53852 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 200 / Thursday, October 16, 1997 / Notices

days after the conclusion of WTO

dispute settlement procedures,

whichever is earlier, whether any act,

policy, or practice or denial of trade

agreement rights described in section

301 of the Trade Act exists and, if that

determination is affirmative, the USTR

must determine what action, if any, to

take under section 301 of the Trade Act.

Public Comment: Requirement for

Submissions

Interested persons are invited to

submit written comments concerning

the acts, policies and practices of

Canada which are the subject of this

investigation, the amount of burden or

restriction on U.S. commerce caused by

these acts, policies and practices, and

the determinations required under

section 304 of the Trade Act. Comments

must be filed in accordance with the

requirements set forth in 15 CFR

2006.8(b) (55 FR 20593) and must be

filed on or before noon on Tuesday,

November 11, 1996. Comments must be

in English and provided in twenty

copies to: Sybia Harrison, Staff Assistant

to the Section 301 Committee, Room 22,

Office of the U.S. Trade Representative,

600 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC

20508.

Comments will be placed in a file

(Docket 301–113) open to public

inspection pursuant to 15 CFR 2006.13,

except confidential business

information exempt from public

inspection in accordance with 15 CFR

2006.15. Confidential business

information submitted in accordance

with 15 CFR 2006.15 must be clearly

marked ‘‘BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL’’

in a contrasting color ink at the top of

each page on each of 20 copies, and

must be accompanied by a

nonconfidential summary of the

confidential information. The

nonconfidential summary shall be

placed in the file that is open to public

inspection. Copies of the public version

of the petition and other relevant

documented are available for public

inspection in the USTR Reading Room.

An appointment to review the docket

(Docket No. 301–107) may be made by

calling Brenda Webb (202) 395–6186.

The USTR Reading Room is open the

public from 9:30 a.m. to 12 noon and 1

p.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday,

and is located in Room 101.

Irving A. Williamson,

Chairman, Section 301 Committee.

[FR Doc. 97–27306 Filed 10–15–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3190–01–M

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES

TRADE REPRESENTATIVE

[Docket No. 301–114]

Initiation of Section 302 Investigation

and Request for Public Comment: EU

Circumvention of Export Subsidy

Commitments on Dairy Products

AGENCY: Office of the United States

Trade Representative.

ACTION: Notice of initiation of

investigation; request for written

comments.

SUMMARY: The United States Trade

Representative (USTR) has initiated an

investigation under section 302(b)(1) of

the Trade Act of 1974, as amended (the

Trade Act), with respect to certain acts,

policies and practices of the European

Union (EU) concerning export subsidies

on processed cheese. The EU is bound

by commitments it made in the Uruguay

Round limiting the amount of cheese

that may be exported with export

subsidies. The EU is circumventing

these commitments by exporting

processed cheese under subsidy and

counting these exports against other

export subsidy commitments relating to

powdered milk and butterfat. The USTR

is investigating whether these acts,

policies and practices are inconsistent

with certain provisions of the

Agreement on Subsidies and

Countervailing Measures and the

Agreement on Agriculture. USTR invites

written comments from the public on

the matters being investigated.

DATES: This investigation was initiated

on October 8, 1997. Written comments

from the public are due on or before

noon on Tuesday, November 11, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Office of the United States

Trade Representative, 600 17th Street,

NW, Washington, DC 20508.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Suzanne Early, Senior Advisor, Office of

Agricultural Affairs, (202) 395–6127,

Elizabeth Hyman, Office of the General

Counsel, (202) 395–3150, or Daniel

Brinza, Senior Advisor and Special

Counsel for Natural Resources, (202)

395–7305.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section

302(b)(1) of the Trade Act, 19 U.S.C.

2412(b)(1), authorizes the USTR to

initiate an investigation under chapter 1

of Title III of the Trade Act (commonly

referred to as ‘‘section 301’’) with

respect to any matter in order to

determine whether the matter is

actionable under section 301. Matters

actionable under section 301 include,

inter alia, the denial of rights of the

United States under a trade agreement,

or acts, policies, and practices of a

foreign country that violate or are

inconsistent with the provisions of, or

otherwise deny benefits to the United

States under, any trade agreement.

Investigation and Consultations

On October 8, 1997, having consulted

with the appropriate private sector

advisory committees, the USTR

determined that an investigation should

be initiated to assess whether certain

acts, policies and practices of the EU

regarding export subsidies on processed

cheese are actionable under section

301(a).

The EU is bound by a schedule of

commitments it made in the Uruguay

Round limiting the amount of cheese

that may be exported with export

subsidies, as well as separate

commitments limiting subsidized

exports of various other agricultural

products. The EU appears to be

circumventing its commitments on

processed cheese by exporting

processed cheese under subsidy and

counting these exports against other

export subsidy commitments relating to

components of processed cheese such as

powdered milk, butterfat and natural

cheese. Beginning in February, 1997,

new rules implemented by the EU

(including Commission Regulations

300/97, 417/97 and 418/97) recast the

EU’s ‘‘inward processing’’ regime to

count the export subsidies on processed

cheese as subsidies on the components

of the cheese, instead. These acts,

policies and practices appear to be

inconsistent with certain provisions of

the Agreement on Subsidies and

Countervailing Measures and the

Agreement on Agriculture.

As required in section 303(a) of the

Trade Act, the USTR has requested

consultations with the EU regarding the

issues under investigation. The request

was made pursuant to Article 4 of the

Understanding on Rules and Procedures

Governing the Settlement of Disputes

(DSU), Article XXII of the GATT 1994,

Article 19 of the Agreement on

Agriculture to the extent it incorporates

Article XXII of the GATT 1994, and

Article 30 of the Agreement on

Subsidies and Countervailing Measures

to the extent it incorporates Article XXII

of the GATT 1994. If the consultations

do not result in a satisfactory resolution

of the matter, the USTR will request the

establishment of a panel pursuant to

Article 6 of the DSU. USTR will seek

information and advice from the

petitioner and appropriate

representatives provided for under

section 135 of the Trade Act in

preparing the U.S. presentations for

such consultations.
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 200 / Thursday, October 16, 1997 / Notices 53853

Under section 304 of the Trade Act,

the USTR must determine within 18

months after the date on which this

investigation was initiated, or within 30

days after the conclusion of World

Trade Organization dispute settlement

procedures, whichever is earlier,

whether any act, policy, or practice or

denial of trade agreement rights

described in section 301 of the Trade

Act exists and, if that determination is

affirmative, the USTR must determine

what action, if any, to take under

section 301 of the Trade Act.

Public Comment: Requirements for

Submissions

Interested persons are invited to

submit written comments concerning

the EU acts, policies and practices

which are the subject of this

investigation, the amount of burden or

restriction on U.S. commerce caused by

these acts, policies and practices, and

the determinations required under

section 304 of the Trade Act. Comments

must be filed in accordance with the

requirements set forth in 15 CFR

2006.8(b) (55 FR 20593) and must be

filed on or before noon on Wednesday,

November 6, 1996. Comments must be

in English and provided in twenty

copies to: Sybia Harrison, Staff Assistant

to the Section 301 Committee, Room

223, Office of the U.S. Trade

Representative, 600 17th Street, NW,

Washington, DC 20508.

Comments will be placed in a file

(Docket 301–114) open to public

inspection pursuant to 15 CFR 2006.13,

except confidential business

information exempt from public

inspection in accordance with 15 CFR

2006.15. Confidential business

information submitted in accordance

with 15 CFR 2006.15 must be clearly

marked ‘‘BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL’’

in a contrasting color ink at the top of

each page on each of 20 copies, and

must be accompanied by a

nonconfidential summary of the

confidential information. The

nonconfidential summary shall be

placed in the file that is open to public

inspection. An appointment to review

the docket (Docket No. 301–112) may be

made by calling Brenda Webb (202)

395–6186. The USTR Reading Room is

open to the public from 9:30 a.m. to 12

noon and 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.,

Monday through Friday, and is located

in Room 101.

Irving A. Williamson,

Chairman, Section 301 Committee.

[FR Doc. 97–27305 Filed 10–15–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3190–01–M

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES

TRADE REPRESENTATIVE

[Docket No. 301–112]

Initiation of Section 302 Investigation

and Request for Public Comment:

Japan Market Access Barriers to

Agricultural Products

AGENCY: Office of the United States

Trade Representative.

ACTION: Notice of initiation of

investigation; request for written

comments.

SUMMARY: The United States Trade

Representative (USTR) has initiated an

investigation under section 302(b)(1) of

the Trade Act of 1974, (the Trade Act),

with respect to certain acts, policies and

practices of the Government of Japan

concerning Japan’s prohibition on

imports of certain agricultural products.

Specifically, for each agricultural

product for which Japan requires

quarantine treatment, Japan prohibits

the importation of each variety of that

product until the quarantine treatment

has been tested for that variety, even

though the treatment has proven

effective with respect to other varieties

of the same product. This redundant

testing requirement has no apparent

scientific basis but serves as a

significant barrier to market access. The

United States alleges that these acts,

policies and practices are inconsistent

with certain provisions of the

Agreement on the Application of

Sanitary and Phytosanitary measures,

the General Agreement on Tariffs and

Trade 1994 (‘‘GATT 1994’’), and the

Agreement on Agriculture. USTR invites

written comments from the public on

the matters being investigated.

DATES: This investigation was initiated

on October 7, 1997. Written comments

from the public are due on or before

noon on Tuesday, November 11, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Office of the United States

Trade Representative, 600 17th Street,

NW, Washington, DC 20508.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Audrae Erickson, Office of Agricultural

Affairs (202) 395–6127, Elizabeth

Hyman, Office of the General Counsel,

(202) 395–3150, or Daniel Brinza, Senior

Advisor and Special Counsel for Natural

Resources, (202) 395–7305.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section

302(b)(1) of the Trade Act, 19 U.S.C.

2412(b)(1), authorizes the USTR to

initiate an investigation under chapter 1

of Title III of the Trade Act (commonly

referred to as ‘‘section 301’’) with

respect to any matter in order to

determine whether the matter is

actionable under section 301. Matters

actionable under section 301 include,

inter alia, the denial of rights of the

United States under a trade agreement,

or acts, policies, and practices of a

foreign country that violate or are

inconsistent with the provisions of, or

otherwise deny benefits to the United

States under, any trade agreement.

Investigation and Consultations

On October 7, 1997, having consulted

with the appropriate private sector

advisory committees, the USTR

determined that an investigation should

be initiated to assess whether certain

acts, policies and practices of Japan

regarding a prohibition on imports of

certain agricultural products are

actionable under section 301(a) and has

requested the consultations required

under section 303(a) of the Trade Act.

For each agricultural product for which

Japan requires quarantine treatment,

Japan prohibits the importation of each

variety of that product until the

quarantine treatment has been tested for

that variety, even though the treatment

has proven effective with respect to

other varieties of the same product. The

relevant provisions of Japanese laws

include the Plant Protection Law (Law

No. 151) enacted May 4, 1950, as

amended, and the Plant Protection Law

Enforcement Regulation (Ministry of

Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries

Ordnance No. 73) of June 30, 1950, as

amended.

For example, after years of effort by

the United States, in January 1995 Japan

agreed to permit imports of U.S. Red

Delicious and Golden Delicious apples

based on Japan’s determination that

treatment of fruit from inspected

orchards both with methyl bromide

fumigation and a cold storage treatment

would be effective against codling moth,

a plant pest. However, Japan has refused

to allow other varieties of apples, such

as Gala, Fuji, Braeburn, Jonagold and

Granny Smith, to be imported into Japan

unless lengthy and expensive tests are

performed on each variety to prove the

efficacy of the same methyl bromide/

cold storage treatment at killing codling

moths. There is no scientific basis for

distinguishing between different

varieties of fruit in this respect. This

practice of Japan affects not just apple

imports, but imports of other fruit as

well.

The USTR believes that these

measures are inconsistent with the

obligations of Japan under several

provisions of the WTO Agreements,

including Articles 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8 of

the Agreement on the Application of

Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures;

Article XI of the General Agreement on