54640 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 184 / Monday, September 22, 2008 / Notices 

Act provides that the President shall 

monitor and review annually the 

progress of each sub-Saharan African 

country in meeting the foregoing 

eligibility criteria in order to determine 

whether each beneficiary sub-Saharan 

African country should continue to be 

eligible, and whether each sub-Saharan 

African country that is currently not a 

beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

country, should be designated as such a 

country. Section 506A of the 1974 Act 

requires that, if the President 

determines that a beneficiary subSaharan African country is not making 

continual progress in meeting the 

eligibility requirements, he must 

terminate the designation of the country 

as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

country. 

The Subcommittee is seeking public 

comments in connection with the 

annual review of the eligibility of 

beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

countries for the AGOA’s benefits. The 

Subcommittee will consider any such 

comments in developing 

recommendations on country eligibility 

for the President. Comments related to 

the child labor criteria may also be 

considered by the Secretary of Labor in 

making the findings required under 

section 504 of the 1974 Act. 

The following sub-Saharan African 

countries were designated as beneficiary 

sub-Saharan African countries in 2008: 

Angola 

Republic of Benin 

Republic of Botswana 

Burkina Faso 

Burundi 

Republic of Cape Verde 

Republic of Cameroon 

Republic of Chad 

Federal Islamic Republic of Comoros 

Republic of Congo 

Democratic Republic of Congo 

Republic of Djibouti 

Ethiopia 

Gabonese Republic 

The Gambia 

Republic of Ghana 

Republic of Guinea 

Republic of Guinea-Bissau 

Republic of Kenya 

Kingdom of Lesotho 

Republic of Liberia 

Republic of Madagascar 

Republic of Malawi 

Republic of Mali 

Republic of Mauritius 

Islamic Republic of Mauritania 

Republic of Mozambique 

Republic of Namibia 

Republic of Niger 

Federal Republic of Nigeria 

Republic of Rwanda 

Sao Tome & Principe 

Republic of Senegal 

Republic of Seychelles 

Republic of Sierra Leone 

Republic of South Africa 

Kingdom of Swaziland 

Republic of Togo 

United Republic of Tanzania 

Republic of Uganda 

Republic of Zambia 

The following sub-Saharan African 

countries were not designated as 

beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

countries in 2007: 

Central African Republic 

Republic of Cote d’Ivoire 

Republic of Equatorial Guinea 

State of Eritrea 

Somalia 

Republic of Sudan 

Republic of Zimbabwe 

Requirements for Submissions: 

Comments must be submitted in 

English. In order to facilitate the prompt 

processing of submissions, USTR 

strongly recommends that comments be 

set out in digital files attached to e-mails 

transmitted to the following address: 

FR0811@ustr.eop.gov. If you are unable 

to provide comments by e-mail, 

submissions should be made by 

facsimile as set forth above. Persons 

making submissions by e-mail should 

use the following subject line: ‘‘2008 

AGOA Annual Country Review.’’ Digital 

files must be submitted in one of the 

following formats: WordPerfect (.WPD), 

Adobe (.PDF), MSWord (.DOC), or text 

(.TXT) files. Comments may not be 

submitted as electronic image files or 

contain embedded images, e.g., ‘‘.JPG’’, 

‘‘.TIF’’, ‘‘.BMP’’, or ‘‘.GIF’’. Spreadsheet 

data may be submitted as Excel files, 

formatted for printing on 81⁄2 x 11 inch 

paper. To the extent possible, any data 

accompanying the submission should be 

included in the same file as the 

submission itself, and not in a separate 

file. The transmittal message or cover 

letter accompanying a submission must 

be set out exclusively in the digital file 

attached to the e-mail transmission—not 

in the message portion of the e-mail— 

and must include the sender’s name, 

organization name, address, telephone 

and fax numbers, and e-mail address. 

If the submission contains business 

confidential information that the 

submitter wishes to protect from public 

disclosure, the confidential version 

must be marked ‘‘BUSINESS 

CONFIDENTIAL’’ at the top and bottom 

of each page. In addition, the 

submission must be accompanied by a 

non-confidential version that indicates, 

with asterisks, where confidential 

information was redacted or deleted. 

The top and bottom of each page of the 

non-confidential version must be 

marked either ‘‘PUBLIC VERSION’’ or 

‘‘NON-CONFIDENTIAL’’. Business 

confidential comments that are 

submitted without the required 

markings or are not accompanied by a 

properly marked non-confidential 

version as set forth above may not be 

accepted or may be treated as public 

documents. 

The digital file name assigned to any 

business confidential version of a 

submission should begin with the 

characters ‘‘BC-’’, and the file name of 

the public version should begin with the 

characters ‘‘P-’’. The ‘‘P-’’ or ‘‘BC-’’ 

should be followed by the name of the 

submitter. 

Public versions of all documents 

relating to this review will be available 

for review approximately two weeks 

after the due date by appointment in the 

USTR public reading room, 1724 F 

Street, NW., Washington, DC. 

Appointments may be made Monday 

through Friday, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon 

and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., by calling (202) 

395–6186. Appointments must be 

scheduled at least 48 hours in advance. 

Carmen Suro-Bredie, 

Chairman, Trade Policy Staff Committee. 

[FR Doc. E8–22044 Filed 9–19–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3190–W8–P 

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES 

TRADE REPRESENTATIVE 

[Docket No. WTO/DS375] 

WTO Dispute Settlement Proceeding 

Regarding European Communities— 

Tariff Treatment of Certain Information 

Technology Products 

AGENCY: Office of the United States 

Trade Representative. 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The Office of the United 

States Trade Representative (‘‘USTR’’) is 

providing notice that on August 18, 

2008, in accordance with the World 

Trade Organization (‘‘WTO’’) 

Understanding on Rules and Procedures 

Governing the Settlement of Disputes 

(‘‘DSU’’), the United States, jointly with 

Japan and the Separate Customs 

Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen 

and Matsu, requested the establishment 

of a dispute settlement panel regarding 

the tariff treatment accorded by the 

European Communities (‘‘EC’’) and its 

member States to set-top boxes with a 

communication function, flat panel 

displays, and certain multifunctional 

digital machines. That request may be 

found at www.wto.org contained in a 

document designated as WT/DS375/8. 

USTR invites written comments from 


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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 184 / Monday, September 22, 2008 / Notices 54641 

1Machines which perform two or more of the 

functions of printing, copying, or facsimile 

transmission, capable of connecting to an automatic 

data processing machine or to a network (including 

devices commercially known as MFPs 

(multifunctional printers), other ‘‘input or output 

units’’ of ‘‘automatic data processing machines’’, 

and facsimile machines). 

the public concerning the issues raised 

in this dispute. 

DATES: Although USTR will accept any 

comments received during the course of 

the dispute, comments should be 

submitted on or before October 24, 2008 

to be assured of timely consideration by 

USTR. 

ADDRESSES: Comments should be 

submitted (i) electronically, to 

FR0809@ustr.eop.gov, with ‘‘EC 

Information Technology Products 

(DS375)’’ in the subject line, or (ii) by 

fax, to Sandy McKinzy at (202) 395– 

3640, with a confirmation copy sent 

electronically to the electronic mail 

address above, in accordance with the 

requirements for submission set out 

below. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Elissa Alben, Assistant General Counsel, 

Office of the United States Trade 

Representative, 600 17th Street, NW., 

Washington, DC, (202) 395–3150. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant 

to section 127(b) of the Uruguay Round 

Agreements Act (URAA) (19 U.S.C. 

3537(b)(1)), USTR is providing notice 

that the United States has requested the 

establishment of a WTO dispute 

settlement panel pursuant to the WTO 

Understanding on Rules and Procedures 

Governing the Settlement of Disputes 

(‘‘DSU’’) to review the issues identified 

below. Such panel, which would hold 

its meetings in Geneva, Switzerland, 

would be expected to issue a report on 

its findings and recommendations 

within nine months after it is 

established. 

Major Issues Raised by the United 

States 

The EC and its member States impose 

duties on set-top boxes with a 

communication function, flat panel 

displays, and certain multifunctional 

digital machines.1

• Set-top boxes with a 

communication function. On May 7, 

2008, the EC published an amendment 

to the Explanatory Notes to the EC’s 

Combined Nomenclature (CN), which 

provides that the duty-free heading CN 

8528 71 13 (‘‘set-top boxes with a 

communication function’’) no longer 

includes set-top boxes with modems of 

certain types (e.g., Ethernet modems) or 

set-top boxes which ‘‘incorporate a 

device performing a recording or 

reproducing function (for example, a 

hard disk or DVD drive).’’ As a result of 

this exclusion, the EC and its member 

States impose a duty on these set-top 

boxes. In addition, the EC added an 

explanatory note to CN 8521 90 00 

indicating that the subheading includes 

set-top boxes ‘‘which incorporate a 

device performing a recording or 

reproducing function (for example, a 

hard disk or DVD drive).’’ Products 

classified in CN 8521 90 00 are subject 

to an MFN duty of 13.9%. 

• Flat panel displays (including LCD, 

electro luminescence, plasma and other 

technologies). On March 31, 2005, the 

EC published Council Regulation (EC) 

No 493/2005, stating that certain flat 

panel displays using LCD technology 

that are ‘‘capable of reproducing video 

images from a source other than an 

automatic data-processing machine’’ are 

not covered by the Information 

Technology Agreement (ITA) or by the 

Communication on its implementation 

(Council Decision 97/359/EC of 24 

March 1997). On April 26, 2005, the EC 

issued Commission Regulation (EC) No 

634/2005, stating that flat panel displays 

with certain attributes, including DVI, 

would be classified in a dutiable tariff 

line. On December 29, 2005, the EC 

published Commission Regulation (EC) 

No 2171/2005, which also provided that 

certain flat panel displays would be 

classified in a dutiable tariff line if they 

had certain attributes, including DVI. 

On December 30, 2006, the EC 

published amendments to the 

Explanatory Notes to accompany CN 

8471 60 80 and 8528 21 90. Like the 

regulations, the Explanatory Notes 

provide that flat panel displays with 

certain attributes, such as DVI, may not 

be classified in the duty-free tariff line 

8471 60 80 and would be classified in 

a dutiable tariff line. EC member States 

assess duties on flat panel displays. 

Furthermore, while the EC has 

temporarily suspended the collection of 

duties on some flat panel displays, it 

appears to fail to accord tariff treatment 

that is no less favorable than that 

provided for in its Schedule. 

• Multifunctional digital machines. In 

1999, the EC published Commission 

Regulation (EC) No 517/99, which 

provided that certain ‘‘output units’’ 

would be classified in a tariff line with 

a 6% MFN duty. On March 9, 2006, the 

EC published Commission Regulation 

(EC) No 400/2006, which classified 

certain ‘‘output units’’ or facsimile 

machines, under CN subheading 9009 

12 00, as indirect process electrostatic 

photocopiers. The EC Customs Code 

Committee also issued a statement 

indicating that ‘‘if a multifunctional 

device (fax, printer, scanner, copier) has 

the capability of photocopying in black 

and white 12 or more pages per minute 

(A4 format) this indicates that the 

product is classifiable in heading 9009 

as a photocopying apparatus.’’ 

Consistent with that statement, on 

October 31, 2006, the EC published 

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1549/ 

2006, which provides that certain 

‘‘output units’’ or facsimile machines 

capable of copying more than 12 

monochrome pages per minute are 

classified in a dutiable tariff line. EC 

member States assess duties on certain 

‘‘input or output units’’ and facsimile 

machines. 

These measures appear to USTR to be 

inconsistent with the EC’s obligations 

under Articles II:1(a) and II:1(b) of the 

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 

1994 (‘‘GATT 1994’’) and its Schedule 

and with the member States’ obligations 

under Articles II:1(a) and II:1(b) of the 

GATT 1994 and their Schedules, and 

they appear to nullify or impair benefits 

accruing to the United States under the 

GATT 1994. 

In addition, with respect to set-top 

boxes, the Tariff and Statistical 

Nomenclature Section of the Customs 

Code Committee delivered favorable 

opinions with respect to the proposed 

amendments to the Explanatory Notes 

contained in 2008/C 112/03 in October 

2006 and May 2007, respectively. It did 

not publish the amended explanatory 

notes in the EC Official Journal until 

May 7, 2008. Furthermore, member 

States were applying duties to set-top 

boxes using the approach specified in 

2008/C 112/03 prior to May 7, 2008. 

These actions appear to USTR to be 

inconsistent with the EC’s obligations 

under GATT 1994 Articles X:1 and X:2. 

Public Comment: Requirements for 

Submissions 

Interested persons are invited to 

submit written comments concerning 

the issues raised in the dispute. 

Comments should be submitted (i) 

electronically, to FR0809@ustr.eop.gov, 

with ‘‘EC Information Technology 

Products (DS375)’’ in the subject line, or 

(ii) by fax, to Sandy McKinzy at (202) 

395–3640, with a confirmation copy 

sent electronically to the electronic mail 

address above. 

USTR encourages the submission of 

documents in Adobe PDF format as 

attachments to an electronic mail. 

Interested persons who make 

submissions by electronic mail should 

not provide separate cover letters; 

information that might appear in a cover 

letter should be included in the 

submission itself. Similarly, to the 

extent possible, any attachments to the 

submission should be included in the 


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54642 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 184 / Monday, September 22, 2008 / Notices 

same file as the submission itself, and 

not as separate files. 

Comments must be in English. A 

person requesting that information 

contained in a comment submitted by 

that person be treated as confidential 

business information must certify that 

such information is business 

confidential and would not customarily 

be released to the public by the 

commenter. Confidential business 

information must be clearly designated 

as such and ‘‘BUSINESS 

CONFIDENTIAL’’ must be marked at the 

top and bottom of the cover page and 

each succeeding page. Persons who 

submit confidential business 

information are encouraged also to 

provide a non-confidential summary of 

the information. 

Information or advice contained in a 

comment submitted, other than business 

confidential information, may be 

determined by USTR to be confidential 

in accordance with section 135(g)(2) of 

the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 

2155(g)(2)). If the submitter believes that 

information or advice may qualify as 

such, the submitter— 

(1) Must clearly so designate the 

information or advice; 

(2) Must clearly mark the material as 

‘‘SUBMITTED IN CONFIDENCE’’ at the 

top and bottom of the cover page and 

each succeeding page; and 

(3) Is encouraged to provide a nonconfidential summary of the 

information or advice. 

USTR will maintain a file on this 

dispute settlement proceeding, 

accessible to the public, in the USTR 

Reading Room, which is located at 1724 

F Street, NW., Washington, DC 20508. 

The public file will include nonconfidential comments received by 

USTR from the public with respect to 

the dispute; if a dispute settlement 

panel is convened or in the event of an 

appeal from such a panel, the U.S. 

submissions, any non-confidential 

submissions, or non-confidential 

summaries of submissions, received 

from other participants in the dispute; 

the report of the panel; and, if 

applicable, the report of the Appellate 

Body. The USTR Reading Room is open 

to the public, by appointment only, 

from 10 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4 

p.m., Monday through Friday. An 

appointment to review the public file 

(Docket WTO/DS–375, EC Information 

Technology Products Dispute) may be 

made by calling the USTR Reading 

Room at (202) 395–6186. 

Daniel Brinza, 

Assistant United States Trade Representative 

for Monitoring and Enforcement. 

[FR Doc. E8–22101 Filed 9–19–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3190–W8–P 

OFFICE OF PERSONNEL 

MANAGEMENT 

[OMB Control No. 3206–0017; Form RI 78– 

11] 

Proposed Information Collection; 

Request for Comments on an Existing 

Information Collection 

AGENCY: Office of Personnel 

Management. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. 

L. 104–13, May 22, 1995), this notice 

announces that the Office of Personnel 

Management (OPM) intends to submit to 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) a request for review of an 

existing information collection. This 

information collection, ‘‘Medicare Part 

B Certification’’ (OMB Control No. 

3206–0017; Form RI 78–11), collects 

information from annuitants, their 

spouses, and survivor annuitants to 

determine their eligibility under the 

Retired Federal Employees Health 

Benefits Program for a Government 

contribution toward the cost of Part B of 

Medicare. 

Comments are particularly invited on 

whether this collection of information is 

necessary for the proper performance of 

functions of the Office of Personnel 

Management, and whether it will have 

practical utility; whether our estimate of 

the public burden of this collection of 

information is accurate, and based on 

valid assumptions and methodology; 

and ways in which we can minimize the 

burden of the collection of information 

on those who are to respond, through 

the use of appropriate technological 

collection techniques or other forms of 

information technology. 

Approximately 100 RI 78–11 forms 

are completed annually. Each form 

requires approximately 10 minutes to 

complete. The annual estimated burden 

is 17 hours. 

For copies of this proposal, contact 

Margaret A. Miller by telephone at (202) 

606–2699, by FAX (202) 418–3251, or 

by e-mail to Margaret.Miller@opm.gov. 

Please include a mailing address with 

your request. 

DATES: Comments on this proposal 

should be received within 60 calendar 

days of the date of this publication. 

ADDRESSES: Send or deliver comments 

to— 

Ronald W. Melton, Deputy Assistant 

Director, Retirement Services Program, 

Center for Retirement and Insurance 

Services, U.S. Office of Personnel 

Management, 1900 E Street, NW., Room 

3305, Washington, DC 20415–3500. 

For Information Regarding 

Administrative Coordination— 

Contact: Cyrus S. Benson, Team 

Leader, Publications Team, RIS Support 

Services/Support Group, U.S. Office of 

Personnel Management, 1900 E Street, 

NW., Room 4H28, Washington, DC 

20415, (202) 606–0623. 

U.S. Office of Personnel Management. 

Howard Weizmann, 

Deputy Director. 

[FR Doc. E8–22111 Filed 9–19–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6325–38–P 

OFFICE OF PERSONNEL 

MANAGEMENT 

[OMB Control No. 3206–0168; Form RI 20– 

80] 

Proposed Information Collection; 

Request for Comments on an Existing 

Information Collection 

AGENCY: Office of Personnel 

Management. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. 

L. 104–13, May 22, 1995), this notice 

announces that the Office of Personnel 

Management (OPM) intends to submit to 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) a request for comments on an 

existing information collection. This 

information collection, ‘‘Alternative 

Annuity Election’’ (OMB Control No. 

3206–0168; form RI 20–80), is used for 

individuals who are eligible to elect 

whether to receive a reduced annuity 

and a lump-sum payment equal to their 

retirement contributions (alternative 

form of annuity) or an unreduced 

annuity and no lump sum. 

Comments are particularly invited on 

whether this collection of information is 

necessary for the proper performance of 

functions of the Office of Personnel 

Management, and whether it will have 

practical utility; whether our estimate of 

the public burden of this collection of 

information is accurate, and based on 

valid assumptions and methodology; 

and ways in which we can minimize the 

burden of the collection of information 

on those who are to respond through the 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES