Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 233 / Wednesday, December 6, 2023 / Notices 84869 

12 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12), (59). 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.12

Sherry R. Haywood, 

Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2023–26729 Filed 12–5–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION 

Military Reservist Economic Injury 

Disaster Loans; Interest Rate for First 

Quarter FY 2024 

AGENCY: Small Business Administration. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: This is a notice for the 

Military Reservist Economic Injury 

Disaster Loans interest rate for loans 

approved on or after October 31, 2023. 

DATES: Issued on November 30, 2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Robert Blocker, Office of Financial 

Assistance, U.S. Small Business 

Administration, at robert.blocker@

sba.gov; or (202) 619–0477. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Small 

Business Administration publishes an 

interest rate for Military Reservist 

Economic Injury Disaster Loans (13 CFR 

123.512) on a quarterly basis. The 

interest rate will be 4.000 for loans 

approved on or after October 31, 2023. 

Robert Blocker, 

Chief, Disaster Loan Policy Division, Office 

of Financial Assistance. 

[FR Doc. 2023–26397 Filed 12–5–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8026–09–P 

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES 

TRADE REPRESENTATIVE 

[Docket Number USTR–2023–0014] 

Request for Comments and Notice of 

a Public Hearing Regarding the 2024 

Special 301 Review 

AGENCY: Office of the United States 

Trade Representative. 

ACTION: Request for comments and 

notice of public hearing. 

SUMMARY: Each year, the Office of the 

United States Trade Representative 

(USTR) conducts a review to identify 

countries that deny adequate and 

effective protection of intellectual 

property (IP) rights or deny fair and 

equitable market access to U.S. persons 

who rely on IP protection. Based on this 

review, the U.S. Trade Representative 

determines which, if any, of these 

countries to identify as Priority Foreign 

Countries. USTR requests written 

comments that identify acts, policies or 

practices that may form the basis of a 

country’s identification as a Priority 

Foreign Country or placement on the 

Priority Watch List or Watch List. 

DATES: 

January 30, 2024 at 11:59 p.m. EST: 

Deadline for submission of written 

comments, hearing statements, and 

notices of intent to appear at the hearing 

from the public. 

February 13, 2024 at 11:59 p.m. EST: 

Deadline for submission of written 

comments, hearing statements, and 

notices of intent to appear at the hearing 

from foreign governments. 

February 21, 2024: The Special 301 

Subcommittee will hold a public 

hearing at the Office of the United State 

Trade Representative, 1724 F Street NW, 

Rooms 1&2, Washington, DC. If 

necessary, the hearing may continue on 

the next business day. Those who 

intend to testify at the public hearing 

must submit a notice of intent to appear 

by the deadlines stated above. Please 

consult the USTR website at https://

ustr.gov/issue-areas/intellectualproperty/Special-301 for confirmation of 

the date and location and the schedule 

of witnesses. 

February 28, 2024 at 11:59 p.m. EST: 

Deadline for submission of post-hearing 

written comments from persons who 

testified at the public hearing. 

On or about April 26, 2024: USTR 

will publish the 2024 Special 301 

Report within 30 days of the publication 

of the National Trade Estimate Report. 

ADDRESSES: USTR strongly encourages 

electronic submissions made through 

the Federal eRulemaking Portal: https:// 

www.regulations.gov (Regulations.gov). 

Follow the submission instructions in 

section IV below. The docket number is 

USTR–2023–0014. For alternatives to 

on-line submissions, please contact 

USTR at Special301@ustr.eop.gov before 

transmitting a comment and in advance 

of the relevant deadline. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Claire Avery-Page, Director for 

Innovation and Intellectual Property, at 

Special301@ustr.eop.gov or (202) 395– 

6862. You can find information about 

the Special 301 Review at https://

www.ustr.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

Section 182 of the Trade Act of 1974 

(Trade Act) (19 U.S.C. 2242), commonly 

known as the Special 301 provisions, 

requires the U.S. Trade Representative 

to identify countries that deny adequate 

and effective IP protections or fair and 

equitable market access to U.S. persons 

who rely on IP protection. The Trade 

Act requires the U.S. Trade 

Representative to determine which, if 

any, of these countries to identify as 

Priority Foreign Countries. Acts, 

policies or practices that are the basis of 

a country’s identification as a Priority 

Foreign Country can be subject to the 

procedures set out in sections 301–305 

of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2411–2415). 

In addition, USTR has created a 

Priority Watch List and Watch List to 

assist in pursuing the goals of the 

Special 301 provisions. Placement of a 

trading partner on the Priority Watch 

List or Watch List indicates that 

particular problems exist in that country 

with respect to IP protection, 

enforcement or market access for 

persons that rely on intellectual 

property protection. Trading partners 

placed on the Priority Watch List are the 

focus of increased bilateral attention 

concerning the problem areas. 

USTR chairs the Special 301 

Subcommittee, which reviews 

information from many sources, and 

consults with and makes 

recommendations to the U.S. Trade 

Representative on issues arising under 

Special 301. Written submissions from 

the public are a key source of 

information for the Special 301 review 

process. In 2024, USTR will conduct a 

public hearing as part of the review 

process and will allow hearing 

participants to provide additional 

information relevant to the review. At 

the conclusion of the process, USTR 

will publish the results of the review in 

a Special 301 Report. 

USTR requests that interested persons 

identify through the process outlined in 

this notice those countries the acts, 

policies or practices of which deny 

adequate and effective protection for IP 

rights or deny fair and equitable market 

access to U.S. persons who rely on IP 

protection. The Special 301 provisions 

also require the U.S. Trade 

Representative to identify any act, 

policy or practice of Canada that affects 

cultural industries, was adopted or 

expanded after December 17, 1992, and 

is actionable under Article 32.6 of the 

United States-Mexico-Canada 

Agreement (USMCA) (as defined in 

section 3 of the USMCA Implementation 

Act). USTR invites the public to submit 

views relevant to this aspect of the 

review. 

The Special 301 provisions require 

the U.S. Trade Representative to 

identify all such acts, policies or 

practices within 30 days of the 

publication of the National Trade 

Estimate Report. In accordance with this 

statutory requirement, USTR will 


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