[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 205 (Wednesday, October 25, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73311-73313]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-23612]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-552-008]


Gas Powered Pressure Washers From the Socialist Republic of 
Vietnam: Antidumping Duty Order

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: Based on affirmative final determinations by the U.S. 
Department of Commerce (Commerce) and the U.S. International Trade 
Commission (ITC), Commerce is issuing an antidumping duty order on gas 
powered pressure washers (pressure washers) from the Socialist Republic 
of Vietnam (Vietnam).

DATES: Applicable October 25, 2023.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laurel LaCivita or Matthew Palmer, AD/
CVD Operations, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-4243 and (202) 482-1678, 
respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On August 29, 2023, Commerce published its affirmative final 
determination in the less-than-fair-value (LTFV) investigation of 
pressure washers from Vietnam.\1\ On October 13, 2023, the ITC notified 
Commerce of its final determination, pursuant to section 735(d) of the 
Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), that an industry in the 
United States is materially injured within the meaning of section 
735(b)(1)(A)(i) of the Act by reason of LTFV imports of pressure 
washers from Vietnam.\2\
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    \1\ See Gas Powered Pressure Washers from the Socialist Republic 
of Vietnam: Final Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than 
Fair Value and Final Affirmative Determination of Critical 
Circumstances, 88 FR 59503 (August 29, 2023).
    \2\ See ITC's Letter, Notification Letter: Investigation No. 
731-TA-1598 (Final), dated October 13, 2023.
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Scope of the Order

    The products covered by this order are gas powered pressure washers 
from Vietnam. For a complete description of the scope of this order, 
see the appendix to this notice.

Antidumping Duty Order

    On October 13, 2023, in accordance with section 735(d) of the Act, 
the ITC notified Commerce of its final determination in this 
investigation, in which it found that an industry in the United States 
is materially injured by reason of imports of pressure washers from 
Vietnam.\3\ Therefore, in accordance with section 735(c)(2) of the Act, 
Commerce is issuing this antidumping duty order. Because the ITC 
determined that imports of pressure washers from Vietnam materially 
injure a U.S. industry, unliquidated entries of such merchandise from 
Vietnam, entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, are 
subject to the assessment of antidumping duties.
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    \3\ Id.
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    Therefore, in accordance with section 736(a)(1) of the Act, 
Commerce will direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to 
assess, upon further instruction by Commerce, antidumping duties equal 
to the amount by which the normal value of the merchandise exceeds the 
export price (or constructed export price) of the merchandise, for all 
relevant entries of pressure washers from Vietnam. Antidumping duties 
will be assessed on unliquidated entries of pressure washers from 
Vietnam entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption, on or 
after June 15, 2023, the date of publication of the Preliminary 
Determination in the Federal Register, except as noted in the 
``Provisional Measures'' section below.\4\
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    \4\ See Gas Powered Pressure Washers from the Socialist Republic 
of Vietnam: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less 
Than Fair Value and Preliminary Determination of Critical 
Circumstances, 88 FR 39221 (June 15, 2023) (Preliminary 
Determination).
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Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 735(c)(1)(B) of the Act, Commerce will 
instruct CBP to continue to suspend liquidation on all relevant entries 
of pressure washers from Vietnam, except as noted below. These 
instructions suspending liquidation will remain in effect until further 
notice.
    Commerce will also instruct CBP to require cash deposits equal to 
the estimated weighted-average dumping margin indicated in the table 
below. Accordingly, effective on the date of publication in the Federal 
Register of the notice of the ITC's final affirmative injury 
determination, CBP will require, at the same time as importers would 
normally deposit estimated duties on subject merchandise, a cash 
deposit equal to the rate listed below.

Estimated Weighted-Average Dumping Margin

    The estimated weighted-average dumping margin is as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Estimated
                                                               weighted-
                                                                average
                      Exporter/producer                         dumping
                                                                margin
                                                               (percent)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vietnam-Wide Entity.........................................      225.86
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Critical Circumstances

    With respect to the ITC's negative critical circumstances 
determination on imports of pressure washers from Vietnam, Commerce 
intends to instruct CBP to lift suspension and to refund any cash 
deposits made to secure the payment of estimated antidumping duties 
with respect to entries of the subject merchandise from Vietnam 
entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after March 
17, 2023 (i.e., 90 days prior to the date of the publication of the 
Preliminary Determination), but before June 15, 2023 (i.e., the date of 
publication of the Preliminary Determination).

Provisional Measures

    Section 733(d) of the Act states that suspension of liquidation 
pursuant to an affirmative preliminary determination may not remain in 
effect for more than four months, except where exporters representing a 
significant proportion of exports of the subject merchandise request 
that Commerce extend the four-month period to no more than six months. 
None of the exporters of pressure washers requested Commerce to extend 
the four-month period to six months in this investigation.
    The provisional measures period, beginning on the date of 
publication of the Preliminary Determination, ended on October 12, 
2023. Therefore, in accordance with section 733(d) of the Act, Commerce 
will instruct CBP to terminate the suspension of liquidation and to 
liquidate, without regard to antidumping duties, unliquidated entries 
of pressure washers from Vietnam entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, 
for consumption after October 12, 2023, the final day on which the 
provisional measures were in effect, until and through the day 
preceding the date of publication of the ITC's final affirmative injury

[[Page 73312]]

determinations in the Federal Register. Suspension of liquidation and 
the collection of cash deposits will resume on the date of publication 
of the ITC's final determination in the Federal Register.

Establishment of the Annual Inquiry Service Lists

    On September 20, 2021, Commerce published the final rule titled 
``Regulations to Improve Administration and Enforcement of Antidumping 
and Countervailing Duty Laws'' in the Federal Register.\5\ On September 
27, 2021, Commerce also published the notice titled ``Scope Ruling 
Application; Annual Inquiry Service List; and Informational Sessions'' 
in the Federal Register.\6\ The Final Rule and Procedural Guidance 
provide that Commerce will maintain an annual inquiry service list for 
each order or suspended investigation, and any interested party 
submitting a scope ruling application or request for circumvention 
inquiry shall serve a copy of the application or request on the persons 
on the annual inquiry service list for that order, as well as any 
companion order covering the same merchandise from the same country of 
origin.\7\
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    \5\ See Regulations to Improve Administration and Enforcement of 
Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Laws, 86 FR 52300 (September 20, 
2021) (Final Rule).
    \6\ See Scope Ruling Application; Annual Inquiry Service List; 
and Informational Sessions, 86 FR 53205 (September 27, 2021) 
(Procedural Guidance).
    \7\ Id.
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    In accordance with the Procedural Guidance, for orders published in 
the Federal Register after November 4, 2021, Commerce will create an 
annual inquiry service list segment in Commerce's online e-filing and 
document management system, Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Electronic Service System (ACCESS), available at https://access.trade.gov, within five business days of publication of the 
notice of the order. Each annual inquiry service list will be saved in 
ACCESS, under each case number, and under a specific segment type 
called ``AISL-Annual Inquiry Service List.'' \8\
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    \8\ This segment will be combined with the ACCESS Segment 
Specific Information (SSI) field which will display the month in 
which the notice of the order or suspended investigation was 
published in the Federal Register, also known as the anniversary 
month. For example, for an order under case number A-000-000 that 
was published in the Federal Register in January, the relevant 
segment and SSI combination will appear in ACCESS as ``AISL-January 
Anniversary.'' Note that there will be only one annual inquiry 
service list segment per case number, and the anniversary month will 
be pre-populated in ACCESS.
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    Interested parties who wish to be added to the annual inquiry 
service list for an order must submit an entry of appearance to the 
annual inquiry service list segment for the order in ACCESS within 30 
days after the date of publication of the order. For ease of 
administration, Commerce requests that law firms with more than one 
attorney representing interested parties in an order designate a lead 
attorney to be included on the annual inquiry service list. Commerce 
will finalize the annual inquiry service list within five business days 
thereafter. As mentioned in the Procedural Guidance,\9\ the new annual 
inquiry service list will be in place until the following year, when 
the Opportunity Notice for the anniversary month of the order is 
published.
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    \9\ See Procedural Guidance.
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    Commerce may update an annual inquiry service list at any time as 
needed based on interested parties' amendments to their entries of 
appearance to remove or otherwise modify their list of members and 
representatives, or to update contact information. Any changes or 
announcements pertaining to these procedures will be posted to the 
ACCESS website at https://access.trade.gov.

