716 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2004 / Notices 

9 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).

10 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2).

11 Id.

12 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).

1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4.

3See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 48810 

(November 19, 2003), 68 FR 66518.

4 In approving the proposed rule change, the 

Commission has considered the proposed rule’s 

impact on efficiency, competition, and capital 

formation. 15 U.S.C. 78c(f).

5 15 U.S.C. 78o–3.

6 15 U.S.C. 78o–3(b)(6).

7 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2).

8 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).

1For purposes of its investigation, the ITC 

considered certain ductile iron waterworks fittings 

to consist of cast pipe or tube fittings of ductile iron 

(containing 2.5 percent carbon and over 0.02 

percent magnesium or magnesium and cerium, by 

weight) with mechanical, push-on (rubber 

and regulations thereunder. The 

Commission finds that the proposed 

rule change is consistent with section 

6(b)(4) of the Act,9 which requires that 

the rules of the Exchange provide for the 

equitable allocation or reasonable dues, 

fees, and other charges among its 

members other persons using its 

facilities. The Commission believes that 

the extension of the Linkage fee pilot 

until July 31, 2004 will give the 

Exchange and the Commission further 

opportunity to evaluate whether such 

fees are appropriate.

The Commission finds good cause, 

pursuant to section 19(b)(2) of the Act,10

for approving the proposed rule change 

prior to the thirtieth day after the date 

of publication of the notice of the filing 

thereof in the Federal Register. The 

Commission believes that granting 

accelerated approval will preserve the 

Exchange’s existing pilot program for 

Linkage fees without interruption as the 

ISE and the Commission further 

consider the appropriateness of Linkage 

fees.

V. Conclusion 

It is therefore ordered, pursuant to 

section 19(b)(2) of the Act,11 that the 

proposed rule change (SR–ISE–2003–39) 

is hereby approved on an accelerated 

basis for a pilot period to expire on July 

31, 2004.

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Market Regulation, pursuant to delegated 

authority.12

Margaret H. McFarland, 

Deputy Secretary.

[FR Doc. 04–216 Filed 1–5–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8010–01–P

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–48997; File No. SR–NASD–

2003–161] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Order 

Granting Approval of Proposed Rule 

Change by the National Association of 

Securities Dealers, Inc. To Establish a 

Nasdaq Official Opening Price 

December 29, 2003. 

On October 28, 2003, the National 

Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. 

(‘‘NASD’’), through its subsidiary, The 

Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. (‘‘Nasdaq’’), 

filed with the Securities and Exchange 

Commission (‘‘Commission’’), pursuant 

to section 19(b)(1) of the Securities 

Exchange Act of 1934 (‘‘Act’’) 1 and Rule 

19b–4 thereunder,2 a proposed rule 

change to establish a Nasdaq Official 

Opening Price that would be made 

available for wholly voluntary use by 

NASD members and the public. The 

proposed rule change was published for 

comment in the Federal Register on 

November 26, 2003.3 The Commission 

received no comments on the proposal. 

This order approves the proposed rule 

change.

The Commission finds that the 

proposed rule change is consistent with 

the requirements of the Act and the 

rules and regulations thereunder 

applicable to a national securities 

association.4 In particular, the 

Commission believes that the proposed 

rule change is consistent with Section 

15A of the Act 5 in general, and furthers 

the objectives of Section 15A(b)(6) 6 in 

particular, in that it is designed to 

prevent fraudulent and manipulative 

acts and practices, to promote just and 

equitable principles of trade, to foster 

cooperation and coordination with 

persons engaged in regulating, clearing, 

settling, processing information with 

respect to, and facilitating transactions 

in securities, to remove impediments to 

and perfect the mechanism of a free and 

open market and a national market 

system, and in general, to protect 

investors and the public interest. 

Specifically, the Commission believes 

that Nasdaq’s proposal may result in the 

public dissemination of information that 

more accurately reflects the trading in a 

particular security on Nasdaq at the 

open.

