Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 8 / Wednesday, January 13, 2021 / Notices 2689 

6See 50 U.S.C. 4558(h)(7). 

7 ‘‘[T]he individual designated by the President in 

subsection (c)(2) [of section 708 of the DPA] to 

administer the voluntary agreement, or plan of 

action.’’ 50 U.S.C. 4558(h)(7). 

1With respect to all references to ‘‘country’’ or 

‘‘countries’’ in this document, it should be noted 

that the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979, Public Law 

96–8, Section 4(b)(1), provides that ‘‘[w]henever the 

laws of the United States refer or relate to foreign 

countries, nations, states, governments, or similar 

entities, such terms shall include and such laws 

shall apply with respect to Taiwan.’’ 22 U.S.C. 

3303(b)(1). Accordingly, all references to ‘‘country’’ 

or ‘‘countries’’ in the regulations governing whether 

nationals of a country are eligible for H–2 program 

participation, 8 CFR 214.2(h)(5)(i)(F)(1)(i) and 8 

CFR 214.2(h)(6)(i)(E)(1), are read to include Taiwan. 

This is consistent with the United States’ one-China 

policy, under which the United States has 

maintained unofficial relations with Taiwan since 

1979. 2An overstay is a nonimmigrant lawfully 

admitted to the United States for an authorized 

period, but who remained in the United States 

beyond his or her authorized period of admission. 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 

identifies two types of overstays: (1) Individuals for 

whom no departure was recorded (Suspected InCountry Overstays), and (2) individuals whose 

departure was recorded after their authorized 

period of admission expired (Out-of-Country 

Overstays). For purposes of this Federal Register 

Notice, DHS uses FY 2019 U.S. Customs and Border 

Protection H–2A and H–2B nonimmigrant overstay 

data. 

Meeting Objectives: The objective of 

the meeting is to update the general 

public, and private industry partners, on 

the status of the Voluntary Agreement, 

PPE Plan of Action, and potential future 

Plans of Action. 

Meeting Closed to the Public: By 

default, the DPA requires meetings held 

to implement a voluntary agreement or 

plan of action be open to the public.6

However, attendance may be limited if 

the Sponsor 7 of the voluntary 

agreement finds that the matter to be 

discussed at a meeting falls within the 

purview of matters described in 5 U.S.C. 

552b(c). The Sponsor of the Voluntary 

Agreement, the FEMA Administrator, 

found that a portion of this meeting to 

implement the Voluntary Agreement 

involves matters which fall within the 

purview of matters described in 5 U.S.C. 

552b(c) and that portion of the meeting 

will therefore be closed to the public. 

Specifically, the meeting to 

implement the Voluntary Agreement 

may require participants to disclose 

trade secrets or commercial or financial 

information that is privileged or 

confidential. Disclosure of such 

information allows for meetings to be 

closed pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b(c)(4). 

In addition, the success of the Voluntary 

Agreement depends wholly on the 

willing and enthusiastic participation of 

private sector participants. Failure to 

close this meeting could have a strong 

chilling effect on participation by the 

private sector and cause a substantial 

risk that sensitive information will be 

prematurely released to the public, 

resulting in participants withdrawing 

their support from the Voluntary 

Agreement and thus significantly 

frustrating the implementation of the 

Voluntary Agreement. Frustration of an 

agency’s objective due to premature 

disclosure of information allows for the 

closure of a meeting to pursuant to 5 

U.S.C. 552b(c)(9)(B). 

Pete Gaynor, 

Administrator, Federal Emergency 

Management Agency. 

