Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 231 / Thursday, November 30, 2000 / Notices 71297

(primarily duty-free for finished

pharmaceuticals and up to 14.6% for

intermediates) for the foreign materials

noted above (duty rates ranging from

duty-free to 14.5%). The application

indicates that the expanded use of FTZ

procedures will help improve Merck’s

international competitiveness.

The application has requested review

under § 400.32(b)(1) of the FTZ Board

regulations on the basis that the

proposed activity is the same, in terms

of products involved, to activity

recently approved by the Board and

similar in circumstances.

Public comment on the application is

invited from interested parties.

Submissions (original and three copies)

shall be addressed to the Board’s

Executive Secretary at the address

below. The closing period for their

receipt is January 2, 2001. Rebuttal

comments in response to material

submitted during the foregoing period

may be submitted during the subsequent

15-day period (to January 16, 2001).

Copies of the applications will be

available for public inspection at the

following locations:

U.S. Department of Commerce, Export

Assistance Center, 6001 Chatham

Center Drive, Suite 100, Savannah,

Georgia 31405.

Office of the Executive Secretary,

Foreign-Trade Zones Board, Room

4008, U.S. Department of Commerce,

14th Street & Pennsylvania Avenue,

NW., Washington, DC 20230.

Dated: November 17, 2000.

Dennis Puccinelli,

Executive Secretary.

[FR Doc. 00–30565 Filed 11–29–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Foreign-Trade Zones Board

[Docket 59–2000]

Foreign-Trade Zone 22—Chicago,

Illinois; Application For Foreign-Trade

Subzone Status, Northrop Grumman

Corporation—Defense Systems

Division (Radar and Electro-Optical

Systems), Rolling Meadows, Illinois

An application has been submitted to

the Foreign-Trade Zones Board (the

Board) by the Illinois International Port

District, grantee of FTZ 22, requesting

special-purpose subzone status for the

manufacturing facilities (radar and

electro-optical systems) of the Defense

Systems Division (DSD) of Northrop

Grumman Corporation, located in

Rolling Meadows, Illinois. The

application was submitted pursuant to

the Foreign-Trade Zones Act, as

amended (19 U.S.C. 81a–81u), and the

regulations of the Board (15 CFR part

400). It was formally filed on November

15, 2000.

The Northrup Grumman DSD

facilities are located at 600 Hicks Road,

Rolling Meadows, Illinois (2 buildings/

959,000 square feet on 50 acres). The

facilities (2,500 employees) are used for

the development and manufacture of

radar and electro-optical systems for

defense, aerospace, and transportation

applications. Some of the components

used in the manufacturing process are

purchased from abroad (an estimated

40% of finished product value),

including: plastic boxes or crates;

vulcanized rubber products; printed

labels; transfers (decalomanias); selfadhesive plastic flat shapes; aluminum

castings; hand tools; mirrors; pressurereducing valves; electric motors and

generators; electrical transformers, static

converters, and inductors; plugs or

sockets; printed-circuit assemblies and

assembly parts; electrical switching/

connection/circuit-protection parts; arc

lamps; coaxial cable; electric

conductors; mirrors and other optical

elements, instruments, and devices,

including parts; lasers; materials testing

machines; and oscilloscopes,

oscillographs, and other measuring or

checking instruments. Duty rates on

these imported items range from 1.7%

to 5.8%. The company also uses a

number of foreign-sourced items that are

duty free.

Zone procedures would exempt DSD

from Customs duty payments on foreign

components used in export production.

FTZ procedures will help DSD to

implement a more cost-effective system

for handling Customs requirements

(including reduced brokerage fees and

Customs merchandise processing fees).

On its domestic sales, DSD would be

able to choose the lower duty rate that

applies to the finished products (dutyfree to 2.8%), where applicable, for the

foreign components noted above. DSD

would also be able to defer payment of

duties on imported components until

Customs entry is made on the finished

products. The company would be

exempt from duty payments on foreign

merchandise that becomes scrap/waste

(scrap rate estimated at 1.5% of parts).

FTZ status may also make a site eligible

for benefits provided under state/local

programs. The application indicates that

the savings from zone procedures would

help improve the plant’s international

competitiveness.

In accordance with the Board’s

regulations, a member of the FTZ Staff

has been designated examiner to

investigate the application and report to

the Board.

Public comment on the application is

invited from interested parties.

Submissions (original and three copies)

shall be addressed to the Board’s

Executive Secretary at the address

below. The closing period for their

receipt is January 29. 2001. Rebuttal

comments in response to material

submitted during the foregoing period

may be submitted during the subsequent

15-day period to February 13, 2001.

A copy of the application and the

accompanying exhibits will be available

for public inspection at each of the

following locations:

Office of the Executive Secretary,

Foreign-Trade Zones Board, U.S.

Department of Commerce, Room

4008, 14th and Pennsylvania Avenue,

NW., Washington, DC 20230

U.S. Department of Commerce Export

Assistance Center 55 W. Monroe St.,

Suite 2440, Chicago, Illinois 60603

Dated: November 16, 2000.

Dennis Puccinelli,

Executive Secretary.

[FR Doc. 00–30567 Filed 11–29–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Foreign-Trade Zones Board

[Docket 61–2000]

Foreign-Trade Zone 93—Raleigh/

Durham, NC; Expansion of Facilities

and Manufacturing Authority—

Subzone 93C; Merck & Co., Inc. Plant

(Pharmaceuticals) Wilson County, NC

An application has been submitted to

the Foreign-Trade Zones Board (the

Board) by the Triangle J Council of

Governments, grantee of FTZ 93,

pursuant to § 400.32(b)(1) of the Board’s

regulations (15 CFR Part 400),

requesting on behalf of Merck & Co., Inc.

(Merck), to add capacity and to expand

the scope of manufacturing authority

under zone procedures at Subzone 93C,

the Merck pharmaceutical plant in

Wilson County, North Carolina. It was

formally filed on November 17, 2000.

Subzone 93C was approved by the

Board in 1994 at a single site (225 acres,

257,576 sq. ft., 7 bldgs.) located at 4633

Merck Road, near the intersection of I–

95 and U.S. Hwy. 264, in the town of

Wilson (Wilson County), North

Carolina, some 40 miles east of Durham.

The facility (605 employees) is used to

produce a range of human health

products. Merck is now proposing to

add 1 building and expand existing

buildings. The proposed subzone would

71298 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 231 / Thursday, November 30, 2000 / Notices

then include 8 bldgs. consisting of

609,927 sq. ft. (a 237% increase) on 225

acres.

The application also requests to

expand the scope of authority for

manufacturing activity conducted under

FTZ procedures at Subzone 93C to

include additional general categories of

inputs that have recently been approved

by the Board for other pharmaceutical

plants. They include chemically pure

sugars, empty capsules for

pharmaceutical use, protein

concentrates, natural magnesium

phosphates and carbonates, gypsum,

anhydrite and plasters, petroleum jelly,

paraffin and waxes, sulfuric acid, other

inorganic acids or compounds of

nonmetals, ammonia, zinc oxide,

titanium oxides, fluorides, chlorates,

sulfates, salts of oxometallic acids,

radioactive chemical elements,

compounds of rare earth metals, acyclic

hydrocarbons, derivatives of phenols or

peroxides, acetals and hemiacetals,

phosphoric esters and their salts, diazocompounds, glands for therapeutic uses,

wadding, gauze and bandages,

pharmaceutical glaze, hair preparations,

lubricating preparations, albumins,

prepared glues and adhesives, catalytic

preparations, diagnostic or laboratory

reagents, prepared binders, acrylic

polymers, self-adhesive plates and

sheets, other articles of vulcanized

rubber, plastic cases, cartons, boxes,

printed books, brochures and similar

printed matter, carboys, bottles, and

flasks, stoppers, caps, and lids,

aluminum foil, tin plates and sheets,

taps, cocks and valves, and medical

instruments and appliances.

FTZ procedures would exempt Merck

from Customs duty payments on the

foreign components used in export

activity. On its domestic sales, the

company would be able to elect the duty

rates that applies to finished products

(primarily duty-free for finished

pharmaceuticals and up to 14.6% for

intermediates) for the foreign materials

noted above (duty rates ranging from

duty-free to 14.5%). The application

indicates that the expanded use of FTZ

procedures will help improve Merck’s

international competitiveness.

The application has requested review

under § 400.32(b)(1) of the FTZ Board

regulations on the basis that the

proposed activity is the same, in terms

of products involved, to activity

recently approved by the Board and

similar in circumstances.

Public comment on the application is

invited from interested parties.

Submissions (original and three copies)

shall be addressed to the Board’s

Executive Secretary at the address

below. The closing period for their

receipt is January 2, 2001. Rebuttal

comments in response to material

submitted during the foregoing period

may be submitted during the subsequent

15-day period (to January 16, 2001).

Copies of the applications will be

available for public inspection at the

following locations:

U.S. Department of Commerce, Export

Assistance Center, 333 Fayetteville

St., Suite 1150, Raleigh, NC 27601

Office of the Executive Secretary,

Foreign-Trade Zones Board, Room

4008, U.S. Department of Commerce,

14th Street & Pennsylvania Avenue,

NW, Washington, DC 20230

Dated: November 17, 2000.

Dennis Puccinelli,

Executive Secretary.

[FR Doc. 00–30564 Filed 11–29–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Foreign-Trade Zones Board

[Docket 60–2000]

Foreign-Trade Zone 35B—Philadelphia

Regional Port Authority; Expansion of

Facilities and Manufacturing

Authority—Subzone 35B; Merck & Co.,

Inc. Plant (Pharmaceuticals) West

Point, PA

An application has been submitted to

the Foreign-Trade Zones Board (the

Board) by the Philadelphia Regional

Port Authority, grantee of FTZ 35,

pursuant to § 400.32(b)(1) of the Board’s

regulations (15 CFR part 400),

requesting on behalf of Merck & Co., Inc.

(Merck), to add capacity and to expand

the scope of manufacturing authority

under zone procedures at Subzone 35B,

at the Merck pharmaceutical plant in

West Point, Pennsylvania. It was

formally filed on November 17, 2000.

Subzone 35B was approved by the

Board in 1994 at a single site (387 acres,

4,230,000 sq. ft., 83 bldgs.) located at

Sunneytown Pike and Broad Street, in

the town of West Point, Montgomery

County, Pennsylvania, some 15 miles

northwest of Philadelphia. The facility

(9,500 employees) is used to produce a

range of human health products. Merck

is now proposing to add 23 buildings

(totaling 2,087,280 sq. ft) and 18 acres.

The proposed subzone would then

include 106 bldgs., consisting of

6,317,280 sq. ft. (a 49% increase) on 405

acres.

The application also requests to

expand the scope of authority for

manufacturing activity conducted under

FTZ procedures at Subzone 35B to

include additional general categories of

inputs that have recently been approved

by the Board for other pharmaceutical

plants. They include chemically pure

sugars, empty capsules for

pharmaceutical use, protein

concentrates, natural magnesium

phosphates and carbonates, gypsum,

anhydrite and plasters, petroleum jelly,

paraffin and waxes, sulfuric acid, other

inorganic acids or compounds of

nonmetals, ammonia, zinc oxide,

titanium oxides, fluorides, chlorates,

sulfates, salts of oxometallic acids,

radioactive chemical elements,

compounds of rare earth metals, acyclic

hydrocarbons, derivatives of phenols or

peroxides, acetals and hemiacetals,

phosphoric esters and their salts, diazocompounds, glands for therapeutic uses,

wadding, gauze and bandages,

pharmaceutical glaze, hair preparations,

lubricating preparations, albumins,

prepared glues and adhesives, catalytic

preparations, diagnostic or laboratory

reagents, prepared binders, acrylic

polymers, self-adhesive plates and

sheets, other articles of vulcanized

rubber, plastic cases, cartons, boxes,

printed books, brochures and similar

printed matter, carboys, bottles, and

flasks, stoppers, caps, and lids,

aluminum foil, tin plates and sheets,

taps, cocks and valves, and medical

instruments and appliances.

FTZ procedures would exempt Merck

from Customs duty payments on the

foreign components used in export

activity. On its domestic sales, the

company would be able to elect the duty

rates that applies to finished products

(primarily duty-free for finished

pharmaceuticals and up to 14.6% for

intermediates) for the foreign materials

noted above (duty rates ranging from

duty-free to 14.5%). The application

indicates that the expanded use of FTZ

procedures will help improve Merck’s

international competitiveness.

The application has requested review

under § 400.32(b)(1) of the FTZ Board

regulations on the basis that the

proposed activity is the same, in terms

of products involved, to activity

recently approved by the Board and

similar in circumstances.

Public comment on the application is

invited from interested parties.

Submissions (original and three copies)

shall be addressed to the Board’s

Executive Secretary at the address

below. The closing period for their

receipt is January 2, 2001. Rebuttal

comments in response to material

submitted during the foregoing period

may be submitted during the subsequent

15-day period (to January 16, 2001).

Copies of the applications will be

available for public inspection at the

following locations: