Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 100 / Tuesday, May 23, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 33251

Comments Invited

Although this action is in the form of

a final rule and was not preceded by a

notice of proposed rulemaking,

comments are invited on this rule.

Interested persons are invited to

comment on this rule by submitting

such written data, views, or arguments

as they may desire. Communications

should identify the Rules Docket

number and be submitted in triplicate to

the address specified under the caption

ADDRESSES. All communications

received on or before the closing date

for comments will be considered, and

this rule may be amended or withdrawn

in light of the comments received.

Factual information that supports the

commenter’s ideas and suggestions is

extremely helpful in evaluating the

effectiveness of this action and

determining whether additional

rulemaking action would be needed.

Comments are specifically invited on

the overall regulatory, economic,

environmental, and energy-related

aspects of the rule that might suggest a

need to modify the rule. All comments

submitted will be available, both before

and after the closing date for comments,

in the Rules Docket for examination by

interested persons. A report that

summarizes each FAA-public contact

concerned with the substance of this

action will be filed in the Rules Docket.

Commenters wishing the FAA to

acknowledge receipt of their comments

submitted in response to this rule must

submit a self-addressed, stamped

postcard on which the following

statement is made: ‘‘Comments to

Docket No. 00–ACE–7.’’ The postcard

will be date stamped and returned to the

commenter.

Agency Findings

The regulations adopted herein will

not have a substantial direct effect on

the States, on the relationship between

the national Government and the States,

or on the distribution of power and

responsibilities among the various

levels of government. Therefore, it is

determined that this final rule does not

have federalism implications under

Executive Order 13132.

The FAA has determined that this

regulation is noncontroversial and

unlikely to result in adverse or negative

comments. For the reasons discussed in

the preamble, I certify that this

regulation (1) is not a ‘‘significant

regulatory rule’’ under Department of

Transportation (DOT) Regulatory

Policies and Procedures (44 FR 11034,

February 26, 1979); and (3) if

promulgated, will not have a significant

economic impact, positive or negative,

on a substantial number of small entities

under the criteria of the Regulatory

Flexibility Act.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 71

Airspace, Incorporation by reference,

Navigation (air).

Adoption of the Amendment

Accordingly, the Federal Aviation

Administration amends 14 CFR part 71

as follows:

PART 71—DESIGNATION OF CLASS A,

CLASS B, CLASS C, CLASS D, AND

CLASS E AIRSPACE AREAS;

AIRWAYS; ROUTES; AND REPORTING

POINTS

1. The authority citation for part 71

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40103, 40113,

40120; E.O. 10854, 24 FR 9565, 3 CFR, 1959–

1963 Comp., p. 389.

§ 71.1 [Amended]

2. The incorporation by reference in

14 CFR 71.1 of Federal Aviation

Administration Order 7400.9G Airspace

Designations and Reporting Points,

dated September 10, 1999, and effective

September 16, 1999, is amended as

follows:

Paragraph 6005 Class E airspace areas

extending upward from 700 feet or more

above the surface of the earth.

* * * * *

Hampton Municipal Airport, IA

(Lat. 42°43′26′′ N., long. 93°13′35′′ W.)

Hampton NDB

(Lat. 42°43′32′′ N., long. 93°13′30′′ W.)

That airspace extending upward from 700

feet above the surface within a 6.4-mile

radius of Hampton Municipal Airport and

within 2.6 miles each side of the 343° bearing

from the Hampton NDB extending from the

6.4 mile radius to 7.4 miles northwest of the

airport and 2 miles each side of the 177°

bearing from the Hampton Municipal Airport

extending from the 6.4 mile radius to 7.7

miles south of the airport, excluding that

airspace within the Mason City, IA Class E

airspace.

* * * * *

Issued in Kansas City, MO, on May 9, 2000.

Herman J. Lyons, Jr.,

Manager, Air Traffic Division, Central Region.

[FR Doc. 00–12821 Filed 5–22–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–13–M

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Customs Service

19 CFR Part 12

[T.D. 00–36]

RIN 1515–AC62

Entry of Softwood Lumber Shipments

From Canada

AGENCY: Customs Service, Treasury.

ACTION: Interim regulations; solicitation

of comments.

SUMMARY: This document adopts on an

interim basis an amendment to the

provision within the Customs

Regulations that sets forth entry

requirements for shipments of softwood

lumber from Canada under the

agreement between the Governments of

the United States and Canada regarding

trade in softwood lumber. This interim

amendment implements an amendment

to the softwood lumber agreement

involving the addition of two export fee

payment status categories (permit type

codes) covering softwood lumber from

the Canadian province of British

Columbia.

DATES:

Effective Date: Interim rule effective

May 23, 2000.

Comments: Comments must be

submitted by July 24, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be

addressed to, and inspected at, the

Regulations Branch, U.S. Customs

Service, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue,

NW., 3rd Floor, Washington, DC 20229.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Dixie Staple, Office of Field Operations

(202–927–1131).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

This document amends the Customs

Regulations on an interim basis to

reflect an amendment of the agreement

between the Governments of the United

States and Canada regarding trade in

softwood lumber. The amendment

involves the addition of two export fee

payment status categories (permit type

codes) covering softwood lumber from

the Canadian province of British

Columbia.

Adoption of the Softwood Lumber

Agreement

On May 29, 1996, the United States

entered into the Softwood Lumber

Agreement (the Agreement) with

Canada under the authority of section

301(c)(1)(D) of the Trade Act of 1974, as

amended (19 U.S.C. 2411(c)(1)(D)),

which authorizes the United States

33252 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 100 / Tuesday, May 23, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

Trade Representative (the USTR) to

‘‘enter into binding agreements’’ with a

foreign country that commit the foreign

country to, among other things,

eliminate any burden or restriction on

U.S. commerce resulting from an act,

policy or practice of the foreign country.

The Agreement, which went into effect

on April 1, 1996, was specifically

intended to provide a satisfactory

resolution to certain acts, policies and

practices of the Government of Canada

affecting exports to the United States of

softwood lumber which had been the

subject of an investigation initiated by

the USTR under section 302(b)(1)(A) of

the Trade Act of 1974, as amended (19

U.S.C. 2412(b)(1)(A)), and which on

October 4, 1991, pursuant to section

304(a) of the Trade Act of 1974, as

amended (19 U.S.C. 2414(a)), had been

found by the USTR to be unreasonable

and to burden or restrict U.S. commerce.

The Agreement was the product of a

consultative process established by the

United States and Canada and involving

the participation of the U.S.

Government, Canadian federal and

provincial governments and, where

appropriate, industries and other

interested parties in both countries.

The Agreement refers specifically to

softwood lumber mill products

classified in subheadings 4407.10.00,

4409.10.10, 4409.10.20, and 4409.10.90

of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of

the United States (HTSUS) that were

‘‘first manufactured’’ into a product of

one of those HTSUS subheadings in the

Canadian provinces of Ontario, Quebec,

British Columbia or Alberta. The

Agreement requires that Canada assess

fees on exports of that softwood lumber

in each of the five years following April

1, 1996, based on the following

schedule: (1) For total shipments up to

14.7 billion board feet, free (no fee); (2)

for any amount shipped in excess of

14.7 billion board feet but not in excess

of 15.35 billion board feet, US$50 per

thousand board feet in the first year and

with annual adjustments for inflation in

subsequent years; and (3) for any

amount shipped in excess of 15.35

billion board feet, US$100 per thousand

board feet and with annual adjustments

for inflation in subsequent years. The

Agreement also allows an additional

amount of exports of such softwood

lumber in excess of 14.7 billion board

feet without the payment of a fee if the

average price of a benchmark softwood

lumber price exceeds a prescribed

‘‘trigger price’’ during any quarterly

period. In order to control and monitor

exports of softwood lumber first

manufactured in Ontario, Quebec,

British Columbia and Alberta, the

Agreement provides that Canada will

issue an export permit for each

shipment of such softwood lumber and

that Canada will collect any required fee

for amounts of lumber exported in

excess of 14.7 billion board feet upon

issuance of the export permit.

The Agreement requires the collection

of information by Canada in connection

with the issuance of export permits for

softwood lumber first manufactured in

Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and

Alberta and the collection of

information by the United States in

connection with import transactions

involving that lumber.

With regard to the import end, the

Agreement obligates the United States to

require that the U.S. importer provide

specific information in connection with

the entry of the lumber under section

484 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as

amended (19 U.S.C. 1484). The

information required to be collected

under the Agreement includes the

following three specific data elements

which were not previously required

under the Customs laws and

regulations, the last two of which were

required by the Agreement to be

collected as soon as practicable after the

entry into force of the Agreement: (1)

The province of first manufacture of the

lumber; (2) the export permit number

issued in Canada for the shipment; and

(3) the fee status of the lumber for which

the export permit was issued (whether

the lumber in the shipment was

attributed to a quantity to which no fee

applies or to a quantity that is subject

to the US$50 fee or to a quantity that is

subject to the US$100 fee or to a

quantity that is covered by the trigger

price mechanism).

Implementing Regulations

On February 26, 1997, Customs

published in the Federal Register (62

FR 8620) T.D. 97–6 which set forth

interim amendments to the Customs

Regulations to provide an appropriate

regulatory context for the new

requirements resulting from the

Agreement as described above. Those

amendments included the adoption of a

new § 12.140 (19 CFR 12.140) which

specifically addresses the entry

requirements for softwood lumber under

the agreement. Paragraph (b) of § 12.140

prescribes the information to be

included on the entry summary and

requires, under subparagraph (b)(2)(ii),

an indication of the export fee payment

status of the product for which the

permit was issued according to one of

four categories, Category A through

Category D.

Amendment of the Agreement

On June 1, 1998, the British Columbia

Forest Ministry reduced stumpage

(timber harvesting) fees charged on all

timber grown on provincially-owned

lands, which accounts for the

overwhelming majority of timber

harvested in the province. The United

States considered this reduction to be a

violation of the Agreement and therefore

invoked the dispute settlement

provisions of the Agreement. When

consultations failed to resolve the

dispute, an Arbitration Panel was

formed, Canada and the United States

made submissions to the Arbitration

Panel, and oral hearings were held. The

dispute was ultimately settled, without

issuance of a decision by the Arbitration

Panel, on August 26, 1999, by an

exchange of letters between the

Governments of Canada and the United

States which amended the Agreement

and terminated the dispute.

The August 26, 1999, settlement and

amendment of the Agreement applies

only to softwood lumber first

manufactured in British Columbia and

applies only in the fourth and fifth years

of the Agreement. The effect of the

settlement and amended Agreement is

to require Canada: (1) To impose the

higher of the two basic export fee levels

called for under the Agreement ($100

per thousand board feet with annual

adjustments for inflation after the first

year) at lower lumber export levels for

the province than previously was the

case and (2) to impose a new, higher fee

on lumber exports when they exceed

recent average annual shipments to the

United States from the province.

Specifically, under the terms of the

settlement and amended Agreement:

1. In the fourth year (April 1, 1999–

March 31, 2000):

a. Ninety million board feet of the

362.3 million board feet lower fee base

(LFB) allocation to British Columbia

companies in that year will be re-priced

at the current upper fee base (UFB) fee

level (that is, US$105.86 per thousand

board feet which represents the adjusted

$100 fee applicable during the fourth

year), and Canada will collect a fee

equivalent to that UFB fee level on the

issuance of a permit for export of the

softwood lumber to the United States

(‘‘re-priced LFB’’); and

b. Canada will collect a fee on the

issuance of a permit for export to the

United States of quantities of UFB by

British Columbia companies (which

includes re-priced LFB described in

paragraph 1.a. above) in excess of 110

million board feet (the average of the

UFB shipments for the first and second

years of the Agreement) at the fee level

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 100 / Tuesday, May 23, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 33253

of US$146.25 per thousand board feet

(US$105.86 per thousand board feet

plus US$40.39 per thousand board feet)

(‘‘re-priced UFB’’);

2. In the fifth year (April 1, 2000–

March 31, 2001):

a. Either 90 million board feet, or any

amount in excess of 272 million board

feet, whichever is greater, of LFB

allocations to British Columbia

companies in that year will be re-priced

at the current UFB level, and Canada

will collect a fee equivalent to that UFB

fee level on the issuance of a permit for

export of the softwood lumber to the

United States (‘‘re-priced LFB’’); and

b. Canada will collect a fee on the

issuance of a permit for export to the

United States of quantities of UFB by

British Columbia companies (which

includes re-priced LFB described in

paragraph 2.a. above) in excess of 110

million board feet (the average of the

UFB shipments for the first and second

years of the Agreement) at the fee level

of US$40.39 above the current UFB rate

(‘‘re-priced UFB’’); and

3. If any portion of LFB lumber

allocated to a British Columbia

company which has been re-priced

pursuant to paragraph 1.a. or paragraph

2.a. above is transferred to a company in

another Canadian province or is

returned for temporary reallocation,

Canada will collect a fee equivalent to

the current UFB level on the issuance of

a permit for export of the softwood

lumber to the United States.

Customs has determined that the

portion of § 12.140 that sets forth the

various export fee payment statuses to

be included on entry summaries must

be amended in order to accommodate

the new statuses that apply to softwood

lumber first manufactured in British

Columbia under the settlement and

amended Agreement discussed above.

