76450 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 244 / Tuesday, December 21, 2004 / Notices 

sources proposed for use in various 

operational activities. 

The CIA is in the process of 

conducting its second decennial review 

of its operational files to determine 

whether any of the previously 

designated files, or portions thereof, can 

be removed from any of the specified 

categories of exempted files. The CIA 

Information Act of 1984 requires that 

the decennial review ‘‘include 

consideration of the historical value or 

other public interest in the subject 

matter of the particular category of files 

or portions thereof and the potential for 

declassifying a significant part of the 

information contained therein.’’ In 

accordance with this requirement, the 

CIA hereby solicits comments for the 

DCI’s consideration during the 

decennial review of the CIA’s 

operational files regarding the historical 

value of, or other public interest in, the 

subject matter of these particular 

categories of files or portions thereof 

described above and the relationship of 

that historical value or other public 

interest to the removal of previously 

designated files or any portions thereof 

from such a classification.

Dated: December 7, 2004. 

Edmund Cohen, 

Director of Information Management Services, 

Office of the Chief Information Office.

[FR Doc. 04–27840 Filed 12–20–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6310–02–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

C–357–813

Honey from Argentina: Preliminary 

Results of Countervailing Duty 

Administrative Review

AGENCY: Import Administration, 

International Trade Administration, 

Department of Commerce.

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce 

(the Department) is conducting an 

administrative review of the 

countervailing duty order on honey 

from Argentina for the period January 1, 

2003, through December 31, 2003. If the 

final results remain the same as the 

preliminary results of this review, we 

will instruct U.S. Customs and Border 

Protection (CBP) to assess 

countervailing duties as detailed in the 

‘‘Preliminary Results of Administrative 

Review’’ section of this notice. 

Interested parties are invited to 

comment on the preliminary results of 

this administrative review. (See the 

‘‘Public Comment’’ section of this 

notice).

EFFECTIVE DATE: December 21, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Thomas Gilgunn or Dara Iserson, AD/

CVD Operations, Office 6, U.S. 

Department of Commerce, Room 7867, 

14th Street and Constitution Avenue, 

NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone 

(202) 482–4236 or (202) 482–4052, 

respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

On December 10, 2001, the 

Department published in the Federal 

Register the countervailing duty order 

on honey from Argentina. See Notice of 

Countervailing Duty Order: Honey From 

Argentina, 66 FR 63673. In response to 

requests for an administrative review of 

the countervailing duty (CVD) order on 

honey from Argentina from the 

Government of Argentina (GOA) and the 

American Honey Producers Association 

and the Sioux Honey Association 

(petitioners), the Department initiated 

an administrative review for the period 

January 1, 2003 through December 31, 

2003. See Initiation of Antidumping and 

Countervailing Duty Administrative 

Reviews and Request for Revocation in 

Part, 69 FR 3117 (January 22, 2004) 

(Initiation Notice).

On March 3, 2004, we issued a 

questionnaire to the GOA. On April 24, 

2004, the GOA submitted its 

questionnaire response. On June 9, 

2004, the Department issued a 

supplemental questionnaire to the GOA. 

The GOA submitted its response to the 

supplemental questionnaire on June 28, 

2004. On August 2, 2004, we extended 

the preliminary results from

September 1, 2004, until not later 

than December 13, 2004. See Notice of 

Extension of Time Limit for the 

Preliminary Results of Countervailing 

Duty Administrative Review: Honey 

From Argentina, 69 FR 48222 (August 9, 

2004). On September 23, 2004, the 

Department issued a second 

supplemental questionnaire to the GOA. 

The GOA submitted its response to the 

supplemental questionnaire on October 

5, 2004. On October 20, 2004, the 

Department issued a third supplemental 

questionnaire to the GOA. The GOA 

submitted its response to the 

supplemental questionnaire on 

November 5, 2004.

Verification

As provided in section 782(i) of the 

Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), 

we intend to conduct verification of the 

GOA’s questionnaire responses 

following the issuance of the 

preliminary results.

Scope of the Order

The merchandise covered by this 

order is artificial honey containing more 

than 50 percent natural honeys by 

weight, preparations of natural honey 

containing more than 50 percent natural 

honeys by weight, and flavored honey. 

The subject merchandise includes all 

grades and colors of honey whether in 

liquid, creamed, combs, cut comb, or 

chunk form, and whether packaged for 

retail or in bulk form.

The merchandise subject to this order 

is currently classifiable under 

subheadings 0409.00.00, 1702.90, and 

2106.90.99 of the Harmonized Tariff 

Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). 

Although the HTSUS subheadings are 

provided for convenience and customs 

purposes, the Department’s written 

description of the merchandise covered 

by this order is dispositive.

Subsidies Valuation Information

A. Aggregation

Under section 777A(e)(2)(B) of the 

Act, the Department may calculate a 

single country–wide rate applicable to 

all exporters if the Department 

determines it is not practicable to 

determine individual countervailable 

subsidy rates due to the large number of 

exporters or producers involved in the 

investigation or review. In the 

countervailing duty (CVD) investigation 

of honey from Argentina, the 

Department solicited information from 

the GOA on an aggregate or industry–

wide basis in accordance with section 

777A(e)(2)(B) of the Act, rather than 

from individual producers and 

exporters, due to the large number of 

producers and exporters of honey in 

Argentina. See Memorandum to the File, 

Countervailing Duty Investigation of 

Honey from Argentina: Conducting the 

Investigation on an Aggregate Basis, 

dated November 22, 2000. We also 

conducted the first administrative 

review on an aggregate basis. See Honey 

from Argentina: Final Results of 

Countervailing Duty Administrative 

Review, 69 FR 29518 (May 24, 2004). As 

noted above, in accordance with 19 CFR 

§ 351.213(b)(2), the GOA requested an 

administrative review of this 

countervailing duty order. (See 

Initiation Notice.) No individual 

exporters requested the review pursuant 

to 19 CFR § 351.213(b). Accordingly, the 

Department is conducting this review of 

the order on an aggregate basis and will 

calculate a single country–wide subsidy 

rate for 2003 to be applied to all exports 

of the subject merchandise. See section 

777A(e)(2)(B) of the Act.

Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 244 / Tuesday, December 21, 2004 / Notices 76451

Allocation Period

The average useful life (‘‘AUL’’) 

period for the honey industry as 

described in 19 CFR§ 351.524(d)(2) is 

ten years according to the U.S. Internal 

Revenue Service’s 1977 Class Life Asset 

Depreciation Range System. No party in 

this proceeding has disputed this 

allocation

period.

Benchmark Interest Rates and Discount 

Rates

In selecting benchmark interest rates 

for use in calculating the benefits 

conferred by the various loan programs 

under review, we would normally look 

for the interest rate a borrower had 

received on a comparable commercial 

loan. See 19 CFR § 351.505(a)(3)(i). 

However, since we are conducting this 

review on the aggregate level, and we 

are not examining individual 

companies, we have sought information 

on the national average interest rates for 

comparable commercial loans. See 19 

CFR § 351.505(a)(3)(ii). The GOA 

provided information compiled by the 

Central Bank of Argentina showing the 

national average interest rates for 

various types of financing: long–term, 

fixed–rate, denominated in Argentine 

pesos and in foreign currencies. For 

each loan program found to be 

countervailable, we have selected a 

benchmark from the information 

provided depending upon the terms and 

characteristics of the particular loan 

program.

We are directed by 19 CFR 

§ 351.524(d)(3) regarding the selection 

of a discount rate for the purposes of 

allocating non–recurring subsidies over 

time. Since we are conducting this 

investigation on an aggregate basis 

under section 777A(e)(2)(B) of the Act, 

we are using, as the discount rate, the 

average cost of long–term fixed–rate 

loans in Argentina as reported by the 

GOA. See 19 CFR § 351.524(d)(3)(i)(B).

Denominator Issues

The GOA has provided information 

for 2003 relating to the total volume of 

honey produced in Argentina; the 

volume and value, in U.S. dollars, of 

total honey exports; and, the volume 

and value, in U.S. dollars, of exports of 

honey to the United States. The GOA 

has also broken down, where possible, 

the export volumes and values 

according to the province in which the 

honey was produced. However, the 

GOA was unable to provide information 

relating to total domestic sales of honey 

for 2003. As a proxy for total sales 

information, the GOA provided data 

showing the volume of honey 

production by province during 2003. 

However, the GOA stated that it could 

not provide the value of production for 

2003. Consistent with the investigation 

and first administrative review, we 

calculated a proxy for the value of the 

total production reported by the GOA 

using the volume and value data 

provided for exports to the United 

States. See Notice of Final Affirmative 

Countervailing Duty Determination: 

Honey from Argentina, 66 FR 50613 

(October 4, 2001) (Honey Final 

Determination), and the accompanying 

Issues and Decision Memorandum 

(Honey Issues Memo), at 

‘‘Denominators.’’ We divided the value 

of Argentine honey exports to the 

United States by the volume of those 

exports to calculate a per kilogram value 

in U.S. dollars. We then multiplied this 

per kilogram value by the provincial 

production data provided to arrive at 

the value of total Argentine honey 

production during 2003. We have used 

this total production value as our 

denominator when calculating the 

subsidy from domestic subsidy 

programs provided by the GOA, and we 

have used the relevant provincial 

production value as our denominator 

when calculating the subsidy from 

domestic subsidies provided at the 

provincial level. We have used the total 

or provincial export values, as 

appropriate, as our denominators when 

calculating the subsidy from programs 

we have determined to be export 

subsidies.

To determine the final subsidy from 

each provincial program that is 

attributable to exports of honey to the 

United States, we applied the same 

methodology that we applied in Honey 

Final Determination and Honey Final 

Results: First Administrative Review: (1) 

for provinces for which we have 

reported data on the volume and value 

of honey production that was exported, 

we weight–averaged the subsidies from 

each provincial program by multiplying 

each subsidy by the province’s share of 

total honey exports, by value, to the 

United States during the POR; and (2) 

for provincial domestic subsidy 

programs in provinces that do not have 

reported exports of honey to the United 

States during the POR, but do have 

reported honey production during the 

POR, and for which the GOA did not 

specifically report that the province had 

no exports to the United States, we 

divided the benefits by the total value 

of Argentine honey production during 

the POR. Where the countervailable 

subsidy rate for a program was less than 

0.005 percent ad valorem, the program 

was not included in calculating the 

country–wide countervailing duty rate.

As noted above, Argentine honey 

production and exports have been 

valued in U.S. dollars. As detailed 

below, certain Argentine peso–

denominated loan programs provided 

benefits to Argentine honey producers 

and exporters in Argentine pesos. In 

such instances, we converted those 

Argentine peso–denominated benefits 

into U.S. dollars using the official 

exchange rate data provided by the 

GOA.

Analysis of Programs

I. Programs Preliminarily Determined To 

Be Countervailable

A. Federal Programs

1. Regional Productive Revitalization 

Program

The GOA established the ‘‘Regional 

Productive Revitalization: National 

Program for the Promotion and 

Development of Local Productive 

Initiative’’ (Regional Productive 

Revitalization Program) to strengthen 

the economies of small and medium–

sized towns in the Argentine interior. 

The program was established in 1995 

with funds from the national treasury 

allocated for use by the provinces. 

Although the program was administered 

at the national government level, its 

objective was to address financial 

emergencies and regional economic 

devastation in the provinces. The 

program discontinued granting new 

credits in the beginning of 1999. 

However, it remains operational as long 

as the loans granted are outstanding and 

continue to be serviced. The Regional 

Productive Revitalization Program 

provided credit for the acquisition of 

capital goods, technology, working 

capital, training needs, and technical 

assistance. During the time the program 

was fully operational, two Argentine 

peso–denominated long–term loans 

were made to honey producers. One of 

these loans had a balance outstanding 

during 2003.

In Honey Final Determination and 

Honey Final Results: First 

Administrative Review, we determined 

that the Regional Productive 

Revitalization Program was 

countervailable as a regional subsidy. 

See Honey Issues Memo, at ‘‘Regional 

Productive Revitalization: National 

Program for the Promotion and 

Development of Local Productive 

Initiative.’’ There is no new information 

or evidence of changed circumstances 

which would warrant reconsidering this 

finding.

76452 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 244 / Tuesday, December 21, 2004 / Notices 

1Law 25,567 and Decree 214/2002 converted all 

foreign currency-denominated debts except those 

directly related to the financing of exports.

Loans under this program provide a 

financial contribution under section 

771(5)(D) of the Act in the form of a 

transfer of funds. To determine whether 

there was a benefit, we compared the 

interest rate charged on the loan 

provided under this program to the 

commercial interest rate for loans that 

most closely resemble loans under this 

program. (See ‘‘Benchmark Interest 

Rates and Discount Rates’’ above.) Based 

on this comparison, the amount that the 

recipient paid was less than the amount 

the recipient would have paid on a 

comparable commercial loan that could 

actually be obtained on the market. 

Thus, this line of credit provides a 

benefit under section 771(5)(E) of the 

Act.

Consistent with our approach in 

Honey Final Determination and Honey 

Final Results: First Administrative 

Review, we are treating these two loans 

differently for the purposes of 

calculating the benefit. For the loan 

with an outstanding balance in 2003, we 

calculated the Argentine peso–

denominated benefit by multiplying the 

average loan balance outstanding during 

2003 by the difference between the loan 

interest rate charged and the benchmark 

interest rate. (This loan was fully repaid 

during the POR). For our benchmark 

interest rate, we selected from the 

information provided by the Central 

Bank of Argentina, a rate for the type of 

loans that most closely resembled the 

terms of this program. See ‘‘Benchmark 

Interest Rates and Discount Rates’’

above.

For the second loan, in Honey Final 

Determination, we determined that this 

loan had been forgiven during 1999, the 

period of investigation (POI), and we 

therefore, treated the amount of debt 

forgiven as a grant conferred in that 

year. See 19 CFR § 351.508. To calculate 

the benefit, we allocated the resulting 

Argentine peso–denominated grant 

amount over the AUL of 10 years. See

section entitled ‘‘Allocation Period’’

above. We used an appropriate discount 

rate, as discussed in the ‘‘Benchmark 

Interest Rates and Discount Rates’’

section, above. To calculate the subsidy 

rate for this program, we summed the 

Argentine peso–denominated benefit 

amounts attributable to the first loan 

and the Argentine peso–denominated 

benefit for the POR from the forgiven 

loan that we are treating as a grant. We 

then converted the total benefit amount 

to U.S. dollars using the official 

exchange rate data provided by the GOA 

and divided this amount by the U.S. 

dollar–denominated value of honey 

produced in Argentina during 2003 to 

calculate a countervailable subsidy rate 

of 0.010 percent ad valorem for 2003.

2. BNA Financing for the Acquisition of 

Goods of Argentine Origin

The financing for the Acquisition of 

Goods of Argentine origin program was 

established by the Banco de la Nacio ́n 

Argentina (BNA), a bank owned by the 

GOA, pursuant to Annex B to the BNA 

Circular No. 10715/I. This line of credit 

is offered by BNA to companies 

purchasing capital equipment 

manufactured in Argentina (defined as 

having a maximum foreign component 

of 40 percent). Financing is provided for 

up to five years, in an amount equal to 

80 percent of the purchase price of the 

equipment not to exceed US$500,000. 

There was one U.S. dollar–denominated 

loan granted under this program to a 

honey producer in 2001 which had a 

balance outstanding during 2003.

In Honey Final Results: First 

Administrative Review, we found that 

the BNA Financing for the Acquisition 

of Goods of Argentine Origin was 

specific as an import substitution 

subsidy under section 771(5A)(c) of the 

Act because this financing was available 

only for the purchase of Argentine–

origin goods. There is no new 

information or evidence of changed 

circumstances which would warrant 

reconsidering this specificity finding.

Loans under this program provide a 

financial contribution under section 

771(5)(D) of the Act in the form of a 

transfer of funds. To determine whether 

there was a benefit, we compared the 

interest rate charged on the loan 

provided under this program to the 

commercial interest rate for loans that 

most closely resemble loans under this 

program. (See ‘‘Benchmark Interest 

Rates and Discount Rates’’ above.) Based 

on this comparison, the amount that the 

recipient paid was less than the amount 

the recipient would have paid on a 

comparable commercial loan that could 

actually be obtained on the market. 

Thus, this line of credit provides a 

benefit under section 771(5)(E) of the 

Act.

As discussed in Honey Final Results: 

First Administrative Review, the 

Republic of Argentina followed a 

currency board system under its 

Convertibility Law of maintaining parity 

between the Argentine peso and the 

U.S. dollar until January 2002. On 

January 6, 2002, Emergency Law No. 

25,561 (Law 25,561) ended the one 

Argentine peso–one U.S. dollar 

relationship. In addition, Article 6, 

paragraph 2 of Law 25,561 and Decree 

214/2002 established the mandatory 

restructuring of foreign currency–

denominated debts1 at a relationship of 

one U.S. dollar–one Argentine peso. 

This loan was converted from U.S. 

dollars to Argentine pesos under Law 

25,567 and Decree 214/2002.

Because this loan was converted from 

U.S. dollars to Argentine pesos on 

January 29, 2002, pursuant to Law 

25,567 and Decree 214/2002, in our 

Honey Final Results: First 

Administrative Review we considered 

that there was, in effect, a new long–

term fixed rate Argentine peso–

denominated loan made in 2002. As 

such, consistent with our approach in 

Honey Final Results: First 

Administrative Review, we calculated 

the countervailable subsidy for 2003 in 

three steps: 1) we multiplied the average 

Argentine peso–denominated 

outstanding loan balance during the 

POR by the difference between the 

interest rate charged under the program 

and the appropriate benchmark interest 

rate for Argentine peso–denominated 

loans made during 2002; 2) we 

converted the 2003 Argentine peso–

denominated benefit into U.S. dollars 

using the official annual average 

exchange rate data provided by the 

GOA; 3) we divided this U.S. dollar–

denominated amount by the U.S. dollar 

value of total honey production in 

Argentina during 2003. Using this 

methodology, we preliminarily find the 

countervailable subsidy from this 

program to be less than 0.005 percent ad 

valorem for 2003. Using this 

methodology, we determine the 

countervailable subsidy from this 

program to be less than 0.005 percent ad 

valorem.

B. Provincial Programs

1. Province of San Luis Honey 

Development Program

The San Luis Honey Development 

Program promoted honey production to 

supplement the income of 

disadvantaged people in 

underdeveloped areas in the province of 

San Luis through credit lines. These 

long–term, fixed rate, and Argentine 

peso–denominated loans were made as 

part of a series of annual campaigns 

which took place from 1994 through 

1999.

In Honey Final Determination and 

Honey Final Results: First 

Administrative Review, the Department 

found the Province of San Luis Honey 

Development Program to be a 

countervailable subsidy. There is no 

new information or evidence of changed 

Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 244 / Tuesday, December 21, 2004 / Notices 76453

circumstances which would warrant 

reconsideration of this finding.

In Honey Final Determination and 

Honey Final Results: First 

Administrative Review, we treated loans 

made under this program as loans that 

had been forgiven during 1999, the POI. 

See 19 CFR § 351.508(a). In the instant 

review, the GOA reported that the 

Province of San Luis had not received 

any interest payments or principal 

payments from beneficiaries during the 

POR. Therefore, consistent with our 

methodology in the investigation and 

the first administrative review, we have 

summed the amounts disbursed through 

the program for the years 1994 through 

1999, plus the accrued interest through 

1999, when the loans were effectively 

forgiven. We then allocated this sum 

over the 10–year AUL. We used the 

1999 annual average of long–term, fixed, 

peso–denominated interest rates as our 

discount rate. See ‘‘Benchmark Interest 

Rates and Discount Rates,’’ and 

‘‘Allocation Period’’ sections, above.

For the purposes of establishing the 

countervailable subsidy rate for 2003, 

we converted the Argentine peso–

denominated benefit attributable to 

2003 into U.S. dollars using the official 

exchange rates provided by the GOA. 

We then divided this amount by the 

U.S. dollar value of honey production in 

the Province of San Luis during 2003. 

We then determined the countervailable 

subsidy attributable to subject 

merchandise from this program by 

multiplying the calculated subsidy rate 

by the percentage that honey from San 

Luis represents of total honey exports to 

the United States during 2003. Thus, the 

countervailable subsidy rate attributable 

to this program for 2003 is 0.015 percent 

ad valorem.

2. Province of Chaco Line of Credit 

Earmarked for the Honey Sector

The Chaco government’s Line of 

Credit Earmarked for the Honey Sector 

(Chaco Honey Program) funded efforts 

to increase honey production in the 

province. The Chaco government 

offered long–term, fixed rate, Argentine 

peso–denominated loans to purchase 

hives, as well as loans to improve access 

to new bee breeds and for honey 

extraction rooms. These loans were 

made as part of a series of annual 

campaigns which took place in 1995, 

1997, and 1999.

In Honey Final Determination and 

Honey Final Results: First 

Administrative Review, we determined 

that loans made through the Chaco 

Honey Program were de jure specific in 

accordance to section 771(5A)(D)(i) of 

the Act. See Honey Issues Memo, at 

‘‘Province of Chaco Line of Credit 

Earmarked for the Honey Sector.’’ There 

is no new information or evidence of 

changed circumstances which would 

warrant the reconsideration of this 

specificity finding.

Loans under this program provide a 

financial contribution under section 

771(5)(D) of the Act in the form of a 

transfer of funds. Consistent with Honey 

Final Results: First Administrative 

Review, we calculated outstanding 

balances for these loans to include 

outstanding interest which accrued on 

these loans. In order to determine 

whether a benefit existed, we compared 

the interest rate charged on loans 

provided under this program to the 

commercial interest rates for loans that 

most closely resemble loans under this 

program. Because these are long–term, 

fixed rate, Argentine peso–denominated 

loans, we selected from information 

provided by the GOA a long–term 

benchmark from: 1995 to apply to the 

1995 tranche; 1997 to apply to the 1997 

tranche; and 1999 to apply to the 1999 

tranche. Based on this comparison, 

there is a difference in the amount the 

recipient of the loan pays on the loan 

and the amount the recipient would 

have paid on a comparable commercial 

loan that the recipient could have 

actually obtained on the market. Thus, 

these loans provide a benefit, under 

section 771(5)(E)(ii)of the Act.

We calculated the amount of the 

benefit for 2003 in the following steps: 

1) we multiplied the average, 

outstanding, Argentine peso–

denominated loan balances for 2003 by 

the interest rate differential; 2) we 

converted the resulting Argentine peso–

denominated benefit into U.S. dollars 

using the official exchange rates 

provided by the GOA; 3) because the 

GOA was unable to demonstrate that no 

honey produced in Chaco was exported 

to the United States in 2003, we divided 

this U.S. dollar–denominated benefit by 

the U.S. dollar value of honey 

production in Argentina during 2003. 

Thus, the countervailable subsidy rate 

for 2003 applicable to the Chaco Honey 

Program is 0.015 percent ad valorem.

3. Buenos Aires Honey Program

In 1996, the Province of Buenos Aires 

created the Buenos Aires Honey 

Development Program (BAHP) to 

increase provincial honey production 

and improve production efficiency and 

quality. Through the program, the Banco 

de la Provincia de Buenos Aires (Banco 

Provincia or BAPRO), a bank owned by 

the government of the Province of 

Buenos Aires, provides two types of 

credit lines to honey producers in the 

province: the Line of Credit for Working 

Capital and the Line of Credit for the 

Acquisition of Capital Goods. Eligibility 

for both credit lines requires honey 

producers to enroll in the Province’s 

Registry of Honey Producers. In 

addition, the Province of Buenos Aires 

provided Technical Assistance at no 

charge to honey producers.

In the underlying investigation, we 

found all three elements of the BAHP to 

provide countervailable subsidies. See 

Honey Issues Memo, at ‘‘Buenos Aires 

Honey Program.’’ There is no new 

information or evidence of changed 

circumstances which would warrant 

reconsideration of this finding. 

However, the GOA reported, and we 

verified in the first administrative 

review, that no technical assistance was 

provided under the BAHP during the 

2001–2003. See Honey Final Results: 

First Administrative Review.

No new loans were granted to honey 

producers during the POR under either 

the working capital or capital goods 

elements of this program. However, 

there were capital goods loans made 

prior to the POR, which had outstanding 

balances during the POR.

The Line of Credit for the Acquisition 

of Capital Goods under the BAHP was 

implemented by the Banco Provincia 

through Circular ‘‘A’’ No. 13,854 in July 

1997, pursuant to an agreement between 

the Banco Provincia and Banco de 

Inversion y Comercio Exterior S.A. 

(BICE), and utilizes funding provided 

through the BICE Norms 006 and 006/

1. The BICE is a GOA entity, that 

functions as a ‘‘second tier’’ bank, 

lending money to other banks (both 

commercial and other government–

owned or controlled banks) for the 

purpose of implementing government 

lending programs.

Under this line of credit, beekeepers 

are eligible to receive long–term 

financing for the acquisition of capital 

goods including beehives, new nuclei, 

inert material, and extraction and 

processing material, among other goods. 

Financing for this line of credit carries 

a maximum repayment term of five 

years. Interest rates are based on LIBOR, 

plus a spread added by the BICE, and a 

spread added by the Banco Provincia. 

The spreads given by both the BICE and 

Banco Provincia vary depending upon 

the repayment schedule of the loan. 

Although, all of the loans that had 

outstanding loan balances during the 

POR were originally provided in U.S. 

dollars, these balances were converted 

to Argentine pesos on January 29, 2002, 

in accordance with Law 25,567 and 

Decree 214/2002.

In the instant review, the GOA 

reported that the Banco Provincia 

classified certain loans made under this 

line of credit as active with outstanding 

76454 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 244 / Tuesday, December 21, 2004 / Notices 

balances payable during 2003. The GOA 

also reported the Banco Provincia had 

categorized other loans with balances 

outstanding in 2003 as in default or 

cancelled. In addition, the GOA 

reported that certain loans with 

outstanding balances payable during 

2003 had been assigned to a trust 

created by the Province of Buenos Aires 

for defaulted loans.

For loans that the Banco Provincia 

considered to be active, we calculated 

the Argentine peso–denominated 

benefit for the loan by multiplying the 

average loan balance outstanding during 

2003 by the difference between the loan 

interest rate charged and the benchmark 

interest rate. For our benchmark interest 

rate, we selected, from the information 

provided by the Central Bank of 

Argentina, a rate for the type of loans 

that most closely resembled the terms of 

this program. See ‘‘Benchmark Interest 

Rates and Discount Rates’’ above.

As noted above, the GOA reported the 

Banco Provincia had categorized certain 

loans with balances outstanding in 2003 

as in default, cancelled, or as having 

been ‘‘assigned to trust created by the 

Province of Buenos Aires for defaulted 

loans.’’ We therefore find that these 

loans had been forgiven during 2003 

and treated the amount of debt forgiven 

as a grant conferred in 2003. See 19 CFR 

§ 351.508. To calculate the benefit, we 

have allocated the resulting Argentine 

peso–denominated grant amount over 

the AUL of 10 years. See section entitled 

‘‘Allocation Period’’ above. We have 

used an appropriate discount rate, as 

discussed in the ‘‘Benchmark Interest 

Rates and Discount Rates’’ section, 

above.

We calculated the total 

countervailable subsidy for 2003 from 

the Buenos Aires Honey program as 

follows: 1) we summed the Argentine 

peso–denominated benefits attributable 

to active loans and forgiven debt and 

converted the sum into U.S. dollars 

using the official exchange rates 

provided by the GOA; 2) we divided 

this total 2003 benefit by the value of 

honey production in the Province of 

Buenos Aires during 2003; and 3) we 

determined the subsidy attributable to 

subject merchandise from this program 

by multiplying the calculated subsidy 

rate by the percentage that honey from 

the Province of Buenos Aires represents 

of total honey exports to the United 

States during 2003. See section entitled 

‘‘Denominator Issues’’ above. Thus, we 

preliminarily determine the 

countervailable subsidy rate from the 

Buenos Aires Honey Program for 2003 is 

0.038 percent ad valorem.

II. Programs Preliminarily Determined to 

be Not Used

We preliminarily determine that 

Argentine producers and exporters of 

honey to the United States did not apply 

for or receive benefits under the 

following programs during the POR.

A. Federal Programs 

1. Argentine Internal Tax 

Reimbursement/Rebate Program 

(Reintegro)

2. BICE Norm 001: Financing of 

Production of Goods Destined for 

Export

3. BICE Norm 007: Line of Credit 

Offered to Finance Industrial 

Investment Projects to Restructure 

and Modernize the Argentine 

Industry

4. BNA Line of Credit to the 

Agricultural Producers of the 

Patagonia

5. BNA Pre–Financing of Exports 

Regime for the Agricultural Sector

6. Production Pole Program for Honey 

Producers

7. Enterprise Restructuring Program

8. SGRs - Government Backed Loans 

Guarantees

9. Fundacion Export AR

10. PROAPI

B. Provincial Programs 

1. Buenos Aires Honey Program

a. The Line of Credit for Working 

Capital

b. Technical Assistance

2. Province of Entre Rios Honey 

Program

3. Province of Chubut: Province of 

Chubut Law No. 4430/98

4. Province of Santiago del Estero 

Creditos de Confinanzas (Trust 

Credits)

III. Programs Preliminarily Determined 

To Be Terminated

Factor de Convergencia (Convergence 

Factor)

Under this program exporters could 

claim a payment from the GOA for a 

percentage of the FOB value of the 

exports. The GOA paid exporters an 

amount determined according to a 

formula accounting for the exchange 

rate between the U.S. dollar and the 

Euro. The GOA reported that the 

Convergence Factor program was 

terminated on January 25, 2002 by 

Decree 191/2002 and that there were no 

residual benefits. The GOA also 

reported that a replacement program has 

not been implemented. 19 CFR 

§ 351.526(b) defines a program–wide 

change as a change that is not limited 

to a single firm and was effectuated by 

an official act such as a decree. We note 

that GOA has reported that Decree 191/

2002 terminated the Convergence Factor 

programs for all exports. As such, in 

accordance with 19 CFR § 351.526(b), 

we preliminarily find that the 

Convergence Factor program was 

terminated in 2002, and that there are 

no residual benefits attributable to the 

POR.

Preliminary Results of Administrative 

Review

In accordance with section 

777A(e)(2)(B) of the Act, we have 

calculated the subsidy rates on an 

aggregate or industry–wide basis for 

exports of subject merchandise in this 

administrative review. We preliminarily 

determine the total net countervailable 

subsidy rate is 0.08 percent ad valorem

for 2003, which is de minimis.

If upon issuance of the final results of 

this administrative review the subsidy 

rate remains de minimis, the 

Department will instruct CBP to 

liquidate shipments of honey from 

Argentina entered, or withdrawn from 

warehouse, for consumption from 

January 1, 2003, through December 31, 

2003, without regard to countervailing 

duties. Also, the rate of cash deposit of 

estimated countervailing duties will be 

set at zero percent ad valorem for all 

shipments of honey from Argentina 

entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, 

for consumption on or after the 

publication of the final results of this 

administrative review. The Department 

will issue appropriate assessment 

instructions directly to the CBP within 

15 days of publication of the final 

results of this review.

Public Comment

Pursuant to 19 CFR § 351.224(b), the 

Department will disclose to parties to 

the proceeding any calculations 

performed in connection with these 

preliminary results within five days 

after the date of publication of this 

notice. Pursuant to 19 CFR § 351.309, 

interested parties may submit written 

comments in response to these 

preliminary results. Unless otherwise 

extended, case briefs must be submitted 

within 30 days after the date of 

publication of this notice, and rebuttal 

briefs, limited to arguments raised in 

case briefs, must be submitted no later 

than five days after the time limit for 

filing case briefs. Parties who submit 

arguments in this proceeding are 

requested to submit with the briefs: (1) 

a statement of the issue, and (2) a brief 

summary of the argument. Case and 

rebuttal briefs must be served on 

interested parties in accordance with 19 

CFR § 351.303(f). Also, pursuant to 19 

CFR § 351.310, within 30 days of the 

Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 244 / Tuesday, December 21, 2004 / Notices 76455

date of publication of this notice, 

interested parties may request a public 

hearing on arguments to be raised in the 

case and rebuttal briefs. Unless the 

Secretary specifies otherwise, the 

hearing, if requested, will be held two 

days after the date of submission of 

rebuttal briefs, that is, thirty–seven days 

after the date of publication of these 

preliminary results.

Representatives of parties to the 

proceeding may request disclosure of 

proprietary information under 

administrative protective order no later 

than 10 days after the representative’s 

client or employer becomes a party to 

the proceeding, but in no event later 

than the date the case briefs, under 19 

CFR § 351.309(c)(ii), are due. The 

Department will publish the final 

results of this administrative review, 

including the results of its analysis of 

issues raised in any case or rebuttal 

brief.

This administrative review and notice 

are issued and published in accordance 

with section 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of 

the Act (19 U.S.C. 1675(a)(1) and 19 

U.S.C. 1677f(1)).

Dated: December 13, 2004.

James J. Jochum,

Assistant Secretary for Import 

Administration.

[FR Doc. 04–27912 Filed 12–20–02; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P

COMMITTEE FOR THE 

IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE 

AGREEMENTS 

Denial of Commercial Availability 

Request Under the United StatesCaribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act 

(CBTPA) 

December 15, 2004.

AGENCY: Committee for the 

Implementation of Textile Agreements 

(CITA).

ACTION: Denial of the request alleging 

that certain colored open end spun 

yarns for use in chief weight cotton 

sweaters cannot be supplied by the 

domestic industry in commercial 

quantities in a timely manner under the 

CBTPA. 

SUMMARY: On October 12, 2004, the 

Chairman of CITA received a petition 

from Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., 

on behalf of Bernette Textile Co, LLC of 

New York, NY, alleging that certain 

colored open end spun yarns ranging in 

size from 6/1 to 18/1 English count 

(10.16/1 to 30.47/1 metric) of a blend of 

reclaimed and reprocessed cotton and 

acrylic staple fiber, for use in chief 

weight cotton sweaters, cannot be 

supplied by the domestic industry in 

commercial quantities in a timely 

manner. The petition requested that 

such apparel made from such yarn be 

eligible for preferential treatment under 

the CBTPA.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Authority: Section 213(b)(2)(A)(v)(II) of the 

Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act, as 

added by Section 211(a) of the CBTPA; 

Section 6 of Executive Order No. 13191 of 

January 17, 2001. 

Background 

The CBTPA provides for quota- and 

duty-free treatment for qualifying textile 

and apparel products. Such treatment is 

generally limited to products 

manufactured from yarns and fabrics 

formed in the United States or a 

beneficiary country. The CBTPA also 

provides for quota- and duty-free 

treatment for apparel articles that are 

both cut (or knit-to-shape) and sewn or 

otherwise assembled in one or more 

CBTPA beneficiary countries from fabric 

or yarn that is not formed in the United 

States, if it has been determined that 

such fabric or yarn cannot be supplied 

by the domestic industry in commercial 

quantities in a timely manner. In 

Executive Order No. 13191, the 

President delegated to CITA the 

authority to determine whether yarns or 

fabrics cannot be supplied by the 

domestic industry in commercial 

quantities in a timely manner under the 

CBTPA and directed CITA to establish 

procedures to ensure appropriate public 

participation in any such determination. 

On March 6, 2001, CITA published 

procedures that it will follow in 

considering requests (66 FR 13502). 

On October 12, 2004, the Chairman of 

CITA received a petition from Sandler, 

Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., on behalf of 

Bernette Textile Co, LLC of New York, 

NY, alleging that certain colored open 

end spun yarns ranging in size from 6/

1 to 18/1 English count (10.16/1 to 

30.47/1 metric) of a blend of reclaimed 

and reprocessed cotton and acrylic 

staple fiber, for use in chief weight 

cotton sweaters, cannot be supplied by 

the domestic industry in commercial 

quantities in a timely manner. It 

requested that such apparel made from 

such yarn be eligible for preferential 

treatment under the CBTPA. 

Specifications: 

HTS Subheadings: 5206.11.00.00, 

5206.12.00.00. 

Description: Open end spun yarn of 

uncombed fibers. 

Size: 10 to 31 metric count. 

Fiber Content: In chief weight of 

cotton reclaimed from fabric scraps 

blended with producer dyed acrylic 

stable produced under license from 

Outlast Technologies, Inc. 

On October 20, 2004, CITA published 

a Federal Register notice requesting 

public comments on the request, 

particularly with respect to whether 

these yarns can be supplied by the 

domestic industry in commercial 

quantities in a timely manner (69 FR 

61658). On November 5, 2004, CITA and 

the Office of the U.S. Trade 

Representative offered to hold 

consultations with the relevant 

Congressional committees. We also 

requested the advice of the U.S. 

International Trade Commission and the 

relevant Industry Trade Advisory 

Committees. 

Based upon the ITC report and 

information provided by the domestic 

industry, CITA finds that there is 

domestic capacity and ability to supply 

colored open end spun yarns of a blend 

of reclaimed and reprocessed cotton and 

acrylic staple fiber in commercial 

quantities and a timely manner. CITA 

finds that the assertion of a patent or 

license as a barrier to domestic 

production of the subject product is not 

a sufficient reason alone to conclude 

that the product cannot be supplied by 

domestic industry in commercial 

quantities in a timely manner. 

On the basis of currently available 

information and our review of this 

request, CITA has determined that there 

is domestic capacity to supply the 

subject product in commercial 

quantities in a timely manner. Bernette’s 

request is denied.

James C. Leonard, III, 

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation 

of Textile Agreements.

[FR Doc. 04–27911 Filed 12–20–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy 

Notice of Intent To Prepare an 

Environmental Impact Statement/

Environmental Impact Report for the 

Santa Margarita River Conjunctive Use 

Project, San DiegoCounty, CA; 

Correction

AGENCIES: Department of the Navy, 

DOD. Bureau of Reclamation, DOI.

ACTION: Notice; Correction.

SUMMARY: The Department of the Navy 

published a document in the Federal 

Register on November 1, 2004, 

announcing its intent to prepare an 

Environmental Impact Statement/

Environmental Impact Report for the 

Santa Margarita River Conjunctive Use