[FR Doc. 2021–00505 Filed 1–12–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9111–19–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

[Docket No. DHS–2011–0108] 

RIN 1601–ZA11 

Identification of Foreign Countries 

Whose Nationals Are Eligible To 

Participate in the H–2A and H–2B 

Nonimmigrant Worker Programs 

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, DHS. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: Under Department of 

Homeland Security (DHS) regulations, 

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration 

Services (USCIS) may generally only 

approve petitions for H–2A and H–2B 

nonimmigrant status for nationals of 

countries that the Secretary of 

Homeland Security, with the 

concurrence of the Secretary of State, 

has designated by notice published in 

the Federal Register. Each such notice 

shall be effective for one year after its 

date of publication. This notice 

announces that the Secretary of 

Homeland Security, in consultation 

with the Secretary of State, is 

identifying 81 countries whose 

nationals are eligible to participate in 

the H–2A program and 80 countries 

whose nationals are eligible to 

participate in the H–2B program for the 

coming year. 

DATES: The designations in this notice 

are effective from January 19, 2021, and 

shall be without effect after January 18, 

2022. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ihsan Gunduz, Office of Strategy, Policy, 

and Plans, Department of Homeland 

Security, Washington, DC 20528, (202) 

282–9708. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Generally, USCIS may approve H–2A 

and H–2B petitions for nationals of only 

those countries that the Secretary of 

Homeland Security, with the 

concurrence of the Secretary of State, 

has designated as participating 

countries.1 Such designation must be 

published as a notice in the Federal 

Register and expires after one year. In 

designating countries to include on the 

list, the Secretary of Homeland Security, 

with the concurrence of the Secretary of 

State, will take into account factors 

including, but not limited to: (1) The 

country’s cooperation with respect to 

issuance of travel documents for 

citizens, subjects, nationals, and 

residents of that country who are subject 

to a final order of removal; (2) the 

number of final and unexecuted orders 

of removal against citizens, subjects, 

nationals, and residents of that country; 

(3) the number of orders of removal 

executed against citizens, subjects, 

nationals, and residents of that country; 

and (4) such other factors as may serve 

the U.S. interest. See 8 CFR 

214.2(h)(5)(i)(F)(1)(i) and 8 CFR 

214.2(h)(6)(i)(E)(1). Examples of specific 

factors serving the U.S. interest that are 

taken into account when considering 

whether to designate or terminate the 

designation of a country include, but are 

not limited to: Fraud (including but not 

limited to fraud in the H–2 petition or 

visa application process by nationals of 

the country, the country’s level of 

cooperation with the U.S. government 

in addressing H–2 associated visa fraud, 

and the country’s level of information 

sharing to combat immigration-related 

fraud), nonimmigrant overstay 2 rates for 

nationals of the country (including but 

not limited to H–2 nonimmigrants), 

non-compliance with the terms and 

conditions of the H–2 visa programs by 

nationals of the country, and the 

country’s level of compliance with U.S. 

immigration policies. 

In evaluating the U.S. interest, the 

Secretary of Homeland Security, with 

the concurrence of the Secretary of 

State, further considers visa overstay 

rates of 10 percent or higher to pose an 

unreasonably high risk to the integrity 

of our immigration system. The 

Department believes that a failure of one 

out of every 10 nationals of a country to 

comply with his or her nonimmigrant 

status through timely departure is 

indicative of significant underlying 

problems relating to the country’s 

2690 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 8 / Wednesday, January 13, 2021 / Notices 

designation for H–2A or H–2B program 

participation. Naturally, with greater 

numbers of participants from any 

country comes more significant risk 

when the overstay rate of a country’s 

nationals is unreasonably high. DHS 

believes that countries with more than 

50 expected departures in a given fiscal 

year whose nationals overstay at rate of 

more than 10 percent (i.e., at least 5 

overstays) present an appreciable and 

considerable degree of risk to the 

integrity of these nonimmigrant 

programs. 

Accordingly, the Secretary of 

Homeland Security, with the 

concurrence of the Secretary of State, 

will ascribe significant negative weight 

to evidence that a country had a 

suspected-in-country visa overstay rate 

of 10 percent or higher with a number 

of expected departures of 50 individuals 

or higher in either the H–2A or H–2B 

classification according to U.S. Customs 

and Border Protection overstay data, 

and generally will terminate designation 

of that country from the H–2A or H–2B 

nonimmigrant visa program, as 

appropriate, unless, after consideration 

of other relevant factors, it is 

determined not to be in the U.S. interest 

to do so. Overstay rates greater than 10 

percent and/or involving more expected 

than 50 departures will bear 

increasingly negative weight. Overstay 

rates that are lower than 10 percent or 

which involve less than 50 expected 

departures may also be weighed 

negatively, but less so as the numbers 

decrease. 

Similarly, the Department of 

Homeland Security recognizes that 

countries designated under longstanding practice by U.S. Immigration 

and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as ‘‘At 

Risk of Non-Compliance’’ or 

‘‘Uncooperative’’ with removals based 

on ICE data put the integrity of the 

immigration system and the American 

people at risk. Therefore, unless other 

favorable factors in the U.S. interest 

outweigh such designations by ICE, the 

Secretary of Homeland Security, with 

the concurrence of the Secretary of 

State, will terminate designation of such 

countries from the H–2A and H–2B 

nonimmigrant visa programs in 

recognition that the U.S. typically 

cannot continue to admit individuals 

from countries that do not consistently 

cooperate with the removal of their 

citizens and nationals. Note that, as 

there are separate lists for the H–2A and 

H–2B categories, it is possible that, in 

applying the above-described regulatory 

criteria for listing countries, a country 

may appear on one list but not on the 

other. 

Even where the Secretary of 

Homeland Security has terminated 

designation of a country as not being in 

the U.S. interest, however, DHS, 

through USCIS, may allow, on a caseby-case basis, a national from a country 

that is not on the list to be named as a 

beneficiary of an H–2A or H–2B petition 

based on a determination that the 

individual alien’s participation is in the 

U.S. interest. Determination of such U.S. 

interest will take into account factors, 

including but not limited to: (1) 

Evidence from the petitioner 

demonstrating that a worker with the 

required skills is not available either 

from among U.S. workers or from among 

foreign workers from a country 

currently on the list described in 8 CFR 

214.2(h)(5)(i)(F)(1)(i) (H–2A 

nonimmigrants) or 214.2(h)(6)(1)(E)(1) 

(H–2B nonimmigrants), as applicable; 

(2) evidence that the beneficiary has 

been admitted to the United States 

previously in H–2A or H–2B status; (3) 

the potential for abuse, fraud, or other 

harm to the integrity of the H–2A or H– 

2B visa program through the potential 

admission of a beneficiary from a 

country not currently on the list; and (4) 

such other factors as may serve the U.S. 

interest. See 8 CFR 

214.2(h)(5)(i)(F)(1)(ii) and 8 CFR 

214.2(h)(6)(i)(E)(2). 

In December 2008, DHS published in 

the Federal Register two notices, 

‘‘Identification of Foreign Countries 

Whose Nationals Are Eligible to 

Participate in the H–2A Visa Program,’’ 

and ‘‘Identification of Foreign Countries 

Whose Nationals Are Eligible to 

Participate in the H–2B Visa Program,’’ 

which designated 28 countries whose 

nationals were eligible to participate in 

the H–2A and H–2B programs. See 73 

FR 77043 (Dec. 18, 2008); 73 FR 77729 

(Dec. 19, 2008). The notices ceased to 

have effect on January 17, 2010, and 

January 18, 2010, respectively. See 8 

CFR 214.2(h)(5)(i)(F)(2) and 8 CFR 

214.2(h)(6)(i)(E)(3). In implementing 

these regulatory provisions, the 

Secretary of Homeland Security, with 

the concurrence of the Secretary of 

State, has published a series of notices 

on a regular basis. See 75 FR 2879 (Jan. 