Special Instructions for Petitioners and Foreign Governments

    In the Final Rule, Commerce stated that, ``after an initial request 
and placement on the annual inquiry service list, both petitioners and 
foreign governments will automatically be placed on the annual inquiry 
service list in the years that follow.'' \10\ Accordingly, as stated 
above, the petitioner and Government of Vietnam should submit their 
initial entries of appearance after publication of this notice in order 
to appear in the first annual inquiry service lists for this order. 
Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.225(n)(3), the petitioner and the Government of 
Vietnam will not need to resubmit their entries of appearance each year 
to continue to be included on the annual inquiry service list. However, 
the petitioner and the Government of Vietnam are responsible for making 
amendments to their entries of appearance during the annual update to 
the annual inquiry service list in accordance with the procedures 
described above.
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    \10\ See Final Rule, 86 FR at 52335.
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Notification to Interested Parties

    This notice constitutes the antidumping duty order with respect to 
pressure washers from Vietnam pursuant to section 736(a) of the Act. 
Interested parties can find a list of antidumping duty orders currently 
in effect at https://enforcement.trade.gov/stats/iastats1.html.
    This antidumping duty order is published in accordance with 
sections 735(e) and 736(a) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.224(e) and 19 CFR 
351.211(b).

    Dated: October 19, 2023.
Abdelali Elouaradia,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix

Scope of the Order

    The merchandise covered by this order is cold water gas powered 
pressure washers (also commonly known as power washers), which are 
machines that clean surfaces using water pressure that are powered 
by an internal combustion engine, air-cooled with a power take-off 
shaft, in combination with a positive displacement pump. This 
combination of components (i.e., the internal combustion engine, the 
power take-off shaft, and the positive displacement pump) is defined 
as the ``power unit.'' The scope of this order covers cold water gas 
powered pressure washers, whether finished or unfinished, whether 
assembled or unassembled, and whether or not containing any 
additional parts or accessories to assist in the function of the 
``power unit,'' including, but not limited to, spray guns, hoses, 
lances, and nozzles. The scope of this order covers cold water gas 
powered pressure washers, whether or not assembled or packaged with 
a frame, cart, or trolley, with or without wheels attached.
    For purposes of this order, an unfinished and/or unassembled 
cold water gas powered pressure washer consists of, at a minimum, 
the power unit or components of the power unit, packaged or imported 
together. Importation of the power unit whether or not accompanied 
by, or attached to, additional components including, but not limited 
to a frame, spray guns, hoses, lances, and nozzles constitutes an 
unfinished cold water gas powered pressure washer for purposes of 
this scope. The inclusion in a third country of any components other 
than the power unit does not remove the cold water gas powered 
pressure washer from the scope. A cold water gas powered pressure 
washer is within the scope of this order regardless of the origin of 
its engine. Subject merchandise also includes finished and 
unfinished cold water gas powered pressure washers that are further 
processed in a third country or in the United States, including, but 
not limited to, assembly or any other processing that would not 
otherwise remove the merchandise from the scope of this order if 
performed in the country of manufacture of the in-scope cold water 
gas powered pressure washers.
    The scope excludes hot water gas powered pressure washers, which 
are pressure washers that include a heating element used to heat the 
water sprayed from the machine.
    Also specifically excluded from the scope of this order is 
merchandise covered by the scope of the antidumping and 
countervailing duty orders on certain vertical shaft engines between 
99cc and up to 225cc, and parts

[[Page 73313]]

thereof from the People's Republic of China. See Certain Vertical 
Shaft Engines Between 99 cc and Up to 225cc, and Parts Thereof from 
the People's Republic of China: Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Orders, 86 FR 023675 (May 4, 2021).
    The cold water gas powered pressure washers subject to this 
order are classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United 
States (HTSUS) at subheadings 8424.30.9000 and 8424.90.9040. 
Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and 
customs purposes, the written description of the scope is 
dispositive.

[FR Doc. 2023-23612 Filed 10-24-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P