3126 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 15 / Tuesday, January 23, 2018 / Notices 

1See Letter to the Secretary of Commerce, 

‘‘Certain Plastic Decorative Ribbon from the 

People’s Republic of China: Petitions for the 

Imposition of Antidumping and Countervailing 

Duties’’ (December 27, 2017) (the Petition). 

2See Volume I of the Petition, at 3 and Exhibit 

I–3. 

3See Letter from Commerce, ‘‘Petitions for the 

Imposition of Antidumping and Countervailing 

Duties on Imports of Certain Plastic Decorative 

Ribbon from the People’s Republic of China: 

Supplemental Questions’’ dated January 2, 2018 

(General Issues Supplemental Questions); see also 

Letter from Commerce, ‘‘Petition for the Imposition 

of Antidumping Duties on Imports of Certain Plastic 

Decorative Ribbons from the People’s Republic of 

China: Supplemental Questions’’ dated January 2, 

2018 (AD Supplemental Questions). 

4See Letter from the petitioner, ‘‘Certain Plastic 

Decorative Ribbon from the People’s Republic of 

China: Response to the Department’s January 2, 

2018 Supplemental Questions Regarding Volumes I 

and II of the Petition for the Imposition of 

Antidumping and Countervailing Duties’’ dated 

January 5, 2018 (General Issues and China AD 

Supplement). 

5See Letter from the petitioner, ‘‘Certain Plastic 

Decorative Ribbon from the People’s Republic of 

China: Amendment to the Petition for the 

Imposition of Antidumping and Countervailing 

Duties’’ dated January 12, 2018 (Scope 

Clarification). 

6See the ‘‘Determination of Industry Support for 

the Petition’’ section, below. 

7See General Issues Supplemental Questions and 

AD Supplemental Questions; see also General 

Issues and China AD Supplement, at 2–4 and 

Exhibit COM-Supp-2; and Scope Clarification. 

8See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, 

Final Rule, 62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997). 

9See 19 CFR 351.102(b)(21) (defining ‘‘factual 

information’’). 

10See 19 CFR 351.303(b). 

States (HTSUS). While HTSUS subheadings 

and ASTM specifications are provided for 

convenience and customs purposes, the 

written description of the scope is 

dispositive. 

Appendix II—List of Topics Discussed 

in the Preliminary Decision 

Memorandum 

I. Summary 

II. Background 

III. Scope Comments 

IV. Scope of the Investigation 

V. Injury Test 

VI. Application of the CVD Law to Imports 

from China 

VII. Use of Facts Otherwise Available and 

Adverse Inferences 

VIII. Calculation of the All-Others Rate 

IX. ITC Notification 

X. Public Comment 

XI. Conclusion 

[FR Doc. 2018–01145 Filed 1–22–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

International Trade Administration 

[A–570–075] 

Certain Plastic Decorative Ribbon 

From the People’s Republic of China: 

Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value 

Investigation 

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, 

International Trade Administration, 

Department of Commerce. 

DATES: Applicable January 16, 2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Mark Hoadley at (202) 482–3148, AD/ 

CVD Operations, Enforcement and 

Compliance, International Trade 

Administration, U.S. Department of 

Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 

NW, Washington, DC 20230. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

The Petition 

On December 27, 2017, the U.S. 

Department of Commerce (Commerce) 

received an antidumping duty (AD) 

Petition concerning imports of certain 

plastic decorative ribbon (plastic 

decorative ribbon) from the People’s 

Republic of China (China), filed in 

proper form on behalf of Berwick 

Offray, LLC (the petitioner).1 The AD 

Petition was accompanied by a 

countervailing duty (CVD) petition 

concerning imports of plastic decorative 

ribbon from China. The petitioner is a 

domestic producer of plastic decorative 

ribbon.2

On January 2, 2018, Commerce 

requested supplemental information 

pertaining to certain areas of the 

Petition.3 The petitioner filed responses 

to these requests, including revised 

scope language, on January 5, 2018.4 On 

January 12, 2018, the petitioner filed a 

submission clarifying the scope 

language.5

In accordance with section 732(b) of 

the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the 

Act), the petitioner alleges that imports 

of plastic decorative ribbon from China 

are being, or are likely to be, sold in the 

United States at less than fair value 

within the meaning of section 731 of the 

Act, and that such imports are 

materially injuring, or threatening 

material injury to, the domestic industry 

producing plastic decorative ribbon in 

the United States. Consistent with 

section 732(b)(1) of the Act, the Petition 

is accompanied by information 

reasonably available to the petitioner 

supporting its allegations. 

Commerce finds that the petitioner 

filed this Petition on behalf of the 

domestic industry because the 

petitioner is an interested party as 

defined in section 771(9)(C) and (F) of 

the Act. Commerce also finds that the 

petitioner demonstrated sufficient 

industry support with respect to the 

initiation of the AD investigation that 

the petitioner is requesting.6

Period of Investigation 

Because the Petition was filed on 

December 27, 2017, and China is a nonmarket economy (NME) country, 

pursuant to 19 CFR 351.204(b)(1), the 

POI for this investigation is April 1, 

2017, through September 30, 2017. 

Scope of the Investigation 

The products covered by this 

investigation are plastic decorative 

ribbon from China. For a full 

description of the scope of this 

investigation, see the ‘‘Scope of the 

Investigation,’’ in the Appendix to this 

notice. 

