Relief Actions; Investigations With Respect to 
Commercial Availability of Textile Fabric and Yarn in Sub-Saharan African Countries; Trade Remedy Assistance, 80 Fed. Reg. 39377 (July 9, 2015) 
 
The United States is notifying amendments to its regulations pertaining to the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC). The amendments relate to  provisions of the USITC's Rules of Practice 
and Procedure concerning global safeguard acti ons. The amendments are part of the USITC's 
retrospective analysis of its Rules that attempt to determine whether rules should be modified, 
streamlined, expanded, or repealed so as to make the agency's regulatory program more effective or less burdensome in achieving regulatory objectives. 
 
The rule is effective August 10, 2015.  
_______________ 
  Federal Register 
Volume 80, Number 131 
Thursday, July 9, 2015  
Rules and Regulations 
Pages 39377 - 39381  
INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION 
 19 CFR Parts 201, 206, 208, and 213, and 214 Through 299  
Rules of General Application; Investigations Relating to Global and Bilateral Safeguard 
Actions, Market Disruption, Trade Diversion, and Review of Relief Ac tions; Investigations 
With Respect to Commercial Availability of Textile Fabric and Yarn in Sub-Saharan 
African Countries; Trade Remedy Assistance 
 AGENCY:  International Trade Commission. 
 
ACTION:  Final rule. G/SG/N/1/USA/1/Suppl.1 
 
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SUMMARY:  The United States International Trade Commission ("Commission") amends provisions 
of its Rules of Practice and Procedure concerning the Freedom of Information Act, the Privacy Act, 
the Government in the Sunshine Act, certain investigations, and trade remedy assistance. The 
amendments are part of the agency's retrospect ive analysis of its Rules that attempts to 
determine whether rules should be modified, streamlined, expanded, or repealed so as to make the agency's regulatory program more effectiv e or less burdensome in achieving regulatory 
objectives. 
 DATES:  This rule is effective on August 10, 2015. 
 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Lisa R. Barton, Secretary, telephone (202) 205-2000, 
United States International Trade Commission. Hearing-impaired individuals are advised that information on this matter can be obtained 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 at http://www.usitc.gov.  
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  
 Background  
Section 335 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1335) authorizes the Commission to adopt 
such reasonable procedures, rules, and regulations as it deems necessary to carry out its functions 
and duties. This rulemaking seeks to improve provisions of the Commission's existing Rules of 
Practice and Procedure. 
 Consistent with its ordinary practice, the Commission is issuing these amendments in 
accordance with provisions of section 553 of the Administrative Procedure Act ("APA") 
(5 U.S.C. 553), although such provisions are not mandatory with respect to this rulemaking. The APA procedure entails the following steps: (1) Publ ication of a notice of proposed rulemaking; (2) 
solicitation of public comments on the proposed amendments; (3) Commission review of public 
comments on the proposed amendments; and (4) pub lication of final amendments at least thirty 
days prior to their effective date. 
 
This rulemaking is a result of the Commission's Plan for Retrospective Analysis of Existing 
Rules, which was published on February 14, 2012, at 77 FR 8114. The plan was issued in response to Executive Order 13579 of July 11, 2011 (76 FR 41587, July 14, 2011), and established a 
process under which the Commission will periodically review its significant rules to determine 
whether any such rules should be modified, streamlined, expanded, or repealed so as to make the agency's regulatory program more effective or less burdensome in achieving regulatory objectives. The Commission's Plan calls for the agency to s eek public input on its Rules every two years. 
 
Pursuant to the Plan, the Commission published a notice of proposed rulemaking on 
February 6, 2015 (80 FR 6665). This notice prop osed certain amendments to the Commission's 
Rules. The proposed amendments concerned the Fr eedom of Information Act, the Privacy Act, the 
Government in the Sunshine Act, certain investig ations, and trade remedy assistance. The notice 
also sought input to assist the Commission in de termining whether, in addition to the proposed 
amendments, any of the agency's Rules should be  modified, streamlined, expanded, or repealed 
so as to make the agency's regulatory program more effective or less burdensome in achieving regulatory objectives. The public was invited to  comment both on the proposed amendments and 
on any of the Commission's existing Rules. 
 
The Commission received comments in response to the notice of proposed rulemaking. By 
letter dated April 6, 2015, the Customs and International Trade Bar Association (CITBA) filed 
comments and a request to revise the Commission's Handbook on Filing Procedures dated 
August 8, 2014. 
 
In its comments, CITBA stated that the Commission's approach of requiring the filing of both 
paper copies and electronic copies is burdensome on submitters and causes confusion and complications for both the agency and private parties. Citing the practices of the Department of Commerce and the U.S. Court of International Trade, CITBA urged the Commission to modify its 
procedures and revise the Handbook to eliminate the requirement that paper copies be submitted G/SG/N/1/USA/1/Suppl.1 
 
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  when filing electronically. In the alternative, CITBA urged the application of a "lag rule" to allow 
parties to file paper copies the next business day after electronic filing. 
 The Commission discussed similar concerns in its final rulemaking notice of June 25, 2014 
(79 FR 35920). That notice acknowledged that there is a trend toward greater electronic filing in 
agency and court proceedings. The notice concluded that, for the time being, the Commission and its staff would need to continue to rely on receiving paper copies of documents in light of the tight 
deadlines and voluminous factual records entailed by its investigations and other proceedings, as 
well as the constraints of current technology and the Commission's ability to adopt new technology given budgetary restrictions. The situation has not changed materially since that time, and therefore the Commission is not yet in a position to change its practice with respect to paper and 
electronic filing. The Commission will continue to monitor requirements pertaining to filing of 
documents as technology develops. 
 
A comment was received from the National Archives and Records Administration's Office of 
Government Information Services (OGIS). OG IS commended the Commission for proposing 
updates to make its Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) regulations more consistent with the OPEN 
Government Act of 2007. OGIS recommended that the Commission expand its rulemaking to cover 
additional changes to the law made by that st atute, including recognizing the right of FOIA 
requesters to seek mediation services from OGIS as a non-exclusive alternative to litigation. 
 
OGIS suggested defining certain terms for clarit y; referencing the processes for tracking and 
referring requests; explaining the intersection between FOIA and the Privacy Act; providing that oral requests are not permitted; adding details on what information is provided when requests are 
denied and how fees are charged; describing how FOIA records are preserved; and providing web 
links to the agency's hearing reporter and to the agency's publications. OGIS recommended that a requester not be required to specify that his or her request is made under FOIA. 
 
The Commission is adopting most of OGIS' suggestions in the final amendments set out 
below. In most changes, statutory language is summarized rather than reproduced in its entirety. The Commission is not adopting the suggestion that the rules no longer require a requester to 
indicate that the request is made under FOIA. Agency personnel receive a substantial number of 
informal requests that are handled without the need to go through the FOIA process. The Commission believes that it would be neither necessary nor practical to consider all such requests 
as being made under FOIA. 
 OGIS suggested providing a web link to the agency's hearing reporter. Because the 
Commission obtains court reporting by contract, the identity of the reporter may change over 
time, and is therefore not information that the Commission considers to be appropriate for inclusion in its Rules. 
 
OGIS suggested that the Commission provide requesters with an estimated amount of fees, 
including a breakdown of the fees for search, review and/or duplication. The Commission rarely finds it necessary to charge FOIA fees. When a f ee is charged, the Secretary attempts to provide 
as much information on the fees as practicable, but a detailed estimate and breakdown may not 
always be possible. 
 
The Commission received an additional comment that did not pertain to the subject matter 
of the notice of proposed rulemaking. 
 The amendments set out in this final rulemaking notice correspond to the ones that were 
proposed in the notice of proposed rulemaking published on February 6, 2015, with additional 
changes to respond to comments received. The noti ce of proposed rulemaking described most of 
the proposed amendments in a section-by-section analysis, and those amendments have not 
changed. With respect to the remainder of the am endments, which were prepared in response to 
OGIS' comments, the following sets out a section-by-section analysis. 
 
Section 201.17 is revised to specify in paragraph (a)(5) the online location of the 
Commission's publications. The section is further amended to add paragraph (d) that provides information on how requests are tracked and how a requester can contact the Commission's FOIA Public Liaison. Paragraph (e) is added to clarify the relationship between FOIA and the Privacy Act. 
A new paragraph (f) describes the agency's proc edure for referring FOIA requests to another G/SG/N/1/USA/1/Suppl.1 
 
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  agency. A new paragraph (g) covers records management matters, including the preservation of 
records relating to FOIA requests until disposition or destruction is authorized or until litigation is concluded. In section 201.18, paragraph (a) is amended to clarify that a FOIA request cannot be oral, and to describe what information is provided in a denial of a request. A new paragraph (f) 
provides for responses to FOIA appeals to make  reference to the services offered by OGIS. 
 In section 201.20, paragraphs (j)(9) and (j)(10) are added to clarify the FOIA fee process by 
defining the terms "requester category" and "fee waiver". 
 In addition to publishing rules amendments in final form, the Commission expects to 
continue taking other steps to implement its Plan for Retrospective Analysis of Existing Rules to 
ensure that its Rules are kept up to date. Notably, the Commission's General Counsel has asked 
the Commission's Secretary, office directors, an d administrative law judges for input on rules 
suitable for modification or elimination. The General Counsel's office will make recommendations 
to the Commission as necessary regarding the possible modification or elimination of existing 
regulations. Once an appropriate rule change has been identified, the Commission will publish a notice of proposed rulemaking and solicit public comment on the proposed change. 
 
Regulatory Analysis of Amendments to the Commission's Rules  
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is inapplicable to this rulemaking 
because it is not one for which a notice of final rulemaking is required under 5 U.S.C. 553(b) or 
any other statute. Although the Commission chose to publish a notice of proposed rulemaking, these regulations are "agency rules of procedure and practice", and thus are exempt from the 
notice requirement imposed by 5 U.S.C. 553(b). Mo reover, the rules are certified as not having a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
 
The rules do not impose an information collection burden under the provisions of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). 
 No actions are necessary under title II of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995, Public 
Law 104-4 (2 U.S.C. 1531-1538) because these amended rules will not result in the expenditure 
by State, local, and tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of 
$100,000,000 or more in any one year, and will not significantly or uniquely affect small 
governments. 
 The Commission has determined that these amended rules do not constitute a "significant 
regulatory action" under section 3(f) of Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993). 
 The rules do not have Federalism implications warranting the preparation of a federalism 
summary impact statement under Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 4, 1999). 
 
The amendments are not "major rules" as defined by section 251 of the Small Business 
Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (5 U. S.C. 801 et seq.). Moreover, they are exempt 
from the reporting requirements of the Act beca use they concern rules of agency organization, 
procedure, or practice that do not substantially affect the rights or obligations of non-agency parties. 
 
List of Subjects in 19 CFR Parts 201, 206, 208, and 213 
 
Administrative practice and procedure; imports; foreign trade. 
 
For the reasons stated in the preamble, under the authority of 19 U.S.C. 1335, the United 
States International Trade Commission amends 19 CFR parts 201, 206, 208, and 213 as follows: 
 
PART 201--RULES OF GENERAL APPLICATION  
1. Revise the authority citation for part 201 to read as follows: 
 
Authority:  19 U.S.C. 1335; 19 U.S.C. 2482, unless otherwise noted. 
 
2. In Sec. 201.17, revise paragraph (a)(5) and add paragraphs (d) through (g) to read as follows: G/SG/N/1/USA/1/Suppl.1 
 
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Sec. 201.17 Procedures for requesting access to records.  
(a) * * * 
 
(5) Copies of public Commission reports and other publications are available online at 
http://www.usitc.gov/publications/b y_type.htm, or can be requested by calling or writing the 
Office of the Secretary.  
Certain Commission publications are sold by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government 
Printing Office, and are available from that agency at the price set by that agency.  
* * * * * 
 (d) Acknowledgment. The Secretary will provid e to a requester an acknowledgment of the 
receipt of a request and an individualized trac king number for each request. The requester may 
obtain information about the status of the request and/or contact the Commission's FOIA Public Liaison by telephone (202-205-2595) or email (f oia.se.se@usitc.gov">foia.se.se@usitc.gov). The 
FOIA Public Liaison is responsible for assisting in reducing delays, increasing transparency and 
understanding of the status of requests, and assisting in the resolution of disputes. 
 (e) First-party requests. The FOIA applies to third-party requests for documents concerning 
the general activities of the government and of the Commission in particular. When a U.S. citizen 
or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence requests access to his or her own records, i.e., makes a first-party request, it is considered a Privacy Act request. Although requests are 
considered either FOIA requests or Privacy Act requests, the Commission processes first-party 
requests in accordance with both laws, which provides the greatest degree of lawful access while safeguarding an individual's personal privacy. 
 
(f) Referrals. If the Secretary refers a reques t or a portion thereof to another agency, the 
Secretary will notify the requester of the refe rral and the part of the request that has been 
referred. If feasible, the Secretary will provide the requester with a point of contact within the 
receiving agency regarding the referral. 
 (g) Records management. (1) The Secretary shall preserve all correspondence pertaining to 
requests received as well as copies of all requested records, until disposition or destruction is 
authorized by a General Records Schedule of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) or other NARA-approved records schedule. 
 
(2) Materials that are identified as responsive to a FOIA request will not be disposed of or 
destroyed while the request or a related appeal or lawsuit is pending. This is true even if they would otherwise be authorized for disposition under a General Records Schedule or other 
NARA-approved records schedule. 
 3. In Sec. 201.18, revise paragraph (a) and add paragraph (f) to read as follows: 
 
Sec. 201.18 Denials of requests, appeals from denial.  
(a) Written requests for inspection or copying of records shall be denied only by the 
Secretary or Acting Secretary, or, for records maintained by the Office of Inspector General, the Inspector General. A denial shall be in writing and shall provide information on the exemptions that justify withholding and the amount of information withheld. The denial also shall advise the 
person requesting of the right to appeal to the Commission. 
 * * * * * 
 
(f) A response to an appeal will advise th e requester that the Office of Government 
Information Services offers mediation services to resolve disputes between FOIA requesters and 
Federal agencies as a non-exclusive alternative to litigation. 
 4. In Sec. 201.19, revise paragraph (f) to read as follows:  
Sec. 201.19 Notification regarding requests  for confidential business information. G/SG/N/1/USA/1/Suppl.1 
 
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* * * * *  
(f) Opportunity to object to disclosure. Through the notice described in paragraph (c) of this 
section, the Commission will afford a submitter an  opportunity, within the period afforded to the 
Commission to make its decision in response to the FOIA request, to provide the Commission with a detailed written statement of any objection to disclosure. Such statement shall be filed by a 
deadline set by the Secretary, and it shall specify all grounds for withholding any of the 
information under any exemption of FOIA. In the c a s e  o f  F O I A  E x e m p t i o n s  3  o r  4 ,  i t  s h a l l  
demonstrate why the information should continue to be considered confidential business information within the meaning of Sec. 201.6 of  this part and should not be disclosed. The 
submitter's claim of continued confidentiality should be supported by a certification by an officer or 
authorized representative of the submitter. Inform ation provided by a submitter pursuant to this 
paragraph may itself be subject to disclosure under FOIA. 
 
* * * * *  
5. In Sec. 201.20, revise paragraph (j)(8) and add paragraphs (j)(9) and (10) to read as follows: 
 Sec. 201.20 Fees.  
* * * * * 
 
(j) * * * 
 
(8) The term representative of the news media refers to any person or entity that gathers 
information of potential interest to a segment of the public, uses its editorial skills to turn the raw 
materials into a distinct work, and distributes that work to an audience. The term `news' means 
information that is about current events or that would be of current interest to the public. Examples of news-media entities are television or radio stations broadcasting to the public at large and publishers of periodicals (but only if such entities qualify as disseminators of 
 
[[Page 39380]]  
"news") who make their products available for purcha se by or subscription by or free distribution 
to the general public. These examples are not all- inclusive. Moreover, as methods of news delivery 
evolve (for example, the adoption of the el ectronic dissemination of newspapers through 
telecommunications services), such alternative media shall be considered to be news-media 
entities. A freelance journalist shall be regarded as working for a news-media entity if the journalist can demonstrate a solid basis for expecting publication through that entity, whether or not the journalist is actually employed by the en tity. A publication contract would present a solid 
basis for such an expectation; the Government may also consider the past publication record of 
the requester in making such a determination.  
(9) The term requester category means one of  the three categories that requesters are 
placed in for the purpose of determining whethe r a requester will be charged fees for search, 
review and duplication, including commercial requesters; non-commercial scientific or educational 
institutions or news media requesters, and all other requesters. 
 (10) The term fee waiver means the waiver or reduction of processing fees if a requester 
can demonstrate that certain statutory standards are satisfied including that the information is in 
the public interest and is not requested for a commercial interest. 
 * * * * * 
 
6. In Sec. 201.23, revise paragraph (e) to read as follows:  
Sec. 201.23 Definitions. 
 * * * * * 
 G/SG/N/1/USA/1/Suppl.1 
 
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  (e) The term Privacy Act Officer refers to the Secretary, United States International Trade 
Commission, 500 E Street SW., Washington, DC 20436, or his or her designee.  7. In Sec. 201.34, revise paragraph (a)(3) to read as follows: 
 
 Sec. 201.34 Definitions. 
 
* * * * *  
(a) * * * 
 
(3) Conference telephone calls among the Commissioners are considered meetings as 
defined by paragraph (a)(1) of this section if they involve the number of Commissioners requisite 
for Commission action, and where the deliberations of the Commissioners determine or result in 
the joint conduct or disposition of official Commission business.  
* * * * * 
 PART 206--INVESTIGATIONS RELATING TO  GLOBAL AND BILATERAL SAFEGUARD 
ACTIONS, MARKET DISRUPTION, TRADE DIVERSION, AND REVIEW OF RELIEF ACTIONS 
 
8. The authority citation for part 206 continues to read as follows:  
Authority:  19 U.S.C. 1335, 2112 note, 2251-2254, 2436, 2451-2451a, 3351-3382, 3805 
note, 4051-4065, and 4101.  
9. Revise Sec. 206.2 to read as follows: 
 Sec. 206.2 Identification of ty pe of petition or request. 
 
An investigation under this part may be commenced on the basis of a petition, request, 
resolution, or motion as provided for in the statutory provisions listed in Sec. Sec. 206.1 and 206.31. Each petition or request, as the case maybe, filed by an entity representative of a 
domestic industry under this part shall state clearly on the first page thereof "This is a [petition or 
request] under section [citing the statutory provision]  and Subpart [B, C, D, E, F, or G] of part 206 
of the rules of practice and procedure of the United States International Trade Commission." A 
paper original and eight (8) true paper copies of a petition, request, resolution, or motion shall be 
filed. One copy of any exhibits, appendices, and attachments to the document shall be filed in 
electronic form on CD-ROM, DVD, or other portable  electronic format approved by the Secretary. 
 
PART 208--[REMOVED AND RESERVED] 
 10. Under the authority of 19 U.S.C. 1335, remove and reserve part 208. 
 
Subchapter D--Special Provisions  
11. Under the authority of 19 U.S.C. 1335, add subchapter D with the heading set forth above, 
and transfer part 213, consisting of Sec. Sec. 213.1 through 213.6, and reserved parts 214 through 299 into it.  
PART 213--TRADE REMEDY ASSISTANCE 
 12. Revise the authority citation for part 213 to read as follows: 
 
Authority:  19 U.S.C. 1335, 1339. 
 
13. In Sec. 213.2, revise paragraphs (d) through (g) to read as follows: 
 Sec. 213.2 Definitions.  
* * * * * G/SG/N/1/USA/1/Suppl.1 
 
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(d) Technical Assistance. Technical assistance is informal advice and assistance, including 
informal legal advice, provided under 19 U.S.C. 1339(b) and intended to enable eligible small 
businesses to determine the appropriateness of pu rsuing particular trade remedies, to prepare 
petitions and complaints and to seek to obtain th e remedies and benefits available under the trade 
laws identified in Sec. 213.2(b). Technical assistance is available to eligible small businesses at any time until the completion of administrative review or of an appeal to the administering agency 
regarding proceedings under the trade laws listed in Sec. 213.2(b). Technical assistance does not 
include legal representation of an eligible small business or advocacy on its behalf and receipt of technical assistance does not ensure that the recipient will prevail in any trade remedy proceeding. The Office provides such technical assistance independently of other Commission staff but may 
consult with other staff as appropriate. 
 (e) Applicant. An applicant is an individual, partnership, corporation, joint venture, trade or 
other association, cooperative, group of workers, or  certified or recognized union, or other entity  
that applies for technical assistance under this part. 
 
(f) Eligible small business. An eligible small business is an applicant that the Office has 
determined to be entitled to technical assistance under 19 U.S.C. 1339(b) in accordance with the SBA size standards and the procedures set forth in this part. 
 
(g) SBA size standards. The Office has adopted for its use SBA size standards, which are the 
small business size standards of the Small Business Administration set forth in 13 CFR part 121.  
14. In Sec. 213.3, revise para graph (a) to read as follows: 
 Sec. 213.3 Determination of small business eligibility. 
 
(a) Application for technical assistance from small businesses. An applicant for technical 
assistance under 19 U.S.C. 1339(b) must certify that it qualifies as a small business under the appropriate size standard(s) and that it is an independently owned and operated company. An 
application for technical assistance is available from the Office and on the Commission's Web site. 
The application must be signed under oath by an officer or principal of the applicant. The completed application should be submitted to the Office at the address set forth in Sec. 213.2(a). 
 
* * * * *  
15. Revise Sec. 213.6 to read as follows: 
 Sec. 213.6 Information concerning assistance.  
Any person may contact the Office with questions regarding eligibility for technical 
assistance. Summaries of the trade laws and the SBA size standards can be obtained by writing to the Trade Remedy Assistance Office, U.S. International Trade Commission, 500 E Street  
SW., Washington, DC 20436. Information is also provided on the  
Commission's Web site at http://www.usitc.gov.  
By order of the Commission. 
Issued: June 29, 2015.  
William R. Bishop, 
 
Supervisory Hearings and Information Officer.  
[FR Doc. 2015-16435 Filed 7-8-15; 8:45 am] 
 BILLING CODE 7020-02-P 
 
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