64778 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 202 / Wednesday, October 20, 2010 / Notices 

www.regulations.gov, under Docket No. 

USTR–2010–0028. 

William Busis, 

Chair, Section 301 Committee. 

[FR Doc. 2010–26401 Filed 10–19–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3190–W1–P 

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES 

TRADE REPRESENTATIVE 

Request for Comments on Negotiating 

Objectives With Respect to Malaysia’s 

Participation in the Proposed TransPacific Partnership Trade Agreement 

AGENCY: Office of the United States 

Trade Representative (USTR) 

ACTION: Request for comments on 

negotiating objectives with respect to 

Malaysia’s participation in the ongoing 

negotiations of a Trans-Pacific 

Partnership (TPP) trade agreement, and 

notice of public hearing. 

SUMMARY: The United States intends to 

commence negotiations with Malaysia 

as part of the ongoing negotiations of a 

TPP trade agreement. Including 

Malaysia in the TPP negotiations 

furthers the objective of achieving a 

high-standard, broad-based Asia-Pacific 

regional agreement. USTR is seeking 

public comments on all elements related 

to Malaysia’s participation in the TPP 

negotiations in order to develop U.S. 

negotiating positions. 

DATES: Persons wishing to testify orally 

at the hearing must provide written 

notification of their intention, as well as 

their testimony, by November 10, 2010. 

A hearing will be held in Washington, 

DC, on November 19, 2010. Written 

comments are due by noon, November 

22, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Submissions via on-line: 

http://www.regulations.gov. For 

alternatives to on-line submissions 

please contact Gloria Blue, Executive 

Secretary, Trade Policy Staff Committee 

(TPSC), at (202) 395–3475. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

procedural questions concerning written 

comments, please contact Gloria Blue at 

the above number. Questions regarding 

the environmental review of the TPP 

trade agreement should be directed to 

David Brooks, Environment and Natural 

Resources Section, USTR, at (202) 395– 

7320. All other questions regarding the 

TPP trade agreement should be directed 

to David Bisbee, Deputy Assistant USTR 

for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, at 

(202) 395–6813. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

1. Background 

On October 5, 2010, after having 

consulted with relevant Congressional 

committees and reached consensus on 

Malaysia’s participation with the other 

TPP negotiating partners (Australia, 

Brunei Darussalam, Chile, New Zealand, 

Peru, Singapore and Vietnam), the 

USTR informed Congress that the 

President intends to commence 

negotiations with Malaysia in the 

context of the ongoing negotiations of 

the TPP. The objective of this 

negotiation is to achieve a highstandard, 21st century agreement with a 

membership and coverage that provides 

economically significant market access 

opportunities for America’s workers, 

farmers, ranchers, service providers, and 

small businesses. The addition of 

Malaysia to the initial group of TPP 

negotiating partners will contribute 

meaningfully to the achievement of 

these goals. 

In addition, under the Trade Act of 

1974, as amended (19 U.S.C. 2151, 

2153), in the case of an agreement such 

as the proposed TPP trade agreement, 

the President must (i) afford interested 

persons an opportunity to present their 

views regarding any matter relevant to 

the proposed agreement, (ii) designate 

an agency or inter-agency committee to 

hold a public hearing regarding the 

proposed agreement, and (iii) seek the 

advice of the U.S. International Trade 

Commission (ITC) regarding the 

probable economic effects on U.S. 

industries and consumers of the 

removal of tariffs and non-tariff barriers 

on imports pursuant to the proposed 

agreement. 

USTR intends to hold a public 

hearing on matters related to Malaysia’s 

participation in the TPP negotiations on 

November 19, 2010. In addition, USTR 

has requested the ITC to provide advice 

to USTR on the probable economic 

effects of including Malaysia in a TPP 

agreement. 

2. Public Comments 

To assist USTR as it develops its 

negotiating objectives for the agreement, 

the TPSC Chair invites interested parties 

to submit written comments and/or oral 

testimony at a public hearing on matters 

relevant to Malaysia’s participation in 

the TPP negotiations. Comments and 

testimony may address the reduction or 

elimination of tariffs or non-tariff 

barriers on any articles provided for in 

the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the 

United States (HTSUS) that are products 

of Malaysia, any concession that should 

be sought by the United States, or any 

other matter relevant to the inclusion of 

Malaysia in the proposed TPP 

agreement. The TPSC Chair invites 

comments on all of these matters and, 

in particular, seeks comments addressed 

to: 

(a) General and product-specific 

negotiating objectives for Malaysia in 

the context of this proposed regional 

agreement. 

(b) Economic costs and benefits to 

U.S. producers and consumers of 

removal of tariffs and removal or 

reduction in non-tariff barriers on 

articles traded with Malaysia. 

(c) Treatment of specific goods 

(described by HTSUS numbers) under 

the proposed regional agreement, 

including comments on— 

(1) Product-specific import or export 

interests or barriers, 

(2) experience with particular 

measures that should be addressed in 

the negotiations, and 

(3) approach to tariff negotiations, 

including recommended staging and 

ways to address export priorities and 

import sensitivities related to Malaysia 

in the context of this regional 

agreement. 

(d) Adequacy of existing customs 

measures to ensure that qualifying 

imported goods from TPP countries, 

including Malaysia, receive preferential 

treatment, and appropriate rules of 

origin for goods entering the United 

States under the proposed regional 

agreement. 

(e) Existing sanitary and 

phytosanitary measures and technical 

barriers to trade imposed by Malaysia 

that should be addressed in the 

negotiations. 

(f) Existing barriers to trade in 

services between the United States and 

Malaysia that should be addressed in 

the negotiations. 

(g) Relevant electronic commerce 

issues that should be addressed in the 

negotiations. 

(h) Relevant trade-related intellectual 

property rights issues that should be 

addressed in the negotiations. 

(i) Relevant investment issues that 

should be addressed in the negotiations. 

(j) Relevant competition-related 

matters that should be addressed in the 

negotiations. 

(k) Relevant government procurement 

issues that should be addressed in the 

negotiations. 

(l) Relevant environmental issues that 

should be addressed in the negotiations. 

(m) Relevant labor issues that should 

be addressed in the negotiations. 

In addition to the matters described 

above, USTR is addressing new and 

emerging issues in this proposed 

regional agreement. Specifically, USTR 

is considering new approaches designed 

to promote innovation and 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 202 / Wednesday, October 20, 2010 / Notices 64779 

competitiveness, encourage new 

technologies and emerging economic 

sectors, increase the participation of 

small- and medium-sized businesses in 

trade, and support the development of 

efficient production and supply chains 

that include U.S. firms in order to 

encourage firms to invest and produce 

in the United States. The TPSC Chair 

invites comments regarding how 

Malaysia’s participation in the 

negotiations might affect these new 

approaches. The TPSC Chair also invites 

comments on the impact of Malaysia’s 

participation in the negotiations on 

other trade-related priorities in this 

regional agreement, including 

environmental protection and 

conservation, transparency, workers 

rights and protections, development, 

and other issues. 

USTR has already provided notice 

and requested comments on the scope 

for an environmental review of the 

proposed TPP trade agreement (see 75 

FR 14470, March 25, 2010). As 

described above, the present notice 

invites comments on, among other 

topics, environmental issues to be 

addressed in the TPP negotiations to 

take into account Malaysia’s 

participation in the negotiation. Further 

comments are also invited on the 

environmental review, including 

possible changes in the scope or other 

issues that should be addressed in the 

review. At a later date, USTR, through 

the TPSC, will publish notice of reviews 

regarding the impact of the proposed 

agreement on U.S. employment and 

labor markets. These reviews will take 

into account Malaysia’s participation in 

the negotiations. 

A hearing will be held on November 

19, 2010, in Rooms 1, and 2, 1724 F 

Street, NW., Washington, DC. Persons 

wishing to testify at the hearing must 

provide written notification of their 

intention by November 10, 2010. The 

notification should include: (1) The 

name, address, and telephone number of 

the person presenting the testimony; 

and (2) a short (one or two paragraph) 

summary of the presentation, including 

the subject matter and, as applicable, 

the product(s) (with HTSUS numbers), 

service sector(s), or other subjects (such 

as investment, intellectual property 

and/or government procurement) to be 

discussed. A copy of the testimony must 

accompany the notification. Remarks at 

the hearing should be limited to no 

more than five minutes to allow for 

possible questions from the TPSC. 

Persons with mobility impairments who 

will need special assistance in gaining 

access to the hearing should contact the 

TPSC Executive Secretary. 

Interested persons, including persons 

who participate in the hearing, may 

submit written comments by no later 

than noon, Monday, November 22, 

2010. 

3. Requirements for Submissions 

Persons submitting comments must 

do so in English and must identify (on 

the first page of the submission) the 

‘‘Participation of Malaysia in the TransPacific Partnership Trade Negotiations.’’ 

In order to ensure the timely receipt 

and consideration of comments, USTR 

strongly encourages commenters to 

make on-line submissions, using the 

http://www.regulations.gov Web site. 

Comments should be submitted under 

the following docket: USTR–2010–0031. 

To find the docket, enter the docket 

number in the ‘‘Enter Keyword or ID’’ 

window at the http:// 

www.regulations.gov home page and 

click ‘‘Search.’’ The site will provide a 

search-results page listing all documents 

associated with this docket. Find a 

reference to this notice by selecting 

‘‘Notices’’ under ‘‘Document Type’’ on 

the search-results page, and click on the 

link entitled ‘‘Submit a Comment.’’ (For 

further information on using the 

www.regulations.gov Web site, please 

consult the resources provided on the 

Web site by clicking on the ‘‘Help’’ tab.) 

The http://www.regulations.gov Web 

site provides the option of making 

submissions by filling in a comments 

field, or by attaching a document. USTR 

prefers submissions to be provided in an 

attached document. If a document is 

attached, it is sufficient to type ‘‘See 

attached’’ in the ‘‘Type comment & 

Upload File’’ field. USTR prefers 

submissions in Microsoft Word (.doc) or 

Adobe Acrobat (.pdf). If the submission 

is in an application other than those 

two, please indicate the name of the 

application in the ‘‘Comments’’ field. 

For any 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. Filers of 

submissions containing business 

confidential information must also 

submit a public version of their 

comments. The file name of the public 

version should begin with the character 

‘‘P’’. The ‘‘BC’’ and ‘‘P’’ should be 

followed by the name of the person or 

entity submitting the comments or reply 

comments. Filers submitting comments 

containing no business confidential 

information should name their file using 

the character ‘‘P’’, followed by the name 

of the person or entity submitting the 

comments. 

Please do not attach separate cover 

letters to electronic submissions; rather, 

include any information that might 

appear in a cover letter in the comments 

themselves. Similarly, to the extent 

possible, please include any exhibits, 

annexes, or other attachments in the 

same file as the submission itself, not as 

separate files. 

USTR strongly urges submitters to file 

comments through regulations.gov, if at 

all possible. Any alternative 

arrangements must be made with Ms. 

Blue in advance of transmitting a 

comment. Ms. Blue should be contacted 

at (202) 395–3475. General information 

concerning USTR is available at http:// 

www.ustr.gov. 

Carmen Suro-Bredie, 

Chair, Trade Policy Staff Committee. 

[FR Doc. 2010–26332 Filed 10–19–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3190–W1–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2009–0271] 

Identification of Interstate Motor 

Vehicles: New York City, Cook County, 

and New Jersey Tax Identification 

Requirements; Petition for 

Determination 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice; Grant of petition for 

determination. 

SUMMARY: The FMCSA grants three 

petitions submitted by the American 

Trucking Associations (ATA) requesting 

determinations that the commercial 

motor vehicle (CMV) identification 

requirements imposed by the State of 

New Jersey, New York City, and Cook 

County, Illinois are preempted by 

Federal law. The Safe, Accountable, 

Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity 

Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA–LU) 

prohibits States and their political 

subdivisions from requiring motor 

carriers to display in or on CMVs any 

form of identification other than forms 

required by the Secretary of 

Transportation, with certain exceptions. 

FMCSA grants ATA’s requests because 

the three credential display 

requirements do not qualify for the 

relevant statutory exception for State 

display of credentials and are 

preempted by Federal statute. 

DATES: This decision is effective October 

20, 2010. 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with NOTICES