In this regard, Customs has been

advised by the Government of Canada

that the new fee payment status

categories (permit type codes) that

Canada will assign to the subject British

Columbia exports are ‘‘R’’ for re-priced

LFB (that is, the products described in

paragraphs 1.a. and 2.a. above) and ‘‘S’’

for re-priced UFB (that is, the products

described in paragraphs 1.b. and 2.b.

above).

Accordingly, this document amends

the reporting requirement provisions

within § 12.140(b) on an interim basis

by adding two new subparagraphs

(b)(2)(ii)(E) and (b)(2)(ii)(F) to cover the

new ‘‘R’’ and ‘‘S’’ fee payment status

categories applicable to British

Columbia exports. It should be noted

that no reference is made in the new

regulatory text to transfers or

reallocations (paragraph 3. above)

because exports involving transfers and

reallocations would be reported as

having the category C export fee

payment status (that is, UFB) already

specified in subparagraph (b)(2)(ii)(C).

Comments

Before adopting this interim

regulation as a final rule, consideration

will be given to any written comments

timely submitted to Customs, including

comments on the clarity of this interim

rule and how it may be made easier to

understand. Comments submitted will

be available for public inspection in

accordance with the Freedom of

Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552), § 1.4,

Treasury Department Regulations (31

CFR 1.4), and § 103.11(b), Customs

Regulations (19 CFR 103.11(b)), on

regular business days between the hours

of 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. at the

Regulations Branch, Office of

Regulations and Rulings, U.S. Customs

Service, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue,

NW., 3rd Floor, Washington, DC.

Inapplicability of Notice and Delayed

Effective Date Requirements, the

Regulatory Flexibility Act, and

Executive Order 12866

Pursuant to the provisions of 5 U.S.C.

553(a), public notice is inapplicable to

this interim regulation because it is

within the foreign affairs function of the

United States. The collection of

information provided for in this interim

regulation is required under the terms of

the amended Softwood Lumber

Agreement with Canada and is

necessary to ensure effective monitoring

of the operation of that Agreement.

Furthermore, for the same reasons and

because the collection of this

information must begin as soon as

practicable, it is determined that good

cause exists under the provisions of 5

U.S.C. 553(d)(3) for dispensing with a

delayed effective date. Because no

notice of proposed rulemaking is

required for interim regulations, the

provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility

Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) do not apply;

and because this document involves a

foreign affairs function of the United

States and implements an international

agreement, it is not subject to the

provisions of Executive Order 12866.

Paperwork Reduction Act

The collections of information in the

current regulations have already been

approved by the Office of Management

and Budget (OMB) in accordance with

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

(44 U.S.C. 3507) and assigned OMB

control number 1515–0065 (Entry

summary and continuation sheet). This

rule does not involve any material

change to the existing approved

information collection.

An agency may not conduct or

sponsor, and a person is not required to

respond to, a collection of information

unless the collection of information

displays a valid control number

assigned by OMB.

List of Subjects in 19 CFR Part 12

Bonds, Canada, Customs duties and

inspection, Entry of merchandise,

Imports, Prohibited merchandise,

Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements, Restricted merchandise,

Trade agreements.

Amendment to the Regulations

For the reasons set forth in the

preamble, Part 12, Customs Regulations

(19 CFR Part 12), is amended as set forth

below.

PART 12—SPECIAL CLASSES OF

MERCHANDISE

1. The authority citation for Part 12

continues to read in part as follows:

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 19 U.S.C. 66, 1202

(General Note 20, Harmonized Tariff

Schedule of the United States (HTSUS)),

1624;

* * * * *

Section 12.140 also issued under 19 U.S.C.

1484, 2416(a), 2171;

* * * * *

2. In § 12.140:

a. Paragraph (b)(2)(ii)(C) is amended

by removing the word ‘‘or’’ at the end;

b. Paragraph (b)(2)(ii)(D) is amended

by removing the period at the end and

adding, in its place, a semicolon; and

c. New paragraphs (b)(2)(ii)(E) and

(b)(2)(ii)(F) are added to read as follows:

§ 12.140 Entry of softwood lumber from

Canada.

* * * * *

(b) * * *

(2) * * *

(ii) * * *

(E) Category R: Payment of the repriced lower fee base export fee

applicable to certain products first

manufactured in British Columbia; or

(F) Category S: Payment of the repriced upper fee base export fee

applicable to certain products first

manufactured in British Columbia.

* * * * *

Approved: April 18, 2000.

Raymond W. Kelly,

Commissioner of Customs,

John P. Simpson,

Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury.

[FR Doc. 00–12921 Filed 5–22–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4820–02–P