For the foregoing reasons, the 

Commission finds that the proposed 

rule change is consistent with the 

requirements of the Act and rules and 

regulations thereunder. 

It is therefore ordered, pursuant to 

section 19(b)(2) of the Act 7, that the 

proposed rule change (SR–NASD–2003–

161) is approved.

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Market Regulation, pursuant to delegated 

authority.8

Jill M. Peterson, 

Assistant Secretary.

[FR Doc. 04–224 Filed 1–5–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8010–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF STATE

[Public Notice 4580] 

Bureau of Educational and Cultural 

Affairs; Middle East Partnership 

Initiative (MEPI) U.S. Business 

Internship Program for Young Middle 

Eastern Women

ACTION: Correction to proposal 

submission date. 

The MEPI U.S. Business Internship 

Program for Young Middle Eastern 

Women was announced in Public 

Notice 4575 published on Monday, 

December 29, with an incorrect proposal 

submission date. The correct date 

should read, ‘‘February 17, 2004’’. All 

other program information remains the 

same.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Interested 

U.S. organizations should contact 

Robert Greenan at 202–619–5437 for 

additional information. 

The Middle East Partnership Initiative 

(MEPI) U.S. Business Internship 

Program for Young Middle Eastern 

Women was announced in the Federal 

Register, Volume 68, Number 248, on 

December 29, 2003.

Dated: December 30, 2003. 

C. Miller Crouch, 

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for 

Educational and Cultural Affairs, Department 

of State.

[FR Doc. 04–228 Filed 1–5–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4710–05–P

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES 

TRADE REPRESENTATIVE 

Notice of Proposed Measure and 

Opportunity for Public Comment 

Pursuant to Section 421 of the Trade 

Act of 1974: Certain Ductile Iron 

Waterworks Fittings From the People’s 

Republic of China

AGENCY: Office of the United States 

Trade Representative.

ACTION: Notice of proposed measure; 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The United States 

International Trade Commission (ITC) 

has determined, pursuant to section 

421(b)(1) of the Trade Act of 1974, as 

amended (the Trade Act) (19 U.S.C. 

2451(b)(1)), that certain ductile iron 

waterworks fittings 1 from the People’s 

Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2004 / Notices 717

compression) or flanged joints attached. Included 

within this definition are fittings of all nominal 

diameters and of both full-bodied and compact 

designs. The imported products are provided for in 

statistical reporting number 7307.19.3070 of the 

Harmonized Schedule of the United States (HTS).

Republic of China (China) are being 

imported into the United States in such 

increased quantities or under such 

conditions as to cause market disruption 

to the domestic producers of like or 

directly competitive products. Pursuant 

to section 421(h)(1) of the Trade Act, the 

United States Trade Representative 

(USTR) is publishing notice of proposed 

restrictions with respect to imports of 

the subject ductile iron waterworks 

fittings from China. USTR invites 

domestic producers, importers, 

exporters, and other interested parties to 

submit their views and evidence on the 

appropriateness of the proposed 

restrictions and whether they would be 

in the public interest. USTR also invites 

interested parties to participate in a 

public hearing (if requested).

DATES: Requests for USTR to hold a 

public hearing are due by January 20, 

2004. Written comments and requests to 

testify at any public hearing are due by 

January 22, 2004. If a request for USTR 

to hold a public hearing is received, the 

hearing will be held on February 2, 

2004.

ADDRESSES: Submissions by electronic 

mail: FR0409@ustr.gov. Submissions by 

facsimile: Sandy McKinzy, USTR, at 

(202) 395–9672.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

procedural questions concerning public 

comments and holding of a public 

hearing, contact Sandy McKinzy, USTR, 

telephone (202) 395–9483, facsimile 

(202) 395–9672. Other questions 

regarding the subject of this notice 

should be addressed to Terrence J. 

McCartin, Office of North Asian Affairs, 

USTR, telephone (202) 395–3900, or 

Marı ́a L. Paga ́n, Office of General 

Counsel, USTR, telephone (202) 395–

7305.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

1. The ITC Investigation and Section 

421

Following receipt of a petition filed 

on September 5, 2003, on behalf of 

McWane, Inc., the ITC instituted 

investigation No. TA–421–4, under 

section 421(b) of the Trade Act (19 

U.S.C. 2451(b)) to determine whether 

the subject ductile iron waterworks 

fittings from China are being imported 

into the United States in such increased 

quantities or under such conditions as 

to cause or threaten to cause market 

disruption to the domestic producers of 

like or directly competitive products. In 

addition, the petitioner sought 

provisional relief under section 421(i) of 

the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2451(i)), 

alleging that critical circumstances exist 

such that a delay in taking action under 

the statute would cause damage to the 

relevant domestic industry which 

would be difficult to repair. On October 

16, 2003, the ITC made a negative 

critical circumstances determination 

and continued its investigation. The ITC 

made an affirmative market disruption 

determination on December 4, 2003, and 

transmitted a report on its 

determination, as well as its remedy 

proposals, to USTR on December 24, 

2003. The views of the ITC, including 

its remedy proposals, and the ITC staff 

report are available on the ITC’s Web 

site (http://www.usitc.gov) and are 

contained in USITC Publication 3657 

(December 2003), entitled ‘‘Certain 

Ductile Iron Waterworks Fittings from 

China’’. A copy of that publication can 

be obtained from the ITC after January 

14, 2004, by faxing a request to (202) 

205–2104 or calling (202) 205–1809. 

Following an affirmative 

determination by the ITC, and pursuant 

to Section 421(h) of the Trade Act, 

USTR is required to make a 

recommendation to the President 

concerning what action, if any, to take 

to remedy the market disruption. Within 

15 days after receipt of USTR’s 

recommendation, the President is 

required to provide import relief unless 

the President determines that provision 

of such relief is not in the national 

economic interest of the United States 

or, in extraordinary cases, that the 

taking of action would cause serious 

harm to the national security of the 

United States. (Section 421(k)) Prior to 

making a recommendation, USTR is 

required to publish notice of any 

proposed measures and of the 

opportunity to comment. 

2. Proposed Measure and Opportunity 

for Comment 

The ITC recommended that the 

President impose a tariff-rate quota on 

imports of the subject ductile iron 

waterworks fittings from China for a 

three-year period as follows: A 50 

percent tariff, in addition to the current 

rate of duty, on imports exceeding 

14,324 short tons in the first year; a 40 

percent tariff, in addition to the current 

rate of duty, on imports exceeding 

15,398 short tons in the second year; 

and a 30 percent tariff, in addition to the 

current rate of duty, on imports 

exceeding 16,553 short tons in the third 

year. The ITC further recommended 

that, if applications are filed, the 

President direct the U.S. Department of 

Commerce and the U.S. Department of 

Labor to provide expedited 

consideration of trade adjustment 

assistance for firms and/or workers 

affected by the subject imports. USTR 

proposes this remedy for further 

consideration by domestic producers, 

importers, exporters, and other 

interested parties, and invites any of 

these parties to submit their views and 

evidence on the appropriateness of the 

proposed remedy and whether it would 

be in the public interest. In addition, 

USTR invites comments on other 

possible actions, including: Imposition 

of a tariff-rate quota on the subject 

imports from China, with an in-quota 

volume, out-of-quota tariff rate, and/or 

period different from the ITC 

recommendation; imposition of an 

additional duty on imports of the 

subject imports from China; imposition 

of a quota on the subject imports from 

China; an import monitoring 

mechanism; or no import relief 

(pursuant to a determination under 

Section 421(k) of the Trade Act 

regarding the national economic interest 

or national security). In commenting on 

possible actions, interested parties are 

requested to address: (i) The short- and 

long-term effects that implementation of 

the proposed action is likely to have on 

the domestic ductile iron waterworks 

fittings industry, other domestic 

industries, and downstream consumers, 

and (ii) the short- and long-term effects 

that not taking the proposed action is 

likely to have on the domestic ductile 

iron waterworks fittings industry, its 

workers, and other domestic industries 

or communities. 

An interested party may request that 

USTR hold a public hearing, which 

request must be received by January 20, 

2004. Written comments, as well as 

requests to testify at any public hearing, 

must be received by January 22, 2004, 

and should be submitted in accordance 

with the instructions below. Parties that 

have requested to testify at any public 

hearing will be informed if a hearing is 

to be held. In addition, information on 

any public hearing may be obtained by 

contacting Sandy McKinzy at (202) 395–

9483. If a public hearing is requested, it 

will be held on February 2, 2004, at 9:30 

a.m. in Rooms 1 and 2, 1724 F Street, 

NW., Washington, D.C. Requests to 

testify must include the following 

information: (1) Name, address, 

telephone number, fax number, and firm 

or affiliation of the person wishing to 

testify; and (2) a brief summary of the 

comments to be presented. 

3. Requirements for Submissions 

In order to facilitate prompt 

processing of submissions, USTR 

strongly urges and prefers electronic (eVerDate jul<14>2003 00:51 Jan 06, 2004 Jkt 203001 PO 00000 Frm 00099 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\06JAN1.SGM 06JAN1
718 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 3 / Tuesday, January 6, 2004 / Notices 

mail) submissions in response to this 

notice.

Persons making submissions by email should use the following subject 

line: ‘‘Ductile Iron Waterworks Fittings’’

followed by (as appropriate) ‘‘Written 

Comments’’, ‘‘Request for Public 

Hearing’’, or ‘‘Request to Testify’’. 

Documents should be submitted as 

either WordPerfect, MSWord, or text 

(.TXT) files. Supporting documentation 

submitted as spreadsheets are 

acceptable as Quattro Pro or Excel files. 

For any document containing business 

confidential information submitted 

electronically, the file name of the 

business confidential version should 

begin with the characters ‘‘BC-’’, and the 

file name of the public version should 

begin with the characters ‘‘P-’’. The ‘‘P-

’’ or ‘‘BC-’’ should be followed by the 

name of the submitter. Persons who 

make submissions by e-mail should not 

provide separate cover letters; 

information that might appear in a cover 

letter should be included in the 

submission itself. To the extent 

possible, any attachments to the 

submission should be included in the 

same file as the submission itself, and 

not as separate files. 

Written comments submitted in 

response to this request will be placed 

in a file open to public inspection 

pursuant to 15 CFR 2003.5, except 

business confidential information 

exempt from public inspection in 

accordance with 15 CFR 2003.6. 

Business confidential information 

submitted in accordance with 15 CFR 

2003.6 must be clearly marked 

‘‘BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL’’ at the top 

of each page, including any cover letter 

or cover page, and must be accompanied 

by a nonconfidential summary of the 

confidential information. All public 

documents and nonconfidential 

summaries will be available for public 

inspection in the USTR Reading Room. 

The USTR Reading Room is open to the 

public, by appointment only, from 10 

a.m. to 12 noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., 

Monday through Friday. An 

appointment to review the file must be 

scheduled at least 48 hours in advance 

and may be made by calling (202) 395–

6186.

Charles Freeman, 

Deputy Assistant United States Trade 

Representative, Office of North Asian Affairs.

[FR Doc. 04–214 Filed 1–5–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3190–W3–P

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES 

TRADE REPRESENTATIVE 

Identification of Countries Under 

Section 182 of the Trade Act of 1974: 

Request for Public Comment

AGENCY: Office of the United States 

Trade Representative.

ACTION: Request for written submissions 

from the public. 

SUMMARY: Section 182 of the Trade Act 

of 1974 (Trade Act) (19 U.S.C. 2242) 

requires the United States Trade 

Representative (USTR) to identify 

countries that deny adequate and 

effective protection of intellectual 

property rights or deny fair and 

equitable market access to U.S. persons 

who rely on intellectual property 

protection. (Section 182 is commonly 

referred to as the ‘‘Special 301’’

provisions of the Trade Act.) The USTR 

is required to determine which of these 

countries should be identified as 

Priority Foreign Countries. Acts, 

policies, or practices that are the basis 

of a country’s identification as a priority 

foreign country are normally the subject 

of an investigation under the section 

301 provisions of the Trade Act. Section 

182 of the Trade Act also contains a 

special rule for the identification of 

actions by Canada affecting U.S. cultural 

industries. 

USTR requests written submissions 

from the public concerning foreign 

countries’ acts, policies, and practices 

that are relevant to the decision whether 

particular trading partners should be 

identified under section 182 of the 

Trade Act.

DATES: Submissions must be received on 

or before 12:00 noon on Friday, 

February 13, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be sent to 

Mark Wu, Director for Intellectual 

Property, and/or Sybia Harrison, Special 

Assistant to the Section 301 Committee, 

at the following e-mail address: 

FR0408@ustr.gov, with ‘‘Special 301 

Review: [Country Name]’’ in the subject 

line. Only electronic submissions will 

be accepted.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mark Wu, Director for Intellectual 

Property, (202) 395–6864; Victoria 

Espinel or Daniel Mullaney, Assistant 

General Counsels, (202) 395–7305, 

Office of the United States Trade 

Representative. In the event that none of 

the above are available, questions 

should be directed to Claude Burcky, 

Deputy Assistant USTR for Intellectual 

Property, Office of the United States 

Trade Representative, (202) 395–6864.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant 

to section 182 of the Trade Act, the 

USTR must identify those countries that 

deny adequate and effective protection 

for intellectual property rights or deny 

fair and equitable market access to U.S. 

persons who rely on intellectual 

property protection. Those countries 

that have the most onerous or egregious 

acts, policies, or practices and whose 

acts, policies, or practices have the 

greatest adverse impact (actual or 

potential) on relevant U.S. products are 

to be identified as Priority Foreign 

Countries. Acts, policies, or practices 

that are the basis of a country’s 

designation as a Priority Foreign 

Country are normally the subject of an 

investigation under the section 301 

provisions of the Trade Act. 

USTR may not identify a country as 

a Priority Foreign Country if it is 

entering into good faith negotiations, or 

making significant progress in bilateral 

or multilateral negotiations, to provide 

adequate and effective protection of 

intellectual property rights. 

USTR requests that, where relevant, 

submissions mention particular regions, 

provinces, or states of a country whose 

act, policy, or practice deserve special 

highlighting in this year’s report. Such 

mention may be positive or negative, so 

long as it deviates from the general 

norm in that country. 

Section 182 contains a special rule 

regarding actions of Canada affecting 

U.S. cultural industries. The USTR is 

obligated to identify any act, policy, or 

practice of Canada that affects cultural 

industries, is adopted or expanded after 

December 17, 1992, and is actionable 

under Article 2106 of the North 

American Free Trade Agreement 

(NAFTA). Any such act, policy, or 

practice so identified shall be treated 

the same as an act, policy, or practice 

that was the basis for a country’s 

identification as a Priority Foreign 

Country under section 182(a)(2) of the 

Trade Act, unless the United States has 

already taken action pursuant to Article 

2106 of the NAFTA. 

USTR must make the abovereferenced identifications within 30 

days after publication of the National 

Trade Estimate (NTE) report, i.e., no 

later than April 30, 2004.

Requirements for comments:

Comments should include a description 

of the problems experienced and the 

effect of the acts, policies, or practices 

on U.S. industry. Comments should be 

as detailed as possible and should 

provide all necessary information for 

assessing the effect of the acts, policies, 

or practices. Any comments that include 

quantitative loss claims should be 

accompanied by the methodology used 

in calculating such estimated losses.