Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 243 / Wednesday, December 20, 2023 / Notices 88049 

research reports prepared for sponsors 

inside and outside of the Census 

Bureau. The results may also be 

prepared for presentations related to 

survey methodology at professional 

meetings or publications in professional 

journals. 

Affected Public: Individuals or 

households. 

Frequency: Once. 

Respondent’s Obligation: Voluntary. 

Legal Authority: Data collection for 

this project is authorized under the 

authorizing legislation for the 

questionnaire being tested. This may be 

Title 13, Sections 131, 141, 161, 181, 

182, 193, and 301 for Census Bureausponsored surveys, and Title 13, Section 

8(b) and Title 15 for surveys sponsored 

by other Federal agencies. We do not 

now know what other titles will be 

referenced, since we do not know what 

survey questionnaires will be pretested 

during the course of the clearance. 

This information collection request 

may be viewed at www.reginfo.gov. 

Follow the instructions to view the 

Department of Commerce collections 

currently under review by OMB. 

Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should be 

submitted within 30 days of the 

publication of this notice on the 

following website www.reginfo.gov/ 

public/do/PRAMain. Find this 

particular information collection by 

selecting ‘‘Currently under 30-day 

Review—Open for Public Comments’’ or 

by using the search function and 

entering either the title of the collection 

or the OMB Control Number 0607–0978. 

Sheleen Dumas, 

Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of 

the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, 

Commerce Department. 

[FR Doc. 2023–28005 Filed 12–19–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–07–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

Bureau of Industry and Security 

[Docket No. 231208–0291] 

RIN 0694–XC103 

Impact of the Implementation of the 

Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) 

on Legitimate Commercial Chemical, 

Biotechnology, and Pharmaceutical 

Activities Involving ‘‘Schedule 1’’ 

Chemicals (Including ‘‘Schedule 1’’ 

Chemicals Produced as Intermediates) 

During Calendar Year 2023 

AGENCY: Bureau of Industry and 

Security, Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of inquiry. 

SUMMARY: The Bureau of Industry and 

Security is seeking public comments on 

the impact that the implementation of 

the Chemical Weapons Convention, 

through the Chemical Weapons 

Convention Implementation Act of 1998 

and the Chemical Weapons Convention 

Regulations, has had on commercial 

activities involving ‘‘Schedule 1’’ 

chemicals during calendar year 2023. 

The purpose of this notice of inquiry is 

to collect information to assist BIS in its 

preparation of the annual certification to 

the Congress on whether the legitimate 

commercial activities and interests of 

chemical, biotechnology, and 

pharmaceutical firms are harmed by 

such implementation. This certification 

is required under Condition 9 of Senate 

Resolution 75 (April 24, 1997), in which 

the Senate gave its advice and consent 

to the ratification of the Chemical 

Weapons Convention. 

DATES: Comments must be received by 

January 19, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Comments on this rule may 

be submitted to the Federal rulemaking 

portal https://www.regulations.gov. The 

regulations.gov ID for this rule is: BIS– 

2023–0039. Please refer to RIN 0694– 

XC103 in all comments. 

All filers using the portal should use 

the name of the person or entity 

submitting the comments as the name of 

their files, in accordance with the 

instructions below. Anyone submitting 

business confidential information 

should clearly identify the business 

confidential portion at the time of 

submission, file a statement justifying 

nondisclosure and referring to the 

specific legal authority claimed, and 

provide a non-confidential version of 

the submission. 

For comments submitted 

electronically containing business 

confidential information, the file name 

of the business confidential version 

should begin with the characters ‘‘BC.’’ 

Any page containing business 

confidential information must be clearly 

marked ‘‘BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL’’ 

on the top of that page. The 

corresponding non-confidential version 

of those comments must be clearly 

marked ‘‘PUBLIC.’’ The file name of the 

non-confidential version should begin 

with the character ‘‘P.’’ Any 

submissions with file names that do not 

begin with either a ‘‘BC’’ or a ‘‘P’’ will 

be assumed to be public and will be 

made publicly available through https:// 

www.regulations.gov. 

Commenters submitting business 

confidential information are encouraged 

to scan a hard copy of the nonconfidential version to create an image 

of the file, rather than submitting a 

digital copy with redactions applied, to 

avoid inadvertent redaction errors 

which could enable the public to read 

business confidential information. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

questions on the Chemical Weapons 

Convention requirements for ‘‘Schedule 

1’’ chemicals, contact James Truske, 

Treaty Compliance Division, (202) 482– 

2509, Email: james.truske@bis.doc.gov. 

For questions on the submission of 

comments, contact Logan Norton, 

Regulatory Policy Division, Email: 

RPD2@bis.doc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Convention on the Prohibition of 

the Development, Production, 

Stockpiling, and Use of Chemical 

Weapons and Their Destruction, 

commonly called the Chemical 

Weapons Convention (CWC or ‘‘the 

Convention’’) is an international arms 

control treaty that seeks to eliminate 

chemical weapons through requiring 

ratifying countries (States Parties) to 

prohibit the development, production, 

acquisition, stockpiling, retention, and 

transfer of chemical weapons. The CWC 

imposes certain obligations on States 

Parties, among which are the enactment 

of legislation to implement the treaty’s 

prohibitions. In the United States, the 

Chemical Weapons Convention 

Implementation Act of 1998, 22 U.S.C. 

6701 et seq., implements the provisions 

of the CWC. In providing its advice and 

consent to the ratification of the CWC, 

the Senate included, in Senate 

Resolution 75 (S. Res. 75, April 24, 

1997), several conditions to its 

ratification. Condition 9, titled 

‘‘Protection of Advanced 

Biotechnology,’’ calls for the President 

to certify to Congress on an annual basis 

that ‘‘the legitimate commercial 

activities and interests of chemical, 

biotechnology, and pharmaceutical 

firms in the United States are not being 

significantly harmed by the limitations 

of the Convention on access to, and 

production of, those chemicals and 

toxins listed in Schedule 1.’’ On July 8, 

2004, President George W. Bush, by 

Executive Order 13346, delegated his 

authority to make the annual 

certification to the Secretary of 

Commerce. 

‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals consist of 

those toxic chemicals and precursors set 

forth in the CWC ‘‘Annex on 

Chemicals’’ and in ‘‘Supplement No. 1 

to part 712—SCHEDULE 1 

CHEMICALS’’ of the Chemical Weapons 

Convention Regulations (CWCR) (15 

CFR parts 710–722). The CWC 

identified these toxic chemicals and 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
88050 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 243 / Wednesday, December 20, 2023 / Notices 

1See Finished Carbon Steel Flanges from Spain: 

Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty 

Administrative Review; 2021–2022, 88 FR 43307 

precursors as posing a high risk to the 

object and purpose of the Convention. 

The CWC (Part VI of the ‘‘Verification 

Annex’’) restricts the production of 

‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals for protective 

purposes to two facilities per State 

Party: a single small-scale facility and a 

facility for production in quantities not 

exceeding 10 kg per year. The CWC 

Article-by-Article Analysis submitted to 

the Senate in Treaty Doc. 103–21 

defined the term ‘‘protective purposes’’ 

to mean ‘‘used for determining the 

adequacy of defense equipment and 

measures.’’ Consistent with this 

definition and as authorized by 

Presidential Decision Directive (PDD) 70 

(December 17, 1999), which specifies 

agency and departmental 

responsibilities as part of the U.S. 

implementation of the CWC, the 

Department of Defense (DOD) was 

assigned the responsibility to operate 

these two facilities. DOD maintains 

strict controls on ‘‘Schedule 1’’ 

chemicals produced at its facilities in 

order to ensure accountability for such 

chemicals, as well as their proper use, 

consistent with the Convention’s 

objectives. Although this assignment of 

responsibility to DOD under PDD–70 

effectively precluded commercial 

production of ‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals 

for ‘‘protective purposes’’ in the United 

States, it did not establish any 

limitations on ‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemical 

activities that are not prohibited by the 

CWC. 

The provisions of the CWC that affect 

commercial activities involving 

‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals are 

implemented in the CWCR (see 15 CFR 

part 712) and in the Export 

Administration Regulations (EAR) (see 

15 CFR 742.18 and 15 CFR part 745), 

both of which are administered by the 

Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). 

Pursuant to CWC requirements, the 

CWCR restrict commercial production 

of ‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals to research, 

medical, or pharmaceutical purposes. 

The CWCR prohibit commercial 

production of ‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals 

for ‘‘protective purposes’’ because such 

production is effectively precluded per 

PDD–70, as described above (see 15 CFR 

712.2(a)). 

The CWCR also contain other 

requirements and prohibitions that 

apply to ‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals and/or 

‘‘Schedule 1’’ facilities. Specifically, the 

CWCR: 

(1) Prohibits the import of ‘‘Schedule 

1’’ chemicals from States not Party to 

the Convention (15 CFR 712.2(b)); 

(2) Requires annual declarations by 

certain facilities engaged in the 

production of ‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals 

in excess of 100 grams aggregate per 

calendar year (i.e., declared ‘‘Schedule 

1’’ facilities) for purposes not prohibited 

by the Convention (15 CFR 712.5(a)(1) 

and (a)(2)); 

(3) Provides for government approval 

of ‘‘declared Schedule 1’’ facilities (15 

CFR 712.5(f)); 

(4) Requires 200 days advance 

notification of the establishment of new 

‘‘Schedule 1’’ production facilities 

producing greater than 100 grams 

aggregate of ‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals per 

calendar year (15 CFR 712.4); 

(5) Provides that ‘‘declared Schedule 

1’’ facilities are subject to initial and 

routine inspection by the OPCW (15 

CFR 712.5(e) and 716.1(b)(1)); 

(6) Requires advance notification and 

annual reporting of all imports and 

exports of ‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals to, or 

from, other States Parties to the 

Convention (15 CFR 712.6, 742.18(a)(1) 

and 745.1); and 

(7) Prohibits the export of ‘‘Schedule 

1’’ chemicals to States not Party to the 

Convention (15 CFR 742.18(a)(1) and 

(b)(1)(ii)). 

For purposes of the CWCR (see the 

definition of ‘‘production’’ in 15 CFR 

710.1), the phrase ‘‘production of a 

Schedule 1 chemical’’ means the 

formation of ‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals 

through chemical synthesis as well as 

processing to extract and isolate 

‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals. The phrase 

also encompasses the formation of a 

chemical through chemical reaction, 

including by a biochemical or 

biologically mediated reaction. 

‘‘Production of a Schedule 1 chemical’’ 

is understood, for CWCR declaration 

purposes, to include intermediates, byproducts, or waste products that are 

produced and consumed within a 

defined chemical manufacturing 

sequence, where such intermediates, byproducts, or waste products are 

chemically stable and therefore exist for 

a sufficient time to make isolation from 

the manufacturing stream possible, but 

where, under normal or design 

operating conditions, isolation does not 

occur. 

Request for Comments 

In order to assist in determining 

whether the legitimate commercial 

activities and interests of chemical, 

biotechnology, and pharmaceutical 

firms in the United States are 

significantly harmed by the limitations 

of the Convention on access to, and 

production of, ‘‘Schedule 1’’ chemicals 

as described in this notice, BIS is 

seeking public comments on any effects 

that implementation of the CWC, 

through the Chemical Weapons 

Convention Implementation Act of 1998 

and the CWCR, has had on commercial 

activities involving ‘‘Schedule 1’’ 

chemicals during calendar year 2023. To 

allow BIS to properly evaluate the 

significance of any harm to commercial 

activities involving ‘‘Schedule 1’’ 

chemicals, public comments submitted 

in response to this notice of inquiry 

should include both a quantitative and 

qualitative assessment of the impact of 

the CWC on such activities. 

Submission of Comments 

All comments must be submitted to 

one of the addresses indicated in this 

notice and in accordance with the 

instructions provided herein. BIS will 

consider all comments received on or 

before January 19, 2024. 

Matthew S. Borman, 

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Export 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2023–27951 Filed 12–19–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–33–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

International Trade Administration 

[A–469–815] 

Finished Carbon Steel Flanges From 

Spain: Final Results of Antidumping 

Duty Administrative Review; 2021– 

2022 

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, 

International Trade Administration, 

Department of Commerce. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of 

Commerce (Commerce) determines that 

ULMA Forja, S.Coop (ULMA) and 

companies not selected for individual 

examination made sales of finished 

carbon steel flanges (flanges) from Spain 

in the United States at less than normal 

value (NV) during the period of review 

(POR) June 1, 2021, through May 31, 

2022. 

DATES: Applicable December 20, 2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Carolyn Adie or Mark Flessner, AD/CVD 

Operations, Office VI, Enforcement and 

Compliance, International Trade 

Administration, U.S. Department of 

Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 

NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: 

(202) 482–6250 or (202) 482–6312, 

respectively. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On July 7, 2023, Commerce published 

the Preliminary Results and invited 

interested parties to comment.1 In 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1