Announcement of Import Limits and Guaranteed Access Levels for Certain Cotton and Man-Made Fiber Textile Products Produced or Manufactured in El Salvador

COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS

Announcement of Import Limits and Guaranteed Access Levels for

Certain Cotton and Man-Made Fiber Textile Products Produced or

Manufactured in El Salvador

December 13, 1995.

AGENCY: Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA).

ACTION: Issuing a directive to the Commissioner of Customs establishing

limits and guaranteed access levels.

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EFFECTIVE DATE: January 1, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennifer Aldrich, International Trade

Specialist, Office of Textiles and Apparel, U.S. Department of

Commerce, (202) 482-4212. For information on the quota status of these

limits, refer to the Quota Status Reports posted on the bulletin boards

of each Customs port or call (202) 927-5850. For information on

embargoes and quota re-openings, call (202) 482-3715.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Authority: Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as amended;

section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as amended (7 U.S.C.

1854).

The import restraint limits for textile products, produced or

manufactured in El Salvador and exported during the period January 1,

1996 through December 31, 1996 are based on limits notified to the

Textiles Monitoring Body pursuant to the Uruguay Round Agreements Act

and the Uruguay Round Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC). The

Guaranteed Access Levels are being established pursuant to Memoranda of

Understanding (MOUs) dated September 26, 1994 and July 6, 1995 between

the Governments of the United States and El Salvador.

In the letter published below, the Chairman of CITA directs the

Commissioner of Customs to establish the limits and guaranteed access

levels for 1996.

A description of the textile and apparel categories in terms of HTS

numbers is available in the CORRELATION: Textile and Apparel Categories

with the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (see Federal

Register notice 59 FR 65531, published on December 20, 1994).

Information regarding the 1996 CORRELATION will be published in the

Federal Register at a later date.

Requirements for participation in the Special Access Program are

available in Federal Register notices 51 FR 21208, published on June

11, 1986; 52 FR 26057, published on July 10, 1987; 54 FR 50425,

published on December 6, 1989; and 60 FR 2740, published on January 11,

1995.

The letter to the Commissioner of Customs and the actions taken

pursuant to it are not designed to implement all of the provisions of

the September 26, 1994 and July 6, 1995 MOU's, the Uruguay Round

Agreements Act and the ATC, but are designed to assist only in the

implementation of certain of their provisions.

Troy H. Cribb,

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

December 13, 1995.

Commissioner of Customs,

Department of the Treasury, Washington, DC 20229.

Dear Commissioner: Under the terms of section 204 of the

Agricultural Act of 1956, as amended (7 U.S.C. 1854), the Uruguay

Round Agreements Act and the Uruguay Round Agreement on Textiles and

Clothing (ATC); and in accordance with the provisions of Executive

Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as amended, you are directed to

prohibit,

[[Page 65297]]

effective on January 1, 1996, entry into the United States for

consumption and withdrawal from warehouse for consumption of cotton

and man-made fiber textile products in the following categories,

produced or manufactured in El Salvador and exported during the

twelve-month period beginning on January 1, 1996 and extending

through December 31, 1996, in excess of the following restraint

limits:

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Category Twelve-month limit

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340/640................................... 953,391 dozen.

351/651................................... 366,000 dozen.

352/652................................... 6,603,774 dozen.

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Imports charged to these category limits for the periods January

1, 1995 through December 31, 1995 (Categories 340/640) and March 27,

1995 through December 31, 1995 (Categories 351/651 and 352/652)

shall be charged against those levels of restraint to the extent of

any unfilled balances. In the event the limits established for those

periods have been exhausted by previous entries, such goods shall be

subject to the levels set forth in this directive.

The limits set forth above are subject to adjustment in the

future pursuant to the provisions of the Uruguay Round Agreements

Act, the ATC and any administrative arrangements notified to the

Textiles Monitoring Body.

Pursuant to Memoranda of Understanding dated September 26, 1994

and July 6, 1995 between the