Dairy Tariff-Rate Import Quota Licensing

SUMMARY: This rule amends Import Regulation 1, Revision 7 which governs

the administration of the import licensing system for certain dairy

products which will be subject to in-quota tariff rates established in

the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States resulting from the

entry into force of certain provisions in the Uruguay Round Agreement

on July 1, 1995, and with respect to the licensing for certain dairy

product shipments denied entry during January 1-3, 1995.

DATES: This interim rule will be effective upon May 2, 1995. Comments

should be submitted on or before June 16, 1995, to be assured of

consideration.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be sent to Richard Warsack, Dairy Import

Quota Manager, Import Policies and Programs Division, Room 5531-S,

Foreign Agricultural Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 14th and

Independence Avenue, S.W., Agricultural Box 1025, Washington, D.C.

20250-1025. All comments received will be available for public

inspection in room 5541-S at the above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Diana Wanamaker, Group Leader, Import

Programs Group, Import Policies and Programs Division, Room 5531-S,

Foreign Agricultural Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 14th and

Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250, or telephone (202)

720-2916.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Executive Order 12866

This supplement to the interim rule is issued in conformance with

Executive Order 12866. It has been determined to be significant for the

purposes of E.O. 12866 and, therefore, has been reviewed by the Office

of Management and Budget (OMB).

Regulatory Flexibility Act

It has been determined that the Regulatory Flexibility Act is not

applicable to this interim rule relating to foreign affairs since the

Office of the Secretary is not required by 5 U.S.C. 553 or any other

provision of law to publish a notice of proposed rulemaking with

respect to the subject matter of this rule.

Executive Order 12372

This program is not subject to the provisions of Executive Order

12372, which requires intergovernmental consultation with State and

local officials. See notice related to 7 CFR part 3015, subpart V,

published at 48 FR 29115 (June 24, 1983).

Environmental Evaluation

It has been determined by an environmental evaluation that this

action will not have a significant impact on the quality of the human

environment. Therefore, neither an Environmental Assessment nor an

Environmental Impact Statement is needed.

Paperwork Reduction Act

This interim rule amends the existing information collection as

approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) pursuant to the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), under OMB

control number 0551-0001, expiring June 30, 1997.

Due to the time constraints of implementing this interim rule, the

agency has requested emergency clearance of this addendum from OMB.

Comments on the information collection may be sent to the Office of

Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget,

Room 10202, NEOB, Washington, D.C. 20503. Attention: Desk Officer for

USDA.

Executive Order 12778

This interim rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778.

The provisions of this supplement to the interim rule would have

preemptive effect with respect to any state or local laws, regulations,

or policies which conflict with such provisions or which otherwise

impede their full implementation. The interim rule would not have

retroactive effect.

Background

This interim rule amends Import Regulation 1, Revision 7 which

governs the administration of the import licensing system for certain

dairy products which are subject to in-quota tariff rates proclaimed in

the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS). Imports of

certain cheese and non-cheese dairy products are subject to tariff-rate

quotas proclaimed in the HTS as a result of the entry into force of the

Uruguay Round Agreement.

These amendments to the Import Regulation are being published as an

interim rule because the Uruguay Round commitments taking effect on

July 1, 1995, were not finalized pursuant to bilateral agreements until

recently and it is necessary to provide an application period as soon

as possible in order to issue licenses prior to the effective date.

With respect to certain dairy product shipments denied entry during

January 1-3, 1995, these licenses must also be issued as soon as

possible to fulfill our Uruguay Round commitments. Therefore, good

cause is shown to publish this rule as interim without prior public

participation.

This interim rule is issued under the authority of section 103 and

404 of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act and the notes to Chapter 4 and

General Note 15 of the HTS. It completes the Uruguay Round

implementation process for the 1995 quota year by establishing the

import licensing system for the quantities of cheese and non-cheese

dairy products subject to in-quota tariff rates in the HTS effective

July 1, 1995.

The following changes made by this interim rule are intended to

fulfill the Uruguay Round obligations of the United States and to

facilitate the administration of the tariff-rate import quota licensing

system for 1995.

1. The Import Regulation is amended to: (1) Administer Uruguay

Round tariff-rate quotas for those countries whose Uruguay Round

schedules of concessions will take effect on July 1, 1995; (2)

establish Appendix 3 supplementary licenses for such

[[Page 21426]] countries and the respective in-quota tariff-rate quota

quantities of cheese, and (3) provide for an application period for

such licenses.

2. The Import Regulation is amended to permit the European

Community (EC) to endorse in writing eligible applicants for the

increments in quantities of cheese subject to the in-quota tariff rate

as provided for in the Uruguay Round Agreement.

3. The Import Regulation is also amended to ensure that the orderly

marketing of trade in the United States is not disrupted for articles

for which entry was attempted into the United States after January 1,

1995, without prior knowledge that an unlicensed article would be made

subject to licensing as of January 1, 1995. This interim rule provides

a very limited exclusion from license-size limitations for certain

shipments which were denied entry into the United States by the U.S.