Comments on Scope of the Investigation 

During our review of the Petition, 

Commerce issued questions to, and 

received responses from, the petitioner 

pertaining to the proposed scope to 

ensure that the scope language in the 

Petition would be an accurate reflection 

of the products for which the domestic 

industry is seeking relief.7

As discussed in the preamble to 

Commerce’s regulations, we are setting 

aside a period for interested parties to 

raise issues regarding product coverage 

(scope).8 Commerce will consider all 

comments received from interested 

parties and, if necessary, will consult 

with interested parties prior to the 

issuance of the preliminary 

determination. If scope comments 

include factual information,9 all such 

factual information should be limited to 

public information. To facilitate 

preparation of its questionnaires, 

Commerce requests all interested parties 

to submit such comments by 5:00 p.m. 

Eastern Time (ET) on Monday, February 

5, 2018, which is 20 calendar days from 

the signature date of this notice. Any 

rebuttal comments, which may include 

factual information, must be filed by 

5:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, February 15, 

2018, which is 10 calendar days from 

the initial comments deadline.10

Commerce requests that any factual 

information the parties consider 

relevant to the scope of the investigation 

be submitted during this time period. 

However, if a party subsequently finds 

that additional factual information 

pertaining to the scope of the 

investigation may be relevant, the party 

may contact Commerce and request 

permission to submit the additional 

information. All such comments must 

be filed on the records of each of the 

concurrent AD and CVD investigations. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 15 / Tuesday, January 23, 2018 / Notices 3127 

11See Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 

Proceedings: Electronic Filing Procedures; 

Administrative Protective Order Procedures, 76 FR 

39263 (July 6, 2011); see also Enforcement and 

Compliance; Change of Electronic Filing System 

Name, 79 FR 69046 (November 20, 2014) for details 

of Commerce’s electronic filing requirements, 

which went into effect on August 5, 2011. 

Information on help using ACCESS can be found at 

https://access.trade.gov/help.aspx and a handbook 

can be found at https://access.trade.gov/help/ 

Handbook%20on%20Electronic%20Filling

%20Procedures.pdf. 12See section 771(10) of the Act. 

13See USEC, Inc. v. United States, 132 F. Supp. 

2d 1, 8 (CIT 2001) (citing Algoma Steel Corp., Ltd. 

v. United States, 688 F. Supp. 639, 644 (CIT 1988), 

aff’d 865 F.2d 240 (Fed. Cir. 1989)). 

14For a discussion of the domestic like product 

analysis as applied to this case and information 

regarding industry support, see Antidumping Duty 

Investigation Initiation Checklist: Certain Plastic 

Decorative Ribbon from the People’s Republic of 

China (China AD Initiation Checklist), at 

Attachment II, Analysis of Industry Support for the 

Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Petitions 

Covering Certain Plastic Decorative Ribbon from the 

People’s Republic of China (Attachment II). This 

checklist is dated concurrently with this notice and 

on file electronically via ACCESS. Access to 

documents filed via ACCESS is also available in the 

Central Records Unit, Room B8024 of the main 

Department of Commerce building. 

15See Volume I of the Petition, at 3 and Exhibit 

I–3; see also General Issues and China AD 

Supplement, at 4. 

16 Id. For further discussion, see China AD 

Initiation Checklist, at Attachment II. 

Filing Requirements 

All submissions to Commerce must be 

filed electronically using Enforcement 

and Compliance’s Antidumping Duty 

and Countervailing Duty Centralized 

Electronic Service System (ACCESS).11

An electronically filed document must 

be received successfully in its entirety 

by the time and date it is due. 

Documents exempted from the 

electronic submission requirements 

must be filed manually (i.e., in paper 

form) with Enforcement and 

Compliance’s APO/Dockets Unit, Room 

18022, U.S. Department of Commerce, 

1401 Constitution Avenue NW, 

Washington, DC 20230, and stamped 

with the date and time of receipt by the 

applicable deadlines. 

Comments on Product Characteristics 

for AD Questionnaires 

Commerce will provide interested 

parties an opportunity to comment on 

the appropriate physical characteristics 

of plastic decorative ribbon to be 

reported in response to Commerce’s AD 

questionnaires. This information will be 

used to identify the key physical 

characteristics of the merchandise under 

consideration in order to report the 

relevant costs of production accurately 

as well as to develop appropriate 

product-comparison criteria. 

Interested parties may provide any 

information or comments that they feel 

are relevant to the development of an 

accurate list of physical characteristics. 

Specifically, they may provide 

comments as to which characteristics 

are appropriate to use as: (1) General 

product characteristics and (2) productcomparison criteria. We note that it is 

not always appropriate to use all 

product characteristics as productcomparison criteria. We base productcomparison criteria on meaningful 

commercial differences among products. 

In other words, although there may be 

some physical product characteristics 

utilized by manufacturers to describe 

plastic decorative ribbon, it may be that 

only a select few product characteristics 

take into account commercially 

meaningful physical characteristics. In 

addition, interested parties may 

comment on the order in which the 

physical characteristics should be used 

in matching products. Generally, 

Commerce attempts to list the most 

important physical characteristics first 

and the least important characteristics 

last. 

In order to consider the suggestions of 

interested parties in developing and 

issuing the AD questionnaire, all 

product characteristics comments must 

be filed by 5:00 p.m. ET on February 5, 

2018. Any rebuttal comments must be 

filed by 5:00 p.m. ET on February 15, 

2018. All comments and submissions to 

Commerce must be filed electronically 

using ACCESS, as explained above, on 

the record of the less-than-fair-value 

investigation. 

Determination of Industry Support for 

the Petition 

Section 732(b)(1) of the Act requires 

that a petition be filed on behalf of the 

domestic industry. Section 732(c)(4)(A) 

of the Act provides that a petition meets 

this requirement if the domestic 

producers or workers who support the 

petition account for: (i) At least 25 

percent of the total production of the 

domestic like product; and (ii) more 

than 50 percent of the production of the 

domestic like product produced by that 

portion of the industry expressing 

support for, or opposition to, the 

petition. Moreover, section 732(c)(4)(D) 

of the Act provides that, if the petition 

does not establish support of domestic 

producers or workers accounting for 

more than 50 percent of the total 

production of the domestic like product, 

Commerce shall: (i) Poll the industry or 

rely on other information in order to 

determine if there is support for the 

petition, as required by subparagraph 

(A); or (ii) determine industry support 

using a statistically valid sampling 

method to poll the ‘‘industry.’’ 

Section 771(4)(A) of the Act defines 

the ‘‘industry’’ as the producers as a 

whole of a domestic like product. Thus, 

to determine whether a petition has the 

requisite industry support, the statute 

directs Commerce to look to producers 

and workers who produce the domestic 

like product. The International Trade 

Commission (ITC), which is responsible 

for determining whether ‘‘the domestic 

industry’’ has been injured, must also 

determine what constitutes a domestic 

like product in order to define the 

industry. While both Commerce and the 

ITC must apply the same statutory 

definition regarding the domestic like 

product,12 they do so for different 

purposes and pursuant to a separate and 

distinct authority. In addition, 

Commerce’s determination is subject to 

limitations of time and information. 

Although this may result in different 

definitions of the like product, such 

differences do not render the decision of 

either agency contrary to law.13

Section 771(10) of the Act defines the 

domestic like product as ‘‘a product 

which is like, or in the absence of like, 

most similar in characteristics and uses 

with, the article subject to an 

investigation under this title.’’ Thus, the 

reference point from which the 

domestic like product analysis begins is 

‘‘the article subject to an investigation’’ 

(i.e., the class or kind of merchandise to 

be investigated, which normally will be 

the scope as defined in the Petition). 

With regard to the domestic like 

product, the petitioner does not offer a 

definition of the domestic like product 

distinct from the scope of the 

investigation. Based on our analysis of 

the information submitted on the 

record, we have determined that plastic 

decorative ribbon, as defined in the 

scope, constitutes a single domestic like 

product, and we have analyzed industry 

support in terms of that domestic like 

product.14

In determining whether the petitioner 

has standing under section 732(c)(4)(A) 

of the Act, we considered the industry 

support data contained in the Petition 

with reference to the domestic like 

product as defined in the ‘‘Scope of the 

Investigation,’’ in the Appendix to this 

notice. The petitioner provided its own 

2016 production of the domestic like 

product, and compared this to the 

estimated total production of the 

domestic like product for the entire 

domestic industry.15 We relied on data 

the petitioner provided for purposes of 

measuring industry support.16

Our review of the data provided in the 

Petition, General Issues and China AD 

Supplement, and other information 

readily available to Commerce indicates 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES
3128 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 15 / Tuesday, January 23, 2018 / Notices 

17See China AD Initiation Checklist, at 

Attachment II. 

18See section 732(c)(4)(D) of the Act; see also 

China AD Initiation Checklist, at Attachment II. 

19See China AD Initiation Checklist, at 

Attachment II. 

20 Id. 

21 Id. 

22See Volume I of the Petition, at 13 and Exhibit 

I–7; see also General Issues and China AD 

Supplement, at 4–5 and Exhibit COM-Supp-3. 

23See Volume I of the Petition, at 12–13, 20–35 

and Exhibits I–7, I–9, and I–10; see also General 

Issues and China AD Supplement, at 4–5 and 

Exhibits COM-Supp-3 and COM-Supp-4. 

24See China AD Initiation Checklist, at 

Attachment III, Analysis of Allegations and 

Evidence of Material Injury and Causation for the 

Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Petitions 

Covering Certain Plastic Decorative Ribbon from the 

People’s Republic of China (Attachment III). 

25See China AD Initiation Checklist. 

26 Id. 

27See Antidumping Duty Investigation of Certain 

Aluminum Foil from the People’s Republic of 

China: Affirmative Preliminary Determination of 

Sales at Less-Than-Fair-Value and Postponement of 

Final Determination, 82 FR 50858, 50871 

(November 2, 2017), and accompanying decision 

memorandum, China’s Status as a Non-Market 

Economy; see also Volume II of the Petitions, at 10– 

11. 

28See China AD Initiation Checklist. 

29See Volume II of the Petition at 7–9 and Exhibit 

II–5. 

30 Id. at 9 and Exhibit II–2. 

31 Id. at 17 and Exhibits II–10. 

32 Id. at 16 and Exhibit II–10. 

33See Volume II of the Petition at 22 and Exhibit 

II–10. 

that the petitioner has established 

industry support for the Petition.17 First, 

the Petition established support from 

domestic producers (or workers) 

accounting for more than 50 percent of 

the total production of the domestic like 

product and, as such, Commerce is not 

required to take further action in order 

to evaluate industry support (e.g., 

polling).18 Second, the domestic 

producers (or workers) have met the 

statutory criteria for industry support 

under section 732(c)(4)(A)(i) of the Act 

because the domestic producers (or 

workers) who support the Petition 

account for at least 25 percent of the 

total production of the domestic like 

product.19 Finally, the domestic 

producers (or workers) have met the 

statutory criteria for industry support 

under section 732(c)(4)(A)(ii) of the Act 

because the domestic producers (or 

workers) who support the Petition 

account for more than 50 percent of the 

production of the domestic like product 

produced by that portion of the industry 

expressing support for, or opposition to, 

the Petition.20 Accordingly, Commerce 

determines that the Petition was filed on 

behalf of the domestic industry within 

the meaning of section 732(b)(1) of the 

Act. 

Commerce finds that the petitioner 

filed the Petition on behalf of the 

domestic industry because it is an 

interested party as defined in section 

771(9)(C) of the Act and it has 

demonstrated sufficient industry 

support with respect to the AD 

investigation that it is requesting that 

Commerce initiate.21

Allegations and Evidence of Material 

Injury and Causation 

The petitioner alleges that the U.S. 

industry producing the domestic like 

product is being materially injured, or is 

threatened with material injury, by 

reason of the imports of the subject 

merchandise sold at less than normal 

value (NV). In addition, the petitioner 

alleges that subject imports exceed the 

negligibility threshold provided for 

under section 771(24)(A) of the Act.22

The petitioner contends that the 

industry’s injured condition is 

illustrated by a significant and 

increasing volume of subject imports; 

reduced market share; underselling and 

price depression or suppression; lost 

sales and revenues; and a negative 

impact on the domestic industry’s 

performance.23 We have assessed the 

allegations and supporting evidence 

regarding material injury, threat of 

material injury, negligibility, and 

causation, and we have determined that 

these allegations are properly supported 

by adequate evidence, and meet the 

statutory requirements for initiation.24

Allegation of Sales at Less Than Fair 

Value 

The following is a description of the 

allegation of sales at less than fair value 

upon which Commerce based its 

decision to initiate the AD investigation 

of imports of plastic decorative ribbon 

from China. The sources of data for the 

petitioner’s calculations relating to U.S. 

price and NV are discussed in greater 

detail in the initiation checklist.25

Export Price 

The petitioner based U.S. price on 

export price (EP) using price quotes for 

sales of plastic decorative ribbon 

produced in and exported from China to 

unaffiliated U.S. customers.26

Normal Value 

Commerce considers China to be a 

non-market economy (NME) country.27

In accordance with section 771(18)(C)(i) 

of the Act, the presumption of NME 

status remains in effect until revoked by 

Commerce. The presumption of NME 

status for China has not been revoked by 

Commerce and, therefore, remains in 

effect for purposes of the initiation of 

this investigation. Accordingly, NV in 

China is appropriately based on factors 

of production (FOPs) valued in a 

surrogate market economy country, in 

accordance with section 773(c) of the 

Act.28

The petitioner states that Thailand is 

an appropriate surrogate country for 

China, because it is a market economy 

country that is at a level of economic 

development comparable to that of 

China, it is a significant producer of 

comparable merchandise, and public 

information from Thailand is available 

to value all material input factors.29

Based on the information provided by 

the petitioner, we determine that it is 

appropriate to use Thailand as a 

surrogate country for initiation 

purposes. 

Interested parties will have the 

opportunity to submit comments 

regarding surrogate country selection 

and, pursuant to 19 CFR 

351.301(c)(3)(i), will be provided an 

opportunity to submit publicly available 

information to value FOPs no later than 

30 days before the scheduled date of the 

preliminary determination. 

Factors of Production 

Because information regarding the 

volume of inputs consumed by Chinese 

producers/exporters is not available, the 

petitioner relied on its own production 

experience as a domestic producer of 

plastic decorative ribbon in the United 

States as an estimate of Chinese 

manufacturers’ FOPs.30 The petitioner 

valued the estimated FOPs using 

surrogate values from Thailand.31

Additionally, for the surrogate values 

denominated in Thai Baht, the 

petitioner converted Thai Baht prices 

into U.S. Dollars using the average 

exchange rate available on Commerce’s 

website.32

Fair Value Comparisons 

Based on the data provided by the 

petitioner, there is reason to believe that 

imports of plastic decorative ribbon 

from China are being, or are likely to be, 

sold in the United States at less than fair 

value. Based on comparisons of EP to 

NV in accordance with sections 772 and 

773 of the Act, the estimated dumping 

margins for plastic decorative ribbon 

from China range from 74.34 percent to 

370.04 percent.33

Initiation of the Less-Than-Fair-Value 

Investigation 

Based upon the examination of the 

Petition, we find that the Petition meets 

the requirements of section 732 of the 

Act. Therefore, we are initiating this AD 

investigation to determine whether 

imports of plastic decorative ribbon 

from China are being, or are likely to be, 


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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 15 / Tuesday, January 23, 2018 / Notices 3129 

34See Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015, 

Public Law 114–27, 129 Stat. 362 (2015). 

35See Dates of Application of Amendments to the 

Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Laws Made 

by the Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015, 80 

FR 46793 (August 6, 2015). 

36 Id. at 46794–95. The 2015 amendments may be 

found at https://www.congress.gov/bill/114thcongress/house-bill/1295/text/pl. 

37See Volume I of the Petition at Exhibit I–6. 

38See Policy Bulletin 05.1: Separate-Rates 

Practice and Application of Combination Rates in 

Antidumping Investigation involving Non-Market 

Economy Countries (April 5, 2005), available at 

http://enforcement.trade.gov/policy/bull05-1.pdf 

(Policy Bulletin 05.1). 

39Although in past investigations this deadline 

was 60 days, consistent with 19 CFR 351.301(a), 

which states that ‘‘the Secretary may request any 

person to submit factual information at any time 

during a proceeding,’’ this deadline is now 30 days. 

40See Policy Bulletin 05.1 at 6 (emphasis added). 

41See section 733(a) of the Act. 

42 Id. 

43See 19 CFR 351.301(b). 

44See 19 CFR 351.301(b)(2). 

sold in the United States at less than fair 

value. In accordance with section 

733(b)(1)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 

351.205(b)(1), unless postponed, we will 

make our preliminary determination no 

later than 140 days after the date of this 

initiation. 

Under the Trade Preferences 

Extension Act of 2015, numerous 

amendments to the AD and CVD law 

were made.34 The 2015 law does not 

specify dates of application for those 

amendments. On August 6, 2015, 

Commerce published an interpretative 

rule, in which it announced the 

applicability dates for each amendment 

to the Act, except for amendments 

contained in section 771(7) of the Act, 

which relate to determinations of 

material injury by the ITC.35 The 

amendments to sections 771(15), 773, 

776, and 782 of the Act are applicable 

to all determinations made on or after 

August 6, 2015, and, therefore, apply to 

this AD investigation.36

Respondent Selection 

The petitioner named 51 producers/ 

exporters of plastic decorative ribbon 

from China.37 In accordance with our 

standard practice for respondent 

selection in AD cases involving NME 

countries, we intend to issue quantity 

and value (Q&V) questionnaires to 

producers/exporters of merchandise 

subject to this investigation. In the event 

Commerce determines that the number 

of companies is large and it cannot 

individually examine each company, 

where appropriate, Commerce intends 

to select mandatory respondents based 

on the responses received. For this 

investigation, Commerce will request 

Q&V information from known exporters 

and producers identified with complete 

contact information in the Petition. In 

addition, Commerce will post the Q&V 

questionnaires along with filing 

instructions on Enforcement and 

Compliance’s website at http://

www.trade.gov/enforcement/news.asp. 

Producers/exporters of plastic 

decorative ribbon from China that do 

not receive Q&V questionnaires by mail 

may still submit a response to the Q&V 

questionnaire and can obtain a copy of 

the Q&V questionnaire from 

Enforcement & Compliance’s website. 

The Q&V response must be submitted 

by the relevant Chinese exporters/ 

producers no later than 5:00 p.m. ET on 

January 30, 2018. All Q&V responses 

must be filed electronically via 

ACCESS. 

Separate Rates 

In order to obtain separate-rate status 

in an NME investigation, exporters and 

producers must submit a separate-rate 

application.38 The specific requirements 

for submitting a separate-rate 

application are outlined in detail in the 

application itself, which is available on 

Commerce’s website at http://

enforcement.trade.gov/nme/nme-seprate.html. The separate-rate application 

will be due 30 days after publication of 

this initiation notice.39 Exporters and 

producers who submit a separate-rate 

application and have been selected as 

mandatory respondents will be eligible 

for consideration for separate-rate status 

only if they timely respond to all parts 

of Commerce’s AD questionnaire as 

mandatory respondents. Commerce 

requires that companies from China 

submit a response to both the Q&V 

questionnaire and the separate-rate 

application by the respective deadlines 

in order to receive consideration for 

separate-rate status. Companies not 

filing a timely Q&V response will not 

receive separate-rate consideration. 

Use of Combination Rates 

Commerce will calculate combination 

rates for certain respondents that are 

eligible for a separate rate in an NME 

investigation. The Separate Rates and 

Combination Rates Bulletin states: 

{w}hile continuing the practice of assigning 

separate rates only to exporters, all separate 

rates that the Department will now assign in 

its NME Investigation will be specific to 

those producers that supplied the exporter 

during the period of investigation. Note, 

however, that one rate is calculated for the 

exporter and all of the producers which 

supplied subject merchandise to it during the 

period of investigation. This practice applies 

both to mandatory respondents receiving an 

individually calculated separate rate as well 

as the pool of non-investigated firms 

receiving the weighted-average of the 

individually calculated rates. This practice is 

referred to as the application of ‘‘combination 

rates’’ because such rates apply to specific 

combinations of exporters and one or more 

producers. The cash-deposit rate assigned to 

an exporter will apply only to merchandise 

both exported by the firm in question and 

produced by a firm that supplied the exporter 

during the period of investigation.40

Distribution of Copies of the Petition 

In accordance with section 

732(b)(3)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 

351.202(f), a copy of the public version 

of the Petition has been provided to the 

government of China via ACCESS. To 

the extent practicable, we will attempt 

to provide a copy of the public version 

of the Petition to each exporter named 

in the Petition, as provided under 19 

CFR 351.203(c)(2). 

ITC Notification 

We will notify the ITC of our 

initiation, as required by section 732(d) 

of the Act. 

Preliminary Determination by the ITC 

The ITC will preliminarily determine, 

within 45 days after the date on which 

the Petition was filed, whether there is 

a reasonable indication that imports of 

plastic decorative ribbon from China, 

are materially injuring or threatening 

material injury to a U.S. industry.41 A 

negative ITC determination will result 

in the investigation being terminated.42

Otherwise, the investigation will 

proceed according to statutory and 

regulatory time limits. 

Submission of Factual Information 

Factual information is defined in 19 

CFR 351.102(b)(21) as: (i) Evidence 

submitted in response to questionnaires; 

(ii) evidence submitted in support of 

allegations; (iii) publicly available 

information to value factors under 19 

CFR 351.408(c) or to measure the 

adequacy of remuneration under 19 CFR 

351.511(a)(2); (iv) evidence placed on 

the record by Commerce; and (v) 

evidence other than factual information 

described in (i)–(iv). 19 CFR 351.301(b) 

requires any party, when submitting 

factual information, to specify under 

which subsection of 19 CFR 

351.102(b)(21) the information is being 

submitted 43 and, if the information is 

submitted to rebut, clarify, or correct 

factual information already on the 

record, to provide an explanation 

identifying the information already on 

the record that the factual information 

seeks to rebut, clarify, or correct.44 Time 

limits for the submission of factual 

information are addressed in 19 CFR 

351.301, which provides specific time 

limits based on the type of factual 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES
3130 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 15 / Tuesday, January 23, 2018 / Notices 

45See section 782(b) of the Act. 

46See Certification of Factual Information to 

Import Administration during Antidumping and 

Countervailing Duty Proceedings, 78 FR 42678 (July 

17, 2013) (Final Rule); see also frequently asked 

questions regarding the Final Rule, available at 

http://enforcement.trade.gov/tlei/notices/factual_

info_final_rule_FAQ_07172013.pdf. 

information being submitted. Interested 

parties should review the regulations 

prior to submitting factual information 

in this investigation. 

Extensions of Time Limits 

Parties may request an extension of 

time limits before the expiration of a 

time limit established under 19 CFR 

351.301, or as otherwise specified by the 

Secretary. In general, an extension 

request will be considered untimely if it 

is filed after the expiration of the time 

limit established under 19 CFR 351.301. 

For submissions that are due from 

multiple parties simultaneously, an 

extension request will be considered 

untimely if it is filed after 10:00 a.m. ET 

on the due date. Under certain 

circumstances, we may elect to specify 

a different time limit by which 

extension requests will be considered 

untimely for submissions which are due 

from multiple parties simultaneously. In 

such a case, we will inform parties in 

the letter or memorandum setting forth 

the deadline (including a specified time) 

by which extension requests must be 

filed to be considered timely. An 

extension request must be made in a 

separate, stand-alone submission; under 

limited circumstances we will grant 

untimely-filed requests for the extension 

of time limits. Parties should review 

Extension of Time Limits; Final Rule, 78 

FR 57790 (September 20, 2013), 

available at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/ 

pkg/FR-2013-09-20/html/2013- 

22853.htm, prior to submitting factual 

information in this investigation. 

Certification Requirements 

Any party submitting factual 

information in an AD or CVD 

proceeding must certify to the accuracy 

and completeness of that information.45

Parties are hereby reminded that revised 

certification requirements are in effect 

for company/government officials, as 

well as their representatives.46

Investigations initiated on the basis of 

Petitions filed on or after August 16, 

2013, and other segments of any AD or 

CVD proceedings initiated on or after 

August 16, 2013, should use the formats 

for the revised certifications provided in 

19 CFR 351.303(g). Commerce intends 

to reject factual submissions if the 

submitting party does not comply with 

applicable revised certification 

requirements. 

Notification to Interested Parties 

Interested parties must submit 

applications for disclosure under APO 

in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305. On 

January 22, 2008, Commerce published 

Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 

Proceedings: Documents Submission 

Procedures; APO Procedures, 73 FR 

3634 (January 22, 2008). Parties wishing 

to participate in this investigation 

should ensure that they meet the 

requirements of these procedures (e.g., 

the filing of letters of appearance as 

discussed at 19 CFR 351.103(d)). 

This notice is issued and published 

pursuant to sections 732(c)(2) and 777(i) 

of the Act, and 19 CFR 351.203(c). 

Dated: January 16, 2018. 

Gary Taverman, 

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping 

and Countervailing Duty Operations, 

performing the non-exclusive functions and 

duties of the Assistant Secretary for 

Enforcement and Compliance. 

Appendix—Scope of the Investigation 

The merchandise covered by this 

investigation is certain plastic decorative 

ribbon having a width (measured at the 

narrowest span of the ribbon) of less than or 

equal to four (4) inches in actual 

measurement, including but not limited to 

ribbon wound onto itself; a spool, a core or 

a tube (with or without flanges); attached to 

a card or strip; wound into a keg- or eggshaped configuration; made into bows, bowlike items, or other shapes or configurations; 

and whether or not packaged or labeled for 

retail sale. The subject merchandise is 

typically made of substrates of 

polypropylene, but may be made in whole or 

in part of any type of plastic, including 

without limitation, plastic derived from 

petroleum products and plastic derived from 

cellulose products. Unless the context 

otherwise clearly indicates, the word 

‘‘ribbon’’ used in the singular includes the 

plural and the plural ‘‘ribbons’’ includes the 

singular. 

The subject merchandise includes ribbons 

comprised of one or more layers of substrates 

made, in whole or in part, of plastics adhered 

to each other, regardless of the method used 

to adhere the layers together, including 

without limitation, ribbons comprised of 

layers of substrates adhered to each other 

through a lamination process. Subject 

merchandise also includes ribbons 

comprised of (a) one or more layers of 

substrates made, in whole or in part, of 

plastics adhered to (b) one or more layers of 

substrates made, in whole or in part, of nonplastic materials, including, without 

limitation, substrates made, in whole or in 

part, of fabric. 

The ribbons subject to this investigation 

may be of any color or combination of colors 

(including without limitation, ribbons that 

are transparent, translucent or opaque) and 

may or may not bear words or images, 

including without limitation, those of a 

holiday motif. The subject merchandise 

includes ribbons with embellishments and/or 

treatments, including, without limitation, 

ribbons that are printed, hot-stamped, coated, 

laminated, flocked, crimped, die-cut, 

embossed (or that otherwise have impressed 

designs, images, words or patterns), and 

ribbons with holographic, metallic, glitter or 

iridescent finishes. 

Subject merchandise includes ‘‘pull-bows’’ 

an assemblage of ribbons connected to one 

another, folded flat, and equipped with a 

means to form such ribbons into the shape 

of a bow by pulling on a length of material 

affixed to such assemblage, and ‘‘prenotched’’ bows, an assemblage of notched 

ribbon loops arranged one inside the other 

with the notches in alignment and affixed to 

each other where notched, and which the 

end user forms into a bow by separating and 

spreading the loops circularly around the 

notches, which form the center of the bow. 

Subject merchandise includes ribbons that 

are packaged with non-subject merchandise, 

including ensembles that include ribbons 

and other products, such as gift wrap, gift 

bags, gift tags and/or other gift packaging 

products. The ribbons are covered by the 

scope of this investigation; the ‘‘other 

products’’ (i.e., the other, non-subject 

merchandise included in the ensemble) are 

not covered by the scope of this 

investigation. 

Excluded from the scope of this 

investigation are the following: (1) Ribbons 

formed exclusively by weaving plastic 

threads together; (2) ribbons that have metal 

wire in, on, or along the entirety of each of 

the longitudinal edges of the ribbon; (3) 

ribbons with an adhesive coating covering 

the entire span between the longitudinal 

edges of the ribbon for the entire length of 

the ribbon; (4) ribbon formed into a bow 

without a tab or other means for attaching the 

bow to an object using adhesives, where the 

bow has: (a) An outer layer that is either 

flocked or made of fabric, and (b) a flexible 

metal wire at the base that is suitable for 

attaching the bow to a Christmas tree or other 

object by twist-tying; (5) elastic ribbons, 

meaning ribbons that elongate when 

stretched and return to their original 

dimension when the stretching load is 

removed; (6) ribbons affixed as a decorative 

detail to non-subject merchandise, such as a 

gift bag, gift box, gift tin, greeting card or 

plush toy, or affixed (including by tying) as 

a decorative detail to packaging containing 

non-subject merchandise; (7) ribbons that are 

(a) affixed to non-subject merchandise as a 

working component of such non-subject 

merchandise, such as where the ribbon 

comprises a book marker, bag cinch, or part 

of an identity card holder, or (b) affixed 

(including by tying) to non-subject 

merchandise as a working component that 

holds or packages such non-subject 

merchandise or attaches packaging or 

labeling to such non-subject merchandise, 

such as a ‘‘belly band’’ around a pair of 

pajamas, a pair of socks or a blanket; (8) 

imitation raffia made of plastics having a 

thickness not more than one (1) mil when 

measured in an unfolded/untwisted state; 

and (9) ribbons in the form of bows having 


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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 15 / Tuesday, January 23, 2018 / Notices 3131 

a diameter of less than seven-eighths (7⁄8) of 

an inch, or having a diameter of more than 

16 inches, based on actual measurement. For 

purposes of this exclusion, the diameter of a 

bow is equal to the diameter of the smallest 

circular ring through which the bow will 

pass without compressing the bow. 

Further, excluded from the scope of the 

antidumping duty investigation are any 

products covered by the existing 

antidumping duty order on polyethylene 

terephthalate film, sheet, and strip (PET 

Film) from the People’s Republic of China 

(China). See Polyethylene Terephthalate 

Film, Sheet, and Strip from Brazil, the 

People’s Republic of China and the United 

Arab Emirates: Antidumping Duty Orders 

and Amended Final Determination of Sales 

at Less Than Fair Value for the United Arab 

Emirates, 73 FR 66595 (November 10, 2008). 

Merchandise covered by this investigation 

is currently classified in the Harmonized 

Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) 

under subheadings 3920.20.0015 and 

3926.40.0010. Merchandise covered by this 

investigation also may enter under 

subheadings 3920.10.0000; 3920.20.0055; 

3920.30.0000; 3920.43.5000; 3920.49.0000; 

3920.62.0050; 3920.62.0090; 3920.69.0000; 

3921.90.1100; 3921.90.1500; 3921.90.1910; 

3921.90.1950; 3921.90.4010; 3921.90.4090; 

3926.90.9996; 5404.90.0000; 9505.90.4000; 

4601.99.9000; 4602.90.0000; 5609.00.3000; 

5609.00.4000; and 6307.90.9889. These 

HTSUS subheadings are provided for 

convenience and customs purposes; the 

written description of the scope of this 

investigation is dispositive. 

[FR Doc. 2018–01148 Filed 1–22–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Proposed Information Collection; 

Comment Request; Highly Migratory 

Species Dealer Reporting Family of 

Forms 

AGENCY: National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration, 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of 

Commerce, as part of its continuing 

effort to reduce paperwork and 

respondent burden, invites the general 

public and other Federal agencies to 

take this opportunity to comment on 

proposed and/or continuing information 

collections, as required by the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

submitted on or before March 26, 2018. 

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments 

to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental 

Paperwork Clearance Officer, 

Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 

14th and Constitution Avenue NW, 

Washington, DC 20230 (or via the 

internet at pracomments@doc.gov). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Requests for additional information or 

copies of the information collection 

instrument and instructions should be 

directed to Dianne Stephan, Atlantic 

Highly Migratory Species Management 

Division, National Marine Fisheries 

Service, 55 Great Republic Drive, 

Gloucester, MA 01930, (978) 281–9260 

or Dianne.Stephan@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract 

This request is for extension of a 

currently approved information 

collection. 

Under the provisions of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act (16 

U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), the National Marine 

Fisheries Service (NMFS) is responsible 

for management of the Nation’s marine 

fisheries. NMFS must also promulgate 

regulations, as necessary and 

appropriate, to carry out obligations the 

United States (U.S.) undertakes 

internationally regarding tuna 

management through the Atlantic Tunas 

Convention Act (ATCA, 16 U.S.C. 971 et 

seq.). 

This collection serves as a family of 

forms for Atlantic highly migratory 

species (HMS) dealer reporting, 

including purchases of HMS from 

domestic fishermen, and the import, 

export, and/or re-export of HMS, 

including federally managed tunas, 

sharks, and swordfish. 

Transactions covered under this 

collection include purchases of Atlantic 

HMS from domestic fishermen; and the 

import/export of all bluefin tuna, frozen 

bigeye tuna, southern bluefin tuna or 

swordfish under the HMS International 

Trade Program, regardless of geographic 

area of origin. This information is used 

to monitor the harvest of domestic 

fisheries, and/or track international 

trade of internationally managed 

species. 

The domestic dealer reporting 

covered by this collection includes 

weekly electronic landing reports and 

negative reports (i.e., reports of no 

activity) of Atlantic swordfish, sharks, 

bigeye tuna, albacore, yellowfin, and 

skipjack tunas (collectively referred to 

as BAYS tunas), and biweekly and 

electronic daily landing reports for 

bluefin tuna, including tagging of 

individual fish. Because of the recent 

development of an individual bluefin 

quota (IBQ) management system (RIN 

0648–BC09), electronic entry of IBQrelated landing data is required for 

Atlantic bluefin tuna purchased from 

Longline and Purse seine category 

vessels. NMFS intends to consider 

integrating the electronic dealer 

reporting for bluefin tuna and electronic 

reporting for the IBQ system; however, 

at this time, dealers must submit limited 

bluefin tuna landings data to both 

NMFS systems for purse seine and 

pelagic longline vessels. 

International trade tracking programs 

are required by both the International 

Commission for the Conservation of 

Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) and the InterAmerican Tropical Tuna Commission 

(IATTC) to account for all international 

trade of covered species. The U.S. is a 

member of ICCAT and IATTC and 

required by ATCA and the Tunas 

Convention Act (16 U.S.C. 951 et. seq., 

consecutively) to promulgate 

regulations as necessary and appropriate 

to implement ICCAT and IATTC 

recommendations. These programs 

require that a statistical document or 

catch document accompany each export 

from and import to a member nation, 

and that a re-export certificate 

accompany each re-export. The 

international trade reporting 

requirements covered by this collection 

include implementation of catch 

document, statistical document, and reexport certificate trade tracking 

programs for bluefin tuna, frozen bigeye 

tuna, and swordfish. An electronic catch 

document program for bluefin tuna 

(EBCD) was recommended by ICCAT 

and implemented by the United States 

in 2016 (0648–BF17). U.S. regulations 

implementing ICCAT statistical 

document and catch document 

programs require statistical documents 

and catch documents for international 

transactions of the covered species from 

all ocean areas, so Pacific imports and 

exports must also be accompanied by 

statistical documents and catch 

documents. Since there are statistical 

document programs in place under 

other international conventions (e.g., the 

Indian Ocean Tuna Commission), a 

statistical document or catch document 

from another program may be used to 

satisfy the statistical document 

requirement for imports into the United 

States. 

Dealers who internationally trade 

Southern bluefin tuna are required to 

participate in a trade tracking program 

to ensure that imported Atlantic and 

Pacific bluefin tuna will not be 

intentionally mislabeled as ‘‘southern 

bluefin’’ to circumvent reporting 

requirements. This action is authorized 

under ATCA, which provides for the 

promulgation of regulations as may be 

necessary and appropriate to carry out 

ICCAT recommendations. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES