78398 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 249 / Tuesday, December 30, 2014 / Notices 

1See Countervailing Duty Investigation of Certain 

Passenger Vehicle and Light Truck Tires From the 

People’s Republic of China: Preliminary Affirmative 

Determination, Preliminary Affirmative Critical 

Circumstances Determination, in Part, and 

Alignment of Final Determination With Final 

Antidumping Duty Determination, 79 FR 71093 

(December 1, 2014) (Preliminary Determination). 

2See Letter from CTP, ‘‘Certain Passenger Vehicle 

and Light Truck Tires from China: Request for 

Meeting,’’ December 2, 2014 (CTP Scope 

Comments). 

3Collectively, United Steel, Paper and Forestry, 

Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial 

and Service Workers International Union, and AFL– 

CIO, CLC. 

4See Letter from Petitioner, ‘‘Certain Passenger 

Vehicle and Light Truck Tires from the People’s 

Republic of China—Scope of the Investigations, 

Petitioner’s Opposition to CTP’s Exclusion 

Request,’’ December 5, 2014 (Petitioner Rebuttal to 

CTP Comments). 

5See Letter from CTP, ‘‘Certain Passenger Vehicle 

and Light Truck Tires from China: Unconstitutional 

Burdens on Speech Created by Implementation of 

the Department’s Preliminary Affirmative 

Countervailing Duty Determination,’’ December 9, 

2014; Letter from CTP, ‘‘Certain Passenger Vehicle 

and Light Truck Tires from China: Response to 

Petitioner’s Opposition to CTP’s Exclusion 

Request,’’ December 9, 2014; Letter from Petitioner, 

‘‘Certain Passenger Vehicle and Light Truck Tires 

from the People’s Republic of China—Scope of the 

Investigations, Petitioner’s Reply to CTP’s Response 

on Scope and Comments on Unconstitutional 

Burden,’’ December 11, 2014; Letter from CTP, 

‘‘Certain Passenger Vehicle and Light Truck Tires 

from China: Unconstitutional Burdens on Speech 

Created by Implementation of the Department’s 

Preliminary Affirmative Countervailing Duty 

Determination,’’ December 11, 2014; Letter from 

Petitioner, ‘‘Certain Passenger Vehicle and Light 

Truck Tires from the People’s Republic of China— 

Scope of the Investigations, Petitioner’s Second 

Reply to CTP’s Comments on Unconstitutional 

Burden,’’ December 15, 2014. 

6See 19 CFR 351.224(g). 

7See Memorandum to Christian Marsh, Deputy 

Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and 

Compliance, ‘‘Allegation of Significant Ministerial 

This notice also serves as a reminder 

to parties subject to administrative 

protective order (APO) of their 

responsibility concerning the 

disposition of proprietary information 

disclosed under APO in accordance 

with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely 

written notification of the return or the 

destruction of APO materials or 

conversion to judicial protective order is 

hereby requested. Failure to comply 

with the regulations and the terms of an 

APO is a sanctionable violation. 

The final results of this administrative 

review are issued and published in 

accordance with sections 751(a)(1) and 

777(i)(1) of the Act. 

Dated: December 22, 2014. 

Paul Piquado, 

Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and 

Compliance. 

Appendix 

I. Summary 

II. Background 

III. Scope of the Order 

IV. Facts Available 

V. Discussion of the Issues 

Comment 1: Dubai Wire Affiliation 

Comment 2: Non-Dubai Wire Company 

Certifications 

Comment 3: Dubai Wire Third-Country 

Market Viability 

Comment 4: IBP’s Data Reporting 

Methodology 

Comment 5: Commissions in the United 

States 

Comment 6: Freight Revenue Cap 

Comment 7: Quantity Adjustments 

VI. Recommendation 

[FR Doc. 2014–30541 Filed 12–29–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

International Trade Administration 

[C–570–017] 

Countervailing Duty Investigation of 

Certain Passenger Vehicle and Light 

Truck Tires From the People’s 

Republic of China: Amended 

Affirmative Preliminary Determination 

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, 

International Trade Administration, 

Department of Commerce. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce 

(the Department) is amending the 

Preliminary Determination of the 

countervailing duty (CVD) investigation 

of passenger vehicle and light truck tires 

(passenger tires) from the People’s 

Republic of China (PRC) to correct 

significant ministerial errors with 

respect to our Preliminary 

Determination.1 We are also amending 

the scope of the investigation in 

response to comments submitted 

following the publication of the 

Preliminary Determination. The period 

of investigation is January 1, 2013, 

through December 31, 2013. 

DATES: Effective Date: December 30, 

2014. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Emily Halle or Jason Rhoads, AD/CVD 

Operations, Office VII, Enforcement and 

Compliance, International Trade 

Administration, U.S. Department of 

Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution 

Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230; 

telephone 202.482.0176, 202.482.0123, 

respectively. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Department announced its 

Preliminary Determination on 

November 24, 2014, and disclosed to 

interested parties the calculations for 

the Preliminary Determination on 

November 25, 2014. The Preliminary 

Determination was published on 

December 1, 2014. GITI Tire (Fujian) 

Co., Ltd. (GITI Fujian) submitted 

ministerial error allegations on 

December 1, 2014, alleging that the 

Department made certain significant 

errors in the Preliminary Determination. 

On December 2, 2014, CTP 

Transportation Products, LLC and 

Carlisle (Meizhou) Rubber Products Co. 

Ltd. (CTP) submitted comments 

regarding the preliminary scope.2

Petitioner 3 submitted rebuttal 

comments to CTP’s submission 

regarding the preliminary scope on 

December 5, 2014.4 Parties submitted 

additional comments on the preliminary 

scope through December 15, 2014.5

After reviewing the allegations, we 

determine that the Preliminary 

Determination included significant 

ministerial errors with respect to the 

calculation of certain sales 

denominators, and the benefit 

calculation for one company under the 

‘‘Government Policy Lending’’ program. 

We are also modifying the scope of the 

investigation by temporarily suspending 

certain marking requirements for 

exclusion of specialty tires in response 

to comments raised by interested 

parties. 

Analysis of Significant Ministerial 

Error Allegations 

A ministerial error is defined in 19 

CFR 351.224(f) as ‘‘an error in addition, 

subtraction, or other arithmetic 

function, clerical error resulting from 

inaccurate copying, duplication, or the 

like, and any other similar type of 

unintentional error which the Secretary 

considers ministerial.’’ With respect to 

preliminary determinations in 

investigations, 19 CFR 351.224(e) 

provides that the Department ‘‘will 

analyze any comments received and, if 

appropriate, correct any significant 

ministerial error by amending the 

preliminary determination. . .’’ A 

significant ministerial error is defined as 

an error, the correction of which, singly 

or in combination with other errors, 

would result in: (1) A change of at least 

five absolute percentage points in, but 

not less than 25 percent of, the 

countervailable subsidy rate calculated 

in the original (erroneous) preliminary 

determination; or (2) a difference 

between countervailable subsidy rate of 

zero (or de minimis) and a 

countervailable subsidy rate of greater 

than de minimis, or vice versa.6

As explained further in the 

Ministerial Error Memorandum issued 

concurrently with this Notice,7 we 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 249 / Tuesday, December 30, 2014 / Notices 78399 

Errors in the Preliminary Determination of the 

Countervailing Duty Investigation of Certain 

Passenger Vehicle and Light Truck Tires from the 

People’s Republic of China,’’ dated concurrently 

with this notice, for the analysis performed 

(Ministerial Error Memorandum). This 

memorandum is on file electronically via 

Enforcement and Compliance’s Antidumping and 

Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service 

System (ACCESS). ACCESS is available to 

registered users at http://access.trade.gov, and is 

available to all parties in the Department’s Central 

Records Unit in Room 7046 of the Department of 

Commerce building. 

8See CTP Scope Comments. 

9See Petitioner Rebuttal to CTP Comments. 

10See ‘‘Scope of Investigation’’ at the Appendix 

of this Notice (‘‘(d) the load index molded on the 

tire’s sidewall meets or exceeds those load indexes 

listed in the Tire and Rim Association Year Book 

for the relevant ST tire size, and (e) the tire’s speed 

rating is molded on the sidewall, indicating the 

rated speed in MPH or a letter rating as listed by 

TRA, and the rated speed does not exceed 81 MPH 

or an ‘‘M’’ rating;’’). 

11See, e.g., Letter from the China Manufacturer’s 

Alliance LLC, ‘‘CMA’s Scope Comments Certain 

Passenger Vehicle and Light Truck Tires from 

China,’’ August 11, 2014, at 6; Letter from 

Recreation Vehicle Industry Association, ‘‘Certain 

Passenger Vehicle and Light Truck Tires From the 

People’s Republic of China: Scope Comments,’’ 

August 8, 2014; Letter from CTP, ‘‘Certain Passenger 

Vehicle and Light Truck Tires from the People’s 

Republic of China—Comments on Scope,’’ August 

11, 2014. Additionally, we agree with Petitioner 

that based on evidence provided by CTP, CTP’s 

trailer tires not marked with ‘‘ST’’ would not be 

included in the scope because they do not meet the 

numerical size designations listed in the passenger 

car section or light truck section of the Tire and Rim 

Association Year Book, see Petitioner Rebuttal to 

CTP Comments at 3. 

12The countervailable rate for GITI Fujian applies 

also to its cross-owned affiliated companies GITI 

Tire (China) Investment Company Ltd., GITI Radial 

Tire (Anhui) Company Ltd., GITI Tire (Hualin) 

Company Ltd., GITI Steel Cord (Hubei) Company 

Ltd., and Anhui Prime Cord Fabrics Company Ltd. 

determine that the Preliminary 

Determination contained errors with 

respect to our calculation of GITI 

Fujian’s subsidy rate. Correction of 

these errors results in a determination 

that changes GITI Fujian’s subsidy rate 

by at least five absolute percentage 

points and more than 25 percent of the 

original (incorrect) rate. The Department 

considers these ministerial errors to be 

significant, warranting an amendment to 

our Preliminary Determination with 

respect to GITI Fujian. 

Amendment of the Scope of the 

Investigation To Suspend Certain 

Marking Requirements 

The scope of the investigation issued 

in the Preliminary Determination 

contained several exclusions. We are 

amending the preliminary requirements 

to qualify for the exclusion for specialty 

tires in order to address comments made 

by interested parties regarding the 

exclusion of specialty tires from the 

scope of the investigation. Specifically, 

CTP submitted comments in response to 

the Preliminary Determination arguing 

that implementing the scope exclusion 

requirements for trailer tires effective 

immediately would impose substantial 

burdens on exporters currently 

producing trailer tires in adherence with 

industry practices.8 Petitioner in this 

investigation submitted rebuttal 

comments arguing that the scope 

exclusion requirements are necessary to 

prevent circumvention of cash deposit 

requirements by exporters of passenger 

tires.9 After considering the parties’ 

comments, the Department has 

preliminarily determined that imposing 

certain marking requirements in the 

specialty tire exclusion (exclusion ‘‘(6)’’) 

in the scope of the Preliminary 

Determination is not warranted because 

imposition of these requirements could 

result in the payment of cash deposits 

on merchandise that Petitioner may not 

have intended to be included in the 

scope of the investigation. Accordingly, 

we have determined to suspend the 

requirements for load index and speed 

rating markings (exclusion (6)(d) and 

(6)(e)).10 We are retaining the other 

sidewall markings for the exclusion of 

specialty tires, namely the ‘‘DOT’’ 

designation, the prefix ‘‘ST,’’ and the 

disclaimer ‘‘For Trailer Service Only’’ or 

‘‘For Trailer Use Only’’. The record 

indicates that these markings are 

generally included on tire sidewalls as 

part of current industry practice.11 We 

find that retaining these requirements is 

administrable and provides sufficient 

protection from possible evasion during 

this investigation, without placing an 

undue burden on acknowledged trailer 

tire producers (i.e., producers of nonsubject merchandise) such as CTP. We 

note that it is the Department’s current 

intent to retain the marking 

requirements for exclusion 6(d) and (e) 

in its final determinations in the CVD 

and antidumping duty investigations. 

However, interested parties will have 

the opportunity to address the necessity 

of these requirements or any 

amendments thereto, including the 

threshold speed requirement and 

associated markings, in case and 

rebuttal briefs for the Department’s 

consideration before the final 

determinations in the CVD and 

antidumping duty investigations. For a 

full description of the amended scope of 

this investigation, see ‘‘Scope of 

Investigation’’ at the Appendix of this 

notice. 

Suspension of Liquidation 

In accordance with section 

703(d)(1)(A)(i) of the Act, we calculated 

an amended estimated countervailable 

subsidy rate for GITI Fujian.12 In the 

Preliminary Determination, we 

calculated an all-others rate using a 

weight average of the two responding 

firms’ rates (i.e., GITI Fujian and Cooper 

Kunshan Tire Co., Ltd). Therefore, we 

are also amending the all-others rate to 

incorporate GITI Fujian’s amended rate 

in the weight average of the responding 

firms’ rate, using publicly-ranged data. 

The overall amended preliminary 

estimated countervailable subsidy rates 

are summarized in the table below. 

Exporter/producer Subsidy rate 

(percent) 

GITI Tire (Fujian) Co., Ltd. 

and certain cross-owned 

companies ......................... 11.74 

All Others .............................. 12.03 

We will instruct U.S. Customs and 

Border Protection (CBP) to require a 

cash deposit equal to the estimated 

amended countervailing duty rates 

reflected in this notice for GITI Fujian 

and all-other exporters or producers. 

This amended countervailing duty rate 

applies to GITI Fujian for all entries of 

passenger tires from the PRC that are 

entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, 

for consumption on or after the date of 

the publication of the Preliminary 

Determination. We are not changing our 

Preliminary Determination regarding 

critical circumstances. Therefore, we 

will direct CBP to apply the all-others 

amended preliminary countervailing 

duty rate to any unliquidated entries 

entered, or withdrawn from warehouse 

for consumption for all-other exporters 

or producers not individually examined, 

on or after the date which is 90 days 

prior to the date of publication of the 

Preliminary Determination, in 

accordance with section 703(e)(2)(A) of 

the Act. 

International Trade Commission 

Notification 

In accordance with section 703(f) of 

the Act, we will notify the International 

Trade Commission (ITC) of our 

determination. In addition, we are 

making available to the ITC all nonprivileged and non-proprietary 

information relating to this 

investigation. We will allow the ITC 

access to all privileged and business 

proprietary information in our files, 

provided the ITC confirms that it will 

not disclose such information, either 

publicly or under an administrative 

protective order, without the written 

consent of the Assistant Secretary for 

Enforcement and Compliance. 

This determination is issued and 

published pursuant to sections 703(f) 

and 777(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 

351.224(e). 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

78400 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 249 / Tuesday, December 30, 2014 / Notices 

*We are currently suspending requirements (6)(d) 

and (e); therefore, tires entered, or withdrawn from 

warehouse for consumption that meet exclusion 

requirements (6)(a)–(c) above are excluded from the 

scope of this investigation. 

Dated: December 19, 2014. 

Paul Piquado, 

Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and 

Compliance. 

Appendix—Scope of Investigation 

The scope of this investigation is passenger 

vehicle and light truck tires. Passenger 

vehicle and light truck tires are new 

pneumatic tires, of rubber, with a passenger 

vehicle or light truck size designation. Tires 

covered by this investigation may be tubetype, tubeless, radial, or non-radial, and they 

may be intended for sale to original 

equipment manufacturers or the replacement 

market. 

Subject tires have, at the time of 

importation, the symbol ‘‘DOT’’ on the 

sidewall, certifying that the tire conforms to 

applicable motor vehicle safety standards. 

Subject tires may also have the following 

prefixes or suffix in their tire size 

designation, which also appears on the 

sidewall of the tire: 

Prefix designations: 

P—Identifies a tire intended primarily for 

service on passenger cars 

LT—Identifies a tire intended primarily for 

service on light trucks 

Suffix letter designations: 

LT—Identifies light truck tires for service on 

trucks, buses, trailers, and multipurpose 

passenger vehicles used in nominal 

highway service 

All tires with a ‘‘P’’ or ‘‘LT’’ prefix, and all 

tires with an ‘‘LT’’ suffix in their sidewall 

markings are covered by this investigation 

regardless of their intended use. 

In addition, all tires that lack a ‘‘P’’ or ‘‘LT’’ 

prefix or suffix in their sidewall markings, as 

well as all tires that include any other prefix 

or suffix in their sidewall markings, are 

included in the scope, regardless of their 

intended use, as long as the tire is of a size 

that is among the numerical size designations 

listed in the passenger car section or light 

truck section of the Tire and Rim Association 

Year Book, as updated annually, unless the 

tire falls within one of the specific exclusions 

set out below. 

Passenger vehicle and light truck tires, 

whether or not attached to wheels or rims, 

are included in the scope. However, if a 

subject tire is imported attached to a wheel 

or rim, only the tire is covered by the scope. 

Specifically excluded from the scope of 

this investigation are the following types of 

tires: 

(1) racing car tires; such tires do not bear 

the symbol ‘‘DOT’’ on the sidewall and may 

be marked with ‘‘ZR’’ in size designation; 

(2) new pneumatic tires, of rubber, of a size 

that is not listed in the passenger car section 

or light truck section of the Tire and Rim 

Association Year Book; 

(3) pneumatic tires, of rubber, that are not 

new, including recycled and retreaded tires; 

(4) non-pneumatic tires, such as solid 

rubber tires; 

(5) tires designed and marketed exclusively 

as temporary use spare tires for passenger 

vehicles which, in addition, exhibit each of 

the following physical characteristics: 

(a) the size designation and load index 

combination molded on the tire’s sidewall 

are listed in Table PCT–1B (‘‘T’’ Type Spare 

Tires for Temporary Use on Passenger 

Vehicles) of the Tire and Rim Association 

Year Book, 

(b) the designation ‘‘T’’ is molded into the 

tire’s sidewall as part of the size designation, 

and, 

(c) the tire’s speed rating is molded on the 

sidewall, indicating the rated speed in MPH 

or a letter rating as listed by Tire and Rim 

Association Year Book, and the rated speed 

is 81 MPH or a ‘‘M’’ rating; 

(6) tires designed and marketed exclusively 

for specialty tire (ST) use which, in addition, 

exhibit each of the following physical 

characteristics: * 

(a) the size designation molded on the 

tire’s sidewall is listed in the ST sections of 

the Tire and Rim Association Year Book, 

(b) the designation ‘‘ST’’ is molded into the 

tire’s sidewall as part of the size designation, 

(c) the tire incorporates a warning, 

prominently molded on the sidewall, that the 

tire is ‘‘For Trailer Service Only’’ or ‘‘For 

Trailer Use Only’’, 

(d) the load index molded on the tire’s 

sidewall meets or exceeds those load indexes 

listed in the Tire and Rim Association Year 

Book for the relevant ST tire size, and 

(e) the tire’s speed rating is molded on the 

sidewall, indicating the rated speed in MPH 

or a letter rating as listed by TRA, and the 

rated speed does not exceed 81 MPH or an 

‘‘M’’ rating; 

(7) tires designed and marketed exclusively 

for off-road use and which, in addition, 

exhibit each of the following physical 

characteristics: 

(a) the size designation and load index 

combination molded on the tire’s sidewall 

are listed in the off-the-road, agricultural, 

industrial or ATV section of the Tire and Rim 

Association Year Book, 

(b) in addition to any size designation 

markings, the tire incorporates a warning, 

prominently molded on the sidewall, that the 

tire is ‘‘Not For Highway Service’’ or ‘‘Not for 

Highway Use’’, 

(c) the tire’s speed rating is molded on the 

sidewall, indicating the rated speed in MPH 

or a letter rating as listed by the Tire and Rim 

Association Year Book, and the rated speed 

does not exceed 55 MPH or a ‘‘G’’ rating, and 

(d) the tire features a recognizable off-road 

tread design. 

The products covered by the investigation 

are currently classified under the following 

Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United 

States (HTSUS) subheadings: 4011.10.10.10, 

4011.10.10.20, 4011.10.10.30, 4011.10.10.40, 

4011.10.10.50, 4011.10.10.60, 4011.10.10.70, 

4011.10.50.00, 4011.20.10.05, and 

4011.20.50.10. Tires meeting the scope 

description may also enter under the 

following HTSUS subheadings: 

4011.99.45.10, 4011.99.45.50, 4011.99.85.10, 

4011.99.85.50, 8708.70.45.45, 8708.70.45.60, 

8708.70.60.30, 8708.70.60.45, and 

8708.70.60.60. While HTSUS subheadings 

are provided for convenience and for 

customs purposes, the written description of 

the subject merchandise is dispositive. 

[FR Doc. 2014–30544 Filed 12–29–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–XD691 

Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; 

Fisheries Off West Coast States; 

Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; 

Trawl Rationalization Program; 2015 

Cost Recovery 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; 2015 cost recovery fee 

percentages and mothership (MS) 

pricing. 

SUMMARY: This action provides 

participants in the Pacific coast 

groundfish trawl rationalization 

program with the 2015 fee percentages 

and MS pricing needed to calculate the 

required payments for cost recovery fees 

due in 2015. 

For calendar year 2015, NMFS 

announces the following fee percentages 

by sector: 3.0 percent for the Shorebased 

Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) Program, 

1.2 percent for the MS Coop Program, 

0.0 percent for the Catcher Processor (C/ 

P) Coop Program. 

For 2015, the MS pricing to be used 

as a proxy by the C/P Coop Program is: 

$0.13/lb for Pacific whiting. 

DATES: Effective January 1, 2015. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Christopher Biegel, Cost Recovery 

Program Coordinator, (503) 231–6291, 

fax (503) 872–2737, email 

Christopher.Biegel@NOAA.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(MSA) requires NMFS to collect fees to 

recover the costs directly related to the 

management, data collection, and 

enforcement of a limited access 

privilege program (LAPP) (16 U.S.C. 

1854(d)(2)), also called ‘‘cost recovery.’’ 

The Pacific coast groundfish trawl 

rationalization program is a LAPP, 

implemented in 2011, and consists of 

three sectors: the Shorebased IFQ 

Program, the MS Coop Program, and the 

C/P Coop Program. In accordance with 

the MSA, and based on a recommended 

structure and methodology developed in 

coordination with the Pacific Fishery 

Management Council, NMFS collects 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES