80798 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Notices 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

Notice of Issuance of Final 

Determination Concerning a Whoop 

Strap Device 

AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border 

Protection, Department of Homeland 

Security. 

ACTION: Notice of final determination. 

SUMMARY: This document provides 

notice that U.S. Customs and Border 

Protection (CBP) has issued a final 

determination concerning the country of 

origin of a device referred to as a Whoop 

Strap. Based upon the facts presented, 

CBP has concluded in the final 

determination that the incomplete 

Whoop Strap and the programming in 

the United States would not render the 

Whoop Strap device to be a product of 

a foreign country or instrumentality 

designated for purposes of U.S. 

Government procurement. 

DATES: The final determination was 

issued on November 10, 2020. A copy 

of the final determination is attached. 

Any party-at-interest, as defined in 19 

CFR 177.22(d), may seek judicial review 

of this final determination within 

January 13, 2021. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Cynthia Reese, Valuation and Special 

Programs Branch, Regulations and 

Rulings, Office of Trade, at (202) 325– 

0046. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is 

hereby given that on November 10, 

2020, U.S. Customs and Border 

Protection (CBP) issued a final 

determination concerning the country of 

origin of a Whoop Strap device for 

purposes of Title III of the Trade 

Agreements Act of 1979. This final 

determination, HQ H309761, was issued 

at the request of Whoop Inc., under 

procedures set forth at 19 CFR part 177, 

subpart B, which implements Title III of 

the Trade Agreements Act of 1979, as 

amended (19 U.S.C. 2511–18). In the 

final determination, CBP has concluded 

that, based upon the facts presented, the 

incomplete imported Whoop Strap and 

the programming in the United States 

would not render the finished Whoop 

Strap to be a product of a foreign 

country or instrumentality designated 

pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 2511(b) for 

purposes of U.S. Government 

procurement. 

Section 177.29, CBP Regulations (19 

CFR 177.29), provides that notice of 

final determinations shall be published 

in the Federal Register within 60 days 

of the date the final determination is 

issued. Section 177.30, CBP Regulations 

(19 CFR 177.30), provides that any 

party-at-interest, as defined in 19 CFR 

177.22(d), may seek judicial review of a 

final determination within 30 days of 

publication of such determination in the 

Federal Register. 

Dated: November 24, 2020. 

Alice A. Kipel, 

Executive Director, Regulations and Rulings, 

Office of Trade. 

HQ H309761 

November 10, 2020 

OT:RR:CTF:VS H309761 CMR 

Category: Origin 

Steven B. Zisser, Esq. 

Zisser Group 

9355 Airway Road 

Suite 1 

San Diego, CA 92154 

RE: U.S. Government Procurement; Title 

III, Trade Agreements Act of 1979 (19 

U.S.C. 2511); subpart B, Part 177, CBP 

Regulations; Country of Origin of a 

Whoop Strap Device 

Dear Mr. Zisser: 

This is in response to your request of 

February 27, 2020, on behalf of your 

client, Whoop, Inc., for a final 

determination concerning the country of 

origin of a device referred to as a 

‘‘Whoop Strap.’’ This request is being 

sought because your client wants to 

confirm eligibility of the device for U.S. 

government procurement purposes 

under Title III of the Trade Agreements 

Act of 1979 (TAA), as amended (19 

U.S.C. 2511 et seq.). As an importer of 

the merchandise imported from China 

that is processed in the United States to 

become a finished ‘‘Whoop Strap,’’ your 

client may request a final determination 

pursuant to 19 CFR 177.23(a). 

Facts: 

You describe the ‘‘Whoop Strap’’ as: 

. . . a fitness performance tracker that 

combines a wrist-worn device with a cloudbased analytics system. It incorporates a 

sensor that generates data that is to be 

processed through the analytics system to 

provide information relating to the fitness of 

the individual wearing the wrist-worn 

device. 

You indicate ‘‘[t]he products consists 

of hardware, a sensor, printed circuit 

board assembly (PCBA) incorporating a 

radio module, and battery which [are] 

encased in a polycarbonate housing 

with clasp and attached to a fabric 

wristband.’’ A memory device on the 

PCBA is adapted to receive and store 

proprietary software which is developed 

by Whoop. The software records and 

communicates the fitness data and 

generates the analytics. 

The manufacturing of the hardware of 

the Whoop Strap occurs in China where 

the sensor, PCBA, battery and housing 

are assembled. You also indicate that 

there is a cover that is placed over the 

case/kit. You state: 

All hardware components are ‘‘designed’’ 

in the USA and produced and assembled in 

China. In the USA, the hardware is attached 

to the fabric waistband with a clasp. 

After assembly in China and before 

exportation to the United States, the 

Whoop Strap is tested to confirm the 

assembly was properly done. You refer 

to the test as a ‘‘power on’’ test which 

requires minimal software and 

equipment. You indicate that the testing 

software is removed prior to shipment 

to the United States and ‘‘[a] ‘simple’ 

firmware updater is loaded on the 

device in China [that] will allow further 

software to be loaded in the USA.’’ At 

the time of shipment from China, you 

indicate that the Whoop Strap does not 

function. 

After importation into the United 

States, ‘‘Whoop programs the 

proprietary communications software, 

file software, and battery pack 

communications firmware.’’ You state 

that ‘‘[t]his process is achieved by 

writing, testing and implementing the 

necessary code to make the product 

function as intended.’’ The software and 

firmware codes are developed and 

written in the United States by Whoop 

employees. Once programmed in the 

United States, the device functions as 

intended, i.e., being able to sense and 

communicate health data to the user. 

The programming of the device in the 

United States greatly increases its value. 

Issue: 

Whether the Whoop Strap, which is 

assembled in China and programmed 

with software and firmware in the 

United States, is eligible under the Title 

III of the TAA, as amended (19 U.S.C. 

2511–2518). 

Law and analysis: 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

(CBP) issues country of origin advisory 

rulings and final determinations as to 

whether an article is or would be a 

product of a designated country or 

instrumentality for the purpose of 

granting waivers of certain ‘‘Buy 

American’’ restrictions in U.S. law or 

practice for products offered for sale to 

the U.S. Government, pursuant to 

subpart B of Part 177, 19 CFR 177.21 et 

seq., which implements Title III, Trade 

Agreements Act of 1979, as amended 

(19 U.S.C. 2511–2518). 

The rule of origin set forth in 19 

U.S.C. 2518(4)(B) states: 

An article is a product of a country or 

instrumentality only if (i) it is wholly the 

growth, product, or manufacture of that 

country or instrumentality, or (ii) in the case 


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Notices 80799 

of an article which consists in whole or in 

part of materials from another country or 

instrumentality, it has been substantially 

transformed into a new and different article 

of commerce with a name, character, or use 

distinct from that of the article or articles 

from which it was so transformed. 

See also 19 CFR 177.22(a). 

In rendering advisory rulings and 

final determinations for purposes of 

U.S. Government procurement, CBP 

applies the provisions of subpart B of 

Part 177 consistent with the Federal 

Procurement Regulations. See 19 CFR 

177.21. In this regard, CBP recognizes 

that the Federal Acquisition Regulations 

restrict the U.S. Government’s purchase 

of products to U.S.-made or designated 

country end products for acquisitions 

subject to the TAA. See 48 CFR 

25.403(c)(1). The Federal Acquisition 

Regulations define ‘‘U.S.-made end 

product’’ as: 

. . . an article that is mined, produced, or 

manufactured in the United States or that is 

substantially transformed in the United 

States into a new and different article of 

commerce with a name, character, or use 

distinct from that of the article or articles 

from which it was transformed. 

The regulations define a ‘‘designated 

country end product’’ as: 

WTO GPA [World Trade Organization 

Government Procurement Agreement] 

country end product, an FTA [Free Trade 

Agreement] country end product, a least 

developed country end product, or a 

Caribbean Basin country end product. 

A ‘‘WTO GPA country end product’’ 

is defined as an article that: 

(1) Is wholly the growth, product, or 

manufacture of a WTO GPA country; or 

(2) In the case of an article that consists in 

whole or in part of materials from another 

country, has been substantially transformed 

in a WTO GPA country into a new and 

different article of commerce with a name, 

character, or use distinct from that of the 

article or articles from which it was 

transformed. The term refers to a product 

offered for purchase under a supply contract, 

but for purposes of calculating the value of 

the end product includes services (except 

transportation services) incidental to the 

article, provided that the value of those 

incidental services does not exceed that of 

the article itself. 

See 48 CFR 25.003. 

China is not a WTO GPA country. 

The article imported into the United 

States is the Whoop Strap assembled 

hardware consisting of a sensor, PCBA, 

battery and housing with a cover placed 

over the case/kit. The article, in its 

condition as imported, is incomplete 

and non-functional as it lacks the 

software and firmware necessary for it 

to function. The incomplete Whoop 

Strap, at the time of importation, is a 

product of China. CBP is of the view 

that programming would not result in a 

substantial transformation. This is 

consistent with CBP’s prior 

determination in H284523 dated August 

22, 2017, where CBP held that an 

imported tablet did not undergo a 

substantial transformation by 

programming. See also H284617 dated 

February 21, 2018. 

CBP’s authority to issue advisory 

rulings and final determinations is set 

forth in 19 U.S.C. 2515(b)(1), which 

states: 

For the purposes of this subchapter, the 

Secretary of the Treasury shall provide for 

the prompt issuance of advisory rulings and 

final determinations on whether, under 

section 2518(4)(B) of this title, an article is 

or would be a product of a foreign country 

or instrumentality designated pursuant to 

section 2511(b) of this title. 

Emphasis added. 

Therefore, the Whoop Strap would 

not be considered to be the product of 

a foreign country or instrumentality 

designated pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 

2511(b). As to whether the Whoop Strap 

processed in the United States may be 

considered a ‘‘U.S.-made end product’’ 

is under the jurisdiction of the 

procuring agency. See Acetris Health, 

LLC. v. United States, No. 2018–2399 

(Fed. Cir. February 10, 2020). 

Holding: 

The incomplete Whoop Strap and the 

programming in the United States 

would not render it to be a product of 

a foreign country or instrumentality 

designated pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 

2511(b). You may wish to check the 

classification of this product to 

determine if it may be subject to any 

Section 301 duties upon importation. 

Notice of this final determination will 

be given in the Federal Register, as 

required by 19 CFR 177.29. Any partyat-interest other than the party which 

requested this final determination may 

request, pursuant to 19 CFR 177.31, that 

CBP reexamine the matter anew and 

issue a new final determination. 

Pursuant to 19 CFR 177.30, any partyat-interest may, within 30 days of 

publication of the Federal Register 

Notice referenced above, seek judicial 

review of this final determination before 

the Court of International Trade. 

Sincerely, 

Alice A. Kipel, 

Executive Director, Regulations and Rulings, 

Office of Trade. 

[FR Doc. 2020–26342 Filed 12–11–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9111–14–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Federal Emergency Management 

Agency 

[Docket ID FEMA–2014–0022] 

Technical Mapping Advisory Council; 

Meeting 

AGENCY: Federal Emergency 

Management Agency, DHS. 

ACTION: Committee Management; Notice 

of Federal Advisory Committee meeting. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Emergency 

Management Agency (FEMA) Technical 

Mapping Advisory Council (TMAC) will 

hold a virtual meeting on Tuesday, 

January 19 and Wednesday, January 20, 

2021. The meeting will be open to the 

public via a Zoom Video 

Communications link. 

DATES: The TMAC will meet on 

Tuesday, January 19 and Wednesday 

January 20, 2021, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

Eastern Time (ET). Please note that the 

meeting will close early if the TMAC 

has completed its business. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held 

virtually using the following Zoom 

Video Communications link (https://

fema.zoomgov.com/j/16195624614) and 

password (875873) to share meeting 

visuals and audio. Audio is also 

accessible using a Zoom call in number 

(1–669–254–5252) along with the 

Meeting Identification (16195624614) 

and password. Members of the public 

who wish to attend the virtual meeting 

must register in advance by sending an 

email to FEMA-TMAC@fema.dhs.gov 

(Attention: Michael Nakagaki) by 5 p.m. 

ET on Friday, January 15, 2021. For 

information on services for individuals 

with disabilities or to request special 

assistance at the meeting, contact the 

person listed below by Friday, January 

15, 2021. 

To facilitate public participation, 

members of the public are invited to 

provide written comments on the issues 

to be considered by the TMAC, as listed 

in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

caption below. Associated meeting 

materials will be available at the TMAC 

website (https://www.fema.gov/floodmaps/guidance-partners/technicalmapping-advisory-council) for review 

by Friday January 15, 2021. Written 

comments to be considered by the 

committee at the time of the meeting 

must be submitted and received by 

Friday January 15, 2021, identified by 

Docket ID FEMA–2014–0022, and 

submitted by the following methods: 

Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with NOTICES