Customs Service during a brief period the Department considers

licensing to have been unanticipated. This exclusion applies only to

that part of the in-quota tariff-rate quantity which had been

unlicensed prior to January 1, 1995 and will be prorated among

licensees as necessary.

An Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) was published in

the Federal Register on June 2, 1994, seeking comments on methods for

allocating articles that would be subject to the in-quota tariff rate

proclaimed in the HTS on January 1, 1995, and suggestions on other

changes intended to update and make more enforceable the provisions of

the Import Regulation. A proposed rule embodying fundamental changes to

the Import Regulation as envisaged in the ANPR will be published in the

near future.

An interim rule was published in the Federal Register on January 6,

1995, which amended the Import Regulation to the extent necessary to

implement the Uruguay Round commitments which became effective on

January 1, 1995. The interim rule established an import licensing

system for in-quota tariff-rate quota quantities of cheese and certain

other non-cheese dairy products subject to in-quota tariff rates in the

HTS. These quantities included both the quantities which were

previously subject to absolute quotas under section 22 of the

Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1933, as amended, and additional

quantities of cheese and certain non-cheese dairy articles negotiated

under the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations for those

countries which implemented their Uruguay Round commitments on January

1, 1995. The interim rule provided for a 30-day public comment period

ending on February 21, 1995. Written comments were received from seven

different entities.

In addition to amending the Import Regulation to implement the

changes to the HTS effective on July 1, 1995, this interim rule amends

the Import Regulation in accordance with certain comments on the

interim rule published on January 6, 1995, recommending changes deemed

both administratively possible or necessary to implement during the

remainder of the 1995 quota year. Other comments on the January 6

interim rule will be considered for inclusion in the proposed rule as

envisaged in the ANPR.

The comment reflected herein requested entry for that quantity of

butter substitutes being detained which was previously subject to an

unlicensed global quota. The interim rule provides for a very limited

and strict license size exclusion to enter certain butter substitutes.

Another comment recommended clarifying the minimum license size of

supplementary quota shares and certain article descriptions in Appendix

1 and Appendix 2 of the interim rule. This interim rule makes these

technical corrections.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 6

Agricultural commodities, Cheese, Dairy products, Imports, and

Reporting and record keeping requirements.

Interim Rule

PART 6--[AMENDED]

Accordingly, 7 CFR Part 6, Subpart--Tariff-Rate Quotas is amended

as follows:

1. Section 6.25 is revised by revising the first sentence of

paragraph (c)(2) to read as follows:

Sec. 6.25 Eligibility.

* * * * *

(c) * * *

(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (b)(4) of this section, certification

required to establish supplementary eligibility for license for

articles under Appendix 3 of this subpart must be postmarked no earlier

than January 30, 1995 and no later than February 20, 1995 for those

licenses issued for in-quota tariff-rate quota quantities which became

effective on January 1, 1995, and no earlier than May 10, 1995 and no

later than May 19, 1995 for those licenses that will be issued for in-

quota tariff-rate quota quantities that will become effective on July

1, 1995. * * *

* * * * *

2. Section 6.26 is amended by revising the second sentence of

paragraph (c)(3)(ii), revising paragraph (d)(2), and revising paragraph

(d)(3) (i) and (ii) to read as follows:

Sec. 6.26 Allocation of annual quota and issuance of licenses.

* * * * *

(c) * * *

(3) * * *

(ii) * * * If eligible applicants whose applications have been

endorsed by the government of the supplying country as set forth in

(c)(3)(i) of this section request an aggregate amount of a specific

quota from a specific country (not the EC, except for those additional

quantities of cheese made subject to the in-quota tariff rate in the

Uruguay Round Agreement) smaller than is available for allocation, or

if no endorsement is made, the Licensing Authority shall allocate

remaining portions among applicants who have not been endorsed,

following a procedure identical to that set forth in paragraph (c)(2)

of this section for the EC, replacing, for this purpose, the words

``the EC'' wherever they appear with ``a particular non-EC country''.

* * * * *

(d) * * *

(2) The size of a supplementary quota share issued to an eligible

applicant shall not exceed 57,000 kilograms, except that this maximum

share provided for in (d)(ii) above shall not be applicable to that

quantity of an in-quota tariff-rate quota which was not subject to

licensing prior to January 1, 1995 when the import of such product was

offered for entry and denied entry into the United States by U.S.

Customs during January 1-3, 1995. Not later than June 1, 1995, an

applicant must submit with its application, an invoice, bill of lading,

and other relevant documentation to the Licensing Authority for his

determination that there is sufficient documentary evidence that such

import was offered for entry during January 1-3, 1995. If the Licensing

Authority determines that a quantity greater than that available is

requested by eligible applicants, the quantity available will be

prorated among the licensees.

(3) * * *

(i) 19,000 kilograms where the total amount available for

allocation is 550,000 kilograms or less;

(ii) 38,000 kilograms where the total amount available for

allocation is greater than 550,000 kilograms.

3. In Appendix 1, the article description for Edam and Gouda in

Group II(a) and the article description for Italian-type cheese in

Group IV(a) are revised as follows: [[Page 21427]]

Appendix 1--Articles Subject to the Historical and Nonhistorical

Licensing Provisions of Import Regulation 1, Revision 7, and Respective

Annual Import Quotas for Each Quota Year

* * * * *

Group II

(a) Edam and Gouda cheese, and cheese and substitutes for cheese

containing, or processed from Edam and Gouda cheese (Note 20) * * *

* * * * *

Group IV

(a) Italian-type cheese made from cow's milk (Romano made from

cow's milk, Reggiano, Parmesano, Provolone, Provolette, Sbrinz, and

Goya not in original loaves), and cheeses and substitutes for cheese

containing, or processed from, such Italian-type cheeses, whether or

not in original loaves (Note 21) * * *

* * * * *

4. In Appendix 2, the article description for Italian-type cheese

in Group IV (a) is revised as follows:

Appendix 2--Articles Subject to the Historical and Nonhistorical

Licensing Provisions of Import Regulation 1, Revision 7, and Respective

Annual Import Quotas for Each Quota Year

* * * * *

Group IV

(a) Italian-type cheese made from cow's milk (Romano made from

cow's milk, Reggiano, Parmesano, Provolone, Provolette, Sbrinz, and

Goya not in original loaves), and cheeses and substitutes for cheese

containing, or processed from, such Italian-type cheeses, whether or

not in original loaves (Note 21) * * *

* * * * *

5. Appendix 3 is revised to read as follows:

Appendix 3--Articles Subject to the Supplementary Licensing Provisions

of Import Regulation 1, Revision 7, and Respective Annual Import Quotas

for Each Quota Year

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Annual

supplementary

Article by HTS note number quota

(kilograms)

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Butter (Note 6)......................................... 3,656,311

Dried Skim Milk (Note 7)................................ 441,359

Dried Whole Milk (Note 8)............................... 368,125

Butter Substitutes Containing over 45% by weight of

butterfat and butteroil (Note 14)...................... 3,480,500

Cheese and substitutes for cheese (except cheese not

containing cow's milk and soft ripened cow's milk

cheese, cheese (except cottage cheese) containing 0.5

percent or less by weight of butterfat, and articles

within the scope of other tariff-rate quotas provided

for in this subchapter) (Note 16)...................... 2,978,834

Australia........................................... 291,667

Austria............................................. 45,500

Costa Rica.......................................... 1,000,000

Czech Republic...................................... 200,000

EC.................................................. 150,000

Poland*............................................. 300,000

Slovak Republic..................................... 600,000

Switzerland......................................... 41,667

Uruguay............................................. 250,000

Any Country......................................... 100,000

Blue-mold cheese (except Stilton produced in the United

Kingdom) and cheese and substitutes for cheese

containing, or processed from, blue-mold cheese (Note

17).................................................... 88,333

Chile............................................... 13,333

Czech Republic...................................... 50,000

EC.................................................. 25,000

Cheddar cheese, and cheese and substitutes for cheese

containing, or processed from, Cheddar cheese (Note 18) 1,328,333

Australia........................................... 208,333

EC.................................................. 83,333

Chile............................................... 36,667

Czech Republic...................................... 50,000

New Zealand......................................... 850,000

Any Country......................................... 100,000

American-type cheese, including Colby, washed curd, and

granular cheese (but not including cheddar) and cheese

and substitutes for cheese containing or processed from

such American-type cheese (Note 19).................... 8,333

EC.................................................. 8,333

Edam and Gouda cheese, and cheese and substitutes for

cheese containing, or processed from, Edam and Gouda

Cheese (Note 20)....................................... 293,333

Argentina........................................... 110,000

Austria............................................. 33,333

EC.................................................. 50,000

Czech Republic...................................... 100,000

Italian-Type cheeses, made from cow's milk (Romano made

from cow's milk, Reggiano, Parmesan, Provolone,

Provoletti, Sbrinz, and Goya not in original loaves)

and cheese and substitutes for cheese containing, or

processed from, such Italian-Type cheeses, whether or

not in original loaves (Note 21)....................... 4,281,666

Argentina........................................... 1,890,000

EC.................................................. 58,333

Uruguay............................................. 750,000

Hungary............................................. 400,000

Poland*............................................. 1,100,000

Romania............................................. 83,333

Swiss and Emmenthaler cheese other than with eye

formation Gruyere-process, and cheese and substitutes

for cheese containing, or processed from such cheese

(Note 22).............................................. 31,666

Austria............................................. 6,666

EC.................................................. 25,000

Swiss and Emmenthaler cheese with eye formation (Note

25).................................................... 1,043,332

[[Page 21428]]

Austria............................................. 18,333

EC.................................................. 58,333

Sweden.............................................. 150,000

Switzerland......................................... 16,666

Czech Republic...................................... 400,000

Hungary............................................. 400,000

------------------------------------------------------------------------

*Issuance of licenses and quota quantities are conditioned on completion

of a bilateral memorandum of understanding between the Governments of

the United States and Poland.

Signed at Washington, D.C., on April 21, 1995.

Richard E. Rominger,

Acting Secretary of Agriculture.

[FR Doc. 95-10712 Filed 4-27-95; 12:36 pm]

BILLING CODE 3410-02-P