19, 2010) (adding 11 countries); 76 FR 

2915 (Jan. 18, 2011) (removing 1 country 

and adding 15 countries); 77 FR 2558 

(Jan. 18, 2012) (adding 5 countries); 78 

FR 4154 (Jan. 18, 2013) (adding 1 

country); 79 FR 3214 (Jan.17, 2014) 

(adding 4 countries); 79 FR 74735 (Dec. 

16, 2014) (adding 5 countries); 80 FR 

72079 (Nov. 18, 2015) (removing 1 

country from the H–2B program and 

adding 16 countries); 81 FR 74468 (Oct. 

26, 2016) (adding 1 country); 83 FR 

2646 (Jan. 18, 2018) (removing 3 

countries and adding 1 country); 84 FR 

133 (Jan. 18, 2019) (removing 2 

countries from both the H–2A program 

and the H–2B program, removing 1 

country from only the H–2B program, 

and adding 2 countries to both programs 

and 1 country to only the H–2A 

program); 85 FR 3067 (January 17, 2020) 

(remained unchanged). 

Determination of Countries With 

Continued Eligibility 

The Secretary of Homeland Security 

has determined, with the concurrence of 

the Secretary of State, that 81 countries 

previously designated to participate in 

the H–2A program in the January 17, 

2020 notice continue to meet the 

regulatory standards for eligible 

countries and therefore should remain 

designated as countries whose nationals 

are eligible to participate in the H–2A 

program. Additionally, the Secretary of 

Homeland Security has determined, 

with the concurrence of the Secretary of 

State, that 80 countries previously 

designated to participate in the H–2B 

program in the January 17, 2020 notice 

continue to meet the regulatory 

standards for eligible countries and 

therefore should remain designated as 

countries whose nationals are eligible to 

participate in the H–2B program. These 

determinations take into account how 

the regulatory factors identified above 

apply to each of these countries. 

Countries No Longer Designated as 

Eligible 

The Secretary of Homeland Security 

has now determined, with the 

concurrence of the Secretary of State, 

that the following countries should no 

longer be designated as eligible 

countries because they no longer meet 

the regulatory standards identified 

above: Mongolia (H–2A only), the 

Independent State of Samoa (‘‘Samoa’’), 

and Tonga. 

Mongolia has a high H–2A visa 

overstay rate. In FY 2019, DHS 

estimated that 67 H–2A visa holders 

from Mongolia were expected to depart 

the United States. However, DHS 

estimated that 40.3% of those H–2A visa 

holders from Mongolia overstayed their 

period of authorized stay. This high H– 

2A visa overstay rate demonstrates an 

unacceptable level of harm to the 

integrity of the H–2A visa program; 

continued eligibility of Mongolian 

nationals for the H–2A visa program 

thus does not serve the U.S. interest. 

Therefore, the Secretary of Homeland 

Security, with the concurrence of the 

Secretary of State, is removing Mongolia 

from the list of eligible countries for the 

H–2A program. By contrast, in FY 2019, 

Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 8 / Wednesday, January 13, 2021 / Notices 2691 

DHS estimated that none of the H–2B 

visa holders from Mongolia overstayed 

their period of authorized stay. Given 

this compliance with H–2B program, 

and absent additional derogatory 

information indicating an unacceptable 

potential for fraud or program abuse, 

DHS and DOS are not removing 

Mongolia from the list of eligible 

countries for the H–2B program at this 

time. 

Samoa has been designated as ‘‘At 

Risk of Non-Compliance’’ according to 

ICE’s FY 2020 mid-year assessment of 

the country’s cooperation with respect 

to issuance of travel documents for 

citizens, subjects, nationals, and 

residents of that country who are subject 

to a final order of removal. Samoa was 

removed from the H–2 list in 2018 due 

to its designation as ‘‘At Risk of NonCompliance.’’ 83 FR 2646, 2647. When 

Samoa demonstrated increased 

cooperation with the United States 

regarding the return of its nationals with 

final orders of removal, DHS and DOS 

added Samoa back to the list of H–2 

eligible countries in 2019. 84 FR 133, 

135. However, Samoa reverted back to 

being ‘‘At Risk of Non-Compliance’’ in 

ICE’s FY 2019 mid-year assessment and 

has continued to be ‘‘At Risk of NonCompliance’’ since then. Samoa’s 

inconsistent cooperation with the 

United States regarding the return of its 

nationals and citizens with final orders 

of removal does not serve the U.S. 

interest. Therefore, the Secretary of 

Homeland Security, with the 

concurrence of the Secretary of State, is 

removing Samoa from the list of H–2A 

and H–2B eligible countries. 

Tonga has been designated as ‘‘At 

Risk of Non-Compliance’’ according to 

ICE’s FY 2020 mid-year assessment of 

the country’s cooperation with respect 

to the refusal to accept ICE charter 

flights for the repatriation of its 

nationals that have been ordered 

removed from the United States. 

Tonga’s inconsistent cooperation with 

the United States regarding the return of 

its nationals and citizens with final 

orders of removal does not serve the 

U.S. interest. Therefore, the Secretary of 

Homeland Security, with the 

concurrence of the Secretary of State, is 

removing Tonga from the list of H–2A 

and H–2B eligible countries. 

On the basis of the foregoing analysis, 

DHS has removed three countries from 

the H–2A and/or H–2B country 

eligibility lists for 2021. Nonetheless, 

nationals of non-designated countries 

may still be beneficiaries of approved 

H–2A and H–2B petitions upon the 

request of the petitioner if USCIS 

determines, as a matter of discretion and 

on a case-by-case basis, that it is in the 

U.S. interest for the individual to be a 

beneficiary of such petition. See 8 CFR 

214.2(h)(5)(i)(F)(1)(ii) and 8 CFR 

214.2(h)(6)(i)(E)(2). USCIS may 

favorably consider a beneficiary of an 

H–2A or H–2B petition who is not a 

national of a country included on the 

H–2A or H–2B eligibility list as serving 

the national interest, depending on the 

totality of the circumstances. Factors 

USCIS may consider include, among 

other things, whether a beneficiary has 

previously been admitted to the United 

States in H–2A or H–2B status and 

complied with the terms of the program. 

An additional factor for beneficiaries of 

H–2B petitions, although not necessarily 

determinative standing alone, would be 

whether the H–2B petition qualifies 

under section 1049 of the National 

Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for 

FY 2018, Public Law 115–91 or section 

1045 of the NDAA for FY 2019, Public 

Law 115–232. However, any ultimate 

determination of eligibility will be made 

according to all of the relevant factors 

and evidence in each individual 

circumstance. 

Countries Now Designated as Eligible 

The Secretary of Homeland Security 

has also determined, with the 

concurrence of the Secretary of State, 

that the Philippines should be 

designated as eligible to participate in 

the H–2B non-immigrant visa program 

because the participation of the 

Philippines is in the U.S. interest 

consistent with the regulations 

governing this program. 

The U.S. military realignment away 

from Japan and subsequent military 

construction on Guam requires a 

sizeable workforce that cannot be 

sustained by the local workforce in 

Guam. According to the U.S. 

Department of Defense, the need for 

more labor to work in military 

construction is likely to grow 

significantly in the next five years. 

Additionally, the influx of military 

personnel and activity on Guam will 

cause a surge in demand in the civilian 

construction sector (i.e., homes, 

expansion of hospitals, commercial 

projects, etc.). The U.S. Department of 

Interior continues to register the 

significant dependence that Guam and 

the Commonwealth of the Northern 

Mariana Islands (CNMI) has on foreign 

workers from the Philippines to 

supplement necessary and essential 

components of their workforce. As such, 

to ensure the labor needs of the U.S. 

military realignment projects in Guam 

and the labor shortages experienced in 

the CNMI are met properly, adding the 

Philippines to the H–2B eligible 

countries list serves the U.S. interest. 

Designation of Countries Whose 

Nationals Are Eligible To Participate in 

the H–2A and H–2B Nonimmigrant 

Worker Programs 

Pursuant to the authority provided to 

the Secretary of Homeland Security 

under sections 214(a)(1), 215(a)(1), and 

241 of the Immigration and Nationality 

Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(a)(1), 1185(a)(1), and 

1231), I am designating, with the 

concurrence of the Secretary of State, 

nationals from the following countries 

to be eligible to participate in the H–2A 

nonimmigrant worker program: 

1. Andorra 

2. Argentina 

3. Australia 

4. Austria 

5. Barbados 

6. Belgium 

7. Brazil 

8. Brunei 

9. Bulgaria 

10. Canada 

11. Chile 

12. Colombia 

13. Costa Rica 

14. Croatia 

15. Czech Republic 

16. Denmark 

17. Dominican Republic 

18. Ecuador 

19. El Salvador 

20. Estonia 

21. Fiji 

22. Finland 

23. France 

24. Germany 

25. Greece 

26. Grenada 

27. Guatemala 

28. Honduras 

29. Hungary 

30. Iceland 

31. Ireland 

32. Israel 

33. Italy 

34. Jamaica 

35. Japan 

36. Kiribati 

37. Latvia 

38. Liechtenstein 

39. Lithuania 

40. Luxembourg 

41. Madagascar 

42. Malta 

43. Mexico 

44. Moldova 

45. Monaco 

46. Montenegro 

47. Mozambique 

48. Nauru 

49. The Netherlands 

50. New Zealand 

51. Nicaragua 

52. North Macedonia (formerly Macedonia) 

53. Norway 

54. Panama 

55. Papua New Guinea 

56. Paraguay 

57. Peru 

58. Poland 

59. Portugal 

60. Romania 

2692 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 8 / Wednesday, January 13, 2021 / Notices 

61. San Marino 

62. Serbia 

63. Singapore 

64. Slovakia 

65. Slovenia 

66. Solomon Islands 

67. South Africa 

68. South Korea 

69. Spain 

70. St. Vincent and the Grenadines 

71. Sweden 

72. Switzerland 

73. Taiwan 

74. Thailand 

75. Timor-Leste 

76. Turkey 

77. Tuvalu 

78. Ukraine 

79. United Kingdom 

80. Uruguay 

81. Vanuatu 

Pursuant to the authority provided to 

the Secretary of Homeland Security 

under sections 214(a)(1), 215(a)(1), and 

241 of the Immigration and Nationality 

Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(a)(1), 1185(a)(1), and 

1231), I am designating, with the 

concurrence of the Secretary of State, 

nationals from the following countries 

to be eligible to participate in the H–2B 

nonimmigrant worker program: 

