83984 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 247 / Wednesday, December 23, 2020 / Notices 

the estimated annual number of 

respondents. 

Authority: The Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. chapter 35, as 

amended. 

Dated: December 17, 2020. 

Kathleen Claffie, 

Chief, Office of Privacy Management, U.S. 

Coast Guard. 

[FR Doc. 2020–28333 Filed 12–22–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–04–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

[CBP Dec. 20–19] 

Country of Origin Marking of Products 

from the West Bank and Gaza 

AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border 

Protection, Department of Homeland 

Security. 

ACTION: General notice. 

SUMMARY: This document notifies the 

public that, for country of origin 

marking purposes, imported goods 

produced in the West Bank, specifically 

in Area C under the Israeli-Palestinian 

Interim Agreement (the Oslo Accords), 

signed on September 28, 1995, and the 

area known as ‘‘H2’’ under the IsraeliPalestinian Protocol Concerning 

Redeployment in Hebron and Related 

Documents (the Hebron Protocol), 

signed January 17, 1997, must be 

marked to indicate their origin as 

‘‘Israel,’’ ‘‘Product of Israel,’’ or ‘‘Made 

in Israel.’’ Goods produced in the West 

Bank, specifically in Areas A and B 

under the Oslo Accords and the area 

known as ‘‘H1’’ under the 1997 Hebron 

Protocol, must be marked to indicate 

their origin as ‘‘West Bank,’’ ‘‘Product of 

West Bank,’’ or ‘‘Made in West Bank.’’ 

Goods produced in Gaza must be 

marked to indicate their origin as 

‘‘Gaza,’’ ‘‘Product of Gaza,’’ ‘‘Made in 

Gaza,’’ ‘‘Gaza Strip,’’ ‘‘Product of Gaza 

Strip,’’ or ‘‘Made in Gaza Strip.’’ 

Imported goods from any of these 

territorial areas must not include ‘‘West 

Bank/Gaza,’’ ‘‘West Bank/Gaza Strip,’’ 

‘‘West Bank and Gaza,’’ or words of 

similar meaning. 

DATES: The position set forth in this 

document is applicable as of December 

23, 2020. A transition period will be 

granted for importers to implement 

marking consistent with this notice. 

Products from the West Bank or Gaza, 

when entered or withdrawn from 

warehouse for consumption into the 

United States after March 23, 2021, 

must be marked in accordance with the 

position set forth in this notice, for 

purposes of 19 U.S.C. 1304. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

legal matters, contact Yuliya A. Gulis, 

Chief, Food, Textiles and Marking 

Branch, Regulations and Rulings, Office 

of Trade, (202) 325–0042 or 

yuliya.a.gulis@cbp.dhs.gov. For policy 

matters, contact Margaret Gray, Chief, 

Trade Agreements Branch, Office of 

Trade, (202) 253–0927 or FTA@

cbp.dhs.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. Background on Guidance from the 

Department of State 

Section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, 

as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides 

that, unless excepted, every article of 

foreign origin (or its container) imported 

into the United States shall be marked 

in a conspicuous place as legibly, 

indelibly, and permanently as the 

nature of the article (or its container) 

will permit, in such a manner as to 

indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the 

United States the English name of the 

country of origin of the article. Failure 

to mark an article in accordance with 

the requirements of 19 U.S.C. 1304 shall 

result in the levy of a duty of ten 

percent ad valorem. Part 134 of title 19 

of the Code of Federal Regulations (19 

CFR part 134), implements the country 

of origin marking requirements and 

exceptions of 19 U.S.C. 1304. 

In Treasury Decision (T.D.) 95–25, 

published in the Federal Register on 

April 6, 1995 (60 FR 17607), the U.S. 

Customs Service (U.S. Customs and 

Border Protection’s predecessor agency) 

discussed the proper country of origin 

marking for imported goods produced in 

the West Bank or Gaza Strip. Prior to the 

issuance of T.D. 95–25, the U.S. 

Customs Service had taken the position 

that, in order for the country of origin 

marking of a good which was produced 

in the West Bank or Gaza Strip to be 

considered acceptable, the word 

‘‘Israel’’ must appear in the marking 

designation. However, by letter dated 

October 24, 1994, the Department of 

State advised the Department of the 

Treasury that, in view of certain 

developments, principally the IsraeliPalestine Liberation Organization (PLO) 

Declaration of Principles on Interim 

Self-Government Arrangements (the 

DOP), signed on September 13, 1993, 

the primary purpose of 19 U.S.C. 1304 

would be best served if goods produced 

in the West Bank or Gaza Strip were 

permitted to be marked ‘‘West Bank’’ or 

‘‘Gaza Strip.’’ Accordingly, the U.S. 

Customs Service notified the public in 

T.D. 95–25 that, unless excepted from 

marking, goods produced in the West 

Bank or Gaza Strip shall be marked as 

‘‘West Bank,’’ ‘‘Gaza,’’ or ‘‘Gaza Strip’’ 

in accordance with the requirements of 

19 U.S.C. 1304 and 19 CFR part 134, 

and shall not contain the words 

‘‘Israel,’’ ‘‘Made in Israel,’’ ‘‘Occupied 

Territories-Israel,’’ or words of similar 

meaning. 

Subsequently, by letter dated January 

13, 1997, the Department of State 

advised the Department of the Treasury 

that the Palestinian Authority asked that 

the United States accept the country of 

origin marking ‘‘West Bank/Gaza’’ so as 

to reaffirm the territorial unity of the 

two areas. The Department of State 

further advised that it considers the 

West Bank and Gaza Strip to be one area 

for political, economic, legal and other 

purposes. Accordingly, the Department 

of State requested that the U.S. Customs 

Service accept the country of origin 

markings ‘‘West Bank/Gaza’’ and ‘‘West 

Bank and Gaza’’ for products from those 

areas, and that the U.S. Customs Service 

continue to accept the markings ‘‘West 

Bank,’’ ‘‘Gaza,’’ and ‘‘Gaza Strip.’’ Based 

upon this advice, the U.S. Customs 

Service notified the public in T.D. 97– 

16, published in the Federal Register on 

March 14, 1997 (62 FR 12269), that 

acceptable country of origin markings 

for imported goods produced in the 

West Bank or Gaza Strip included the 

following: ‘‘West Bank/Gaza,’’ ‘‘West 

Bank/Gaza Strip,’’ ‘‘West Bank and 

Gaza,’’ ‘‘West Bank and Gaza Strip,’’ 

‘‘West Bank,’’ ‘‘Gaza,’’ and ‘‘Gaza Strip.’’ 

By letter dated December 1, 2020, the 

Department of State has now advised 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

(CBP) that there has been no further 

transfer of relevant authorities from 

Israel to the Palestinian Authority since 

issuance of the earlier guidance and 

Israel continues to exercise relevant 

authorities in areas of the West Bank. 

The Department of State further advised 

that it recognizes that Israel has 

disengaged from Gaza and that Gaza and 

the West Bank are politically and 

administratively separate and should be 

treated accordingly. In light of these 

developments, and consistent with the 

purposes of 19 U.S.C. 1304 of providing 

important information to U.S. 

purchasers, the Department of State 

recommends that the country of origin 

marking requirements for goods 

produced in the West Bank or Gaza be 

updated as set forth below in Section C 

of this notice. 

B. Reliance upon Guidance From the 

Department of State 

In the past, CBP (formerly the U.S. 

Customs Service) has relied upon 

guidance received from the Department 

of State in making determinations 


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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 247 / Wednesday, December 23, 2020 / Notices 83985 

1 50 U.S.C. 4558(c)(1). 

2 85 FR 18403 (Apr. 1, 2020). 

3 DHS Delegation 09052, Rev. 00.1 (Apr. 1, 2020); 

DHS Delegation Number 09052 Rev. 00 (Jan. 3, 

2017). 

4 85 FR 50035 (Aug. 17, 2020). The Attorney 

General, in consultation with the Chairman of the 

Federal Trade Commission, made the required 

finding that the purpose of the voluntary agreement 

may not reasonably be achieved through an 

agreement having less anticompetitive effects or 

without any voluntary agreement and published the 

finding in the Federal Register on the same day. 85 

FR 50049 (Aug. 17, 2020). 

5See 85 FR 78869 (Dec. 7, 2020). See also 85 FR 

79020 (Dec. 8, 2020). 

regarding the ‘‘country of origin’’ of a 

good for marking purposes. As 

described in detail in Section A, the 

U.S. Customs Service relied on advice 

from the Department of State in issuing 

Treasury Decisions 95–25 and 97–16 

pertaining to the country of origin 

marking of imported goods produced in 

the West Bank or Gaza. Accordingly, 

and consistent with prior decisions, 

CBP is relying upon advice from the 

Department of State for purposes of 

defining the term ‘‘country’’ within the 

meaning of 19 CFR 134.1(a). 

C. New Guidance from the Department 

of State and Transition Period 

Pursuant to the recent guidance from 

the Department of State, this document 

notifies the public that, for purposes of 

19 U.S.C. 1304, the acceptable country 

of origin markings for imported goods 

produced in the territorial areas known 

as the West Bank or Gaza Strip consist 

of the following: 

• Goods produced in the territorial 

areas of the West Bank where Israel 

continues to exercise relevant 

authorities—specifically Area C under 

the Oslo Accords and the area known as 

‘‘H2’’ which is under Israeli 

administrative control consistent with 

the 1997 Hebron protocol—must be 

marked as ‘‘Israel,’’ ‘‘Product of Israel,’’ 

or ‘‘Made in Israel.’’ 

• Goods produced in Areas A and B 

under the Oslo Accords, which are 

under the civilian oversight of the 

Palestinian Authority for these 

purposes, along with the area known as 

‘‘H1’’ from the 1997 Hebron Protocol, 

must be marked as ‘‘West Bank,’’ 

‘‘Product of West Bank,’’ or ‘‘Made in 

West Bank.’’ 

• Goods produced in Gaza must be 

marked as ‘‘Gaza,’’ ‘‘Product of Gaza,’’ 

‘‘Made in Gaza,’’ ‘‘Gaza Strip,’’ ‘‘Product 

of Gaza Strip,’’ or ‘‘Made in Gaza Strip.’’ 

• Goods from any of these territorial 

areas must not be marked in conjunctive 

form, such as ‘‘West Bank/Gaza,’’ ‘‘West 

Bank/Gaza Strip,’’ ‘‘West Bank and 

Gaza,’’ or words of similar meaning. 

Given commercial realities, affected 

parties may need a transition period to 

implement marking consistent with the 

position announced in this notice. 

Therefore, unless excepted from 

marking, goods produced in the 

territorial areas known as the West Bank 

or Gaza Strip, which are entered or 

withdrawn from warehouse for 

consumption into the United States after 

March 23, 2021, must be marked in 

accordance with the position set forth 

above, for purposes of 19 U.S.C. 1304. 

Dated: December 18, 2020. 

Brenda B. Smith, 

Executive Assistant Commissioner, Office of 

Trade. 

[FR Doc. 2020–28547 Filed 12–22–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9111–14–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Federal Emergency Management 

Agency 

[Docket ID FEMA–2020–0016] 

Meeting To Implement Pandemic 

Response Voluntary Agreement Under 

Section 708 of the Defense Production 

Act 

AGENCY: Federal Emergency 

Management Agency, DHS. 

ACTION: Announcement of meeting. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Emergency 

Management Agency (FEMA) held a 

series of meetings remotely via web 

conference to implement the Voluntary 

Agreement for the Manufacture and 

Distribution of Critical Healthcare 

Resources Necessary to Respond to a 

Pandemic. 

DATES: The first meeting took place on 

Monday, December 14, 2020, from 2 to 

4 p.m. Eastern Time (ET). The second 

meeting took place on Wednesday, 

December 16, 2020, from 2 to 4 p.m. ET. 

The third meeting took place on Friday, 

December 18, 2020, from 11 a.m. to 1 

p.m. ET. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Robert Glenn, Office of Business, 

Industry, Infrastructure Integration, via 

email at OB3I@fema.dhs.gov or via 

phone at (202) 212–1666. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice of 

these meetings is provided as required 

by section 708(h)(8) of the Defense 

Production Act (DPA), 50 U.S.C. 

4558(h)(8), and consistent with 44 CFR 

part 332. 

The DPA authorizes the making of 

‘‘voluntary agreements and plans of 

action’’ with, among others, 

representatives of industry and business 

to help provide for the national 

defense.1 The President’s authority to 

facilitate voluntary agreements was 

delegated to the Secretary of Homeland 

Security with respect to responding to 

the spread of COVID–19 within the 

United States in Executive Order 

13911.2 The Secretary of Homeland 

Security has further delegated this 

authority to the FEMA Administrator.3

On August 17, 2020, after the 

appropriate consultations with the 

Attorney General and the Chairman of 

the Federal Trade Commission, FEMA 

completed and published in the Federal 

Register a ‘‘Voluntary Agreement for the 

Manufacture and Distribution of Critical 

Healthcare Resources Necessary to 

Respond to a Pandemic’’ (Voluntary 

Agreement).4 Unless terminated prior to 

that date, the Voluntary Agreement is 

effective until August 17, 2025, and may 

be extended subject to additional 

approval by the Attorney General after 

consultation with the Chairman of the 

Federal Trade Commission. The 

Agreement may be used to prepare for 

or respond to any pandemic, including 

COVID–19, during that time. 

On December 7, 2020, the first plan of 

action under the Voluntary 

Agreement—the Plan of Action to 

Establish a National Strategy for the 

Manufacture, Allocation, and 

Distribution of Personal Protective 

Equipment (PPE) to Respond to COVID– 

19 (Plan of Action)—was finalized.5 The 

Plan of Action established the Personal 

Protective Equipment Sub-Committee to 

Define COVID–19 PPE Requirements 

(Sub-Committee). 

The meetings covered by this notice 

were held by the Sub-Committee to 

implement the Voluntary Agreement. 

The meetings were chaired by the 

FEMA Administrator or his delegate, 

and attended by the Attorney General or 

his delegate and the Chairman of the 

Federal Trade Commission or his 

delegate. In implementing the Voluntary 

Agreement, FEMA adheres to all 

procedural requirements of 50 U.S.C. 

4558 and 44 CFR part 332. 

Meeting Objectives: The objectives of 

the meetings were to: 

(1) Establish priorities for COVID–19 

PPE under the Voluntary Agreement; 

(2) Identify the first tasks that should 

be completed under the Plan of Action; 

(3) Identify information gaps and 

areas that merit sharing (from both 

FEMA to private sector and vice versa); 

and 


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