1. Andorra 

2. Argentina 

3. Australia 

4. Austria 

5. Barbados 

6. Belgium 

7. Brazil 

8. Brunei 

9. Bulgaria 

10. Canada 

11. Chile 

12. Colombia 

13. Costa Rica 

14. Croatia 

15. Czech Republic 

16. Denmark 

17. Ecuador 

18. El Salvador 

19. Estonia 

20. Fiji 

21. Finland 

22. France 

23. Germany 

24. Greece 

25. Grenada 

26. Guatemala 

27. Honduras 

28. Hungary 

29. Iceland 

30. Ireland 

31. Israel 

32. Italy 

33. Jamaica 

34. Japan 

35. Kiribati 

36. Latvia 

37. Liechtenstein 

38. Lithuania 

39. Luxembourg 

40. Madagascar 

41. Malta 

42. Mexico 

43. Monaco 

44. Mongolia 

45. Montenegro 

46. Mozambique 

47. Nauru 

48. The Netherlands 

49. New Zealand 

50. Nicaragua 

51. North Macedonia (formerly Macedonia) 

52. Norway 

53. Panama 

54. Papua New Guinea 

55. Peru 

56. Philipinnes 

57. Poland 

58. Portugal 

59. Romania 

60. San Marino 

61. Serbia 

62. Singapore 

63. Slovakia 

64. Slovenia 

65. Solomon Islands 

66. South Africa 

67. South Korea 

68. Spain 

69. St. Vincent and the Grenadines 

70. Sweden 

71. Switzerland 

72. Taiwan 

73. Thailand 

74. Timor-Leste 

75. Turkey 

76. Tuvalu 

77. Ukraine 

78. United Kingdom 

79. Uruguay 

80. Vanuatu 

This notice does not affect the current 

status of aliens who at the time of 

publication of this notice hold valid H– 

2A or H–2B nonimmigrant status. 

Aliens currently holding such status, 

however, will be affected by this notice 

should they seek an extension of stay in 

H–2 classification, or a change of status 

from one H–2 status to another, for 

employment on or after the effective 

date of this notice. Similarly, aliens 

holding nonimmigrant status other than 

H–2 status are not affected by this notice 

unless they seek a change of status to H– 

2 status. 

Nothing in this notice limits the 

authority of the Secretary of Homeland 

Security or his designee or any other 

federal agency to invoke against any 

foreign country or its nationals any 

other remedy, penalty, or enforcement 

action available by law. 

The Senior Official Performing the 

Duties of the Deputy Secretary, Kenneth 

T. Cuccinelli II, having reviewed and 

approved this document, is delegating 

the authority to electronically sign this 

document to Ian J. Brekke, who is the 

Senior Official Performing the Duties of 

the General Counsel for DHS, for 

purposes of publication in the Federal 

Register. 

Ian J. Brekke, 

Senior Official Performing the Duties of the 

General Counsel. 

[FR Doc. 2021–00671 Filed 1–12–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4410–10–P 

INTERNATIONAL TRADE 

COMMISSION 

[Investigation Nos. 332–584] 

Squash: Effect of Imports on U.S. 

Seasonal Markets, With A Focus on the 

U.S. Southeast 

ACTION: Notice of investigation and 

scheduling of a public hearing. 

SUMMARY: Following receipt on 

December 7, 2020, of a request from the 

U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), 

under section 332(g) of the Tariff Act of 

1930, the U.S. International Trade 

Commission (Commission) instituted 

Investigation No. 332–584, Squash: 

Effect of Imports on U.S. Seasonal 

Markets, with a Focus on the U.S. 

Southeast. The USTR asked that the 

investigation cover all imports that fall 

within the product description of U.S. 

Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading 

0709.93.20 (squash, fresh or chilled). 

DATES: 

March 25, 2021: Deadline for filing 

requests to appear at the public hearing. 

March 29, 2021: Deadline for filing 

prehearing briefs and statements. 

April 1, 2021: Deadline for filing 

electronic copies of oral hearing 

statements. 

April 8, 2021: Public hearing. 

April 15, 2021: Deadline for filing 

post-hearing briefs and statements. 

April 27, 2021: Deadline for filing all 

other written submissions. 

December 7, 2021: Transmittal of 

Commission report to the USTR. 

ADDRESSES: All Commission offices, 

including the Commission’s hearing 

rooms, are located in the U.S. 

International Trade Commission 

Building, 500 E Street SW, Washington, 

DC. All written submissions should be 

addressed to the Secretary, U.S. 

International Trade Commission, 500 E 

Street SW, Washington, DC 20436. The 

public record for this investigation may 

be viewed on the Commission’s 

electronic docket (EDIS) at https://

edis.usitc.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Project Leader Lesley Ahmed 

(lesley.ahmed@usitc.gov or 202–205– 

3459), Deputy Project Leader Fernando 

Gracia (202–205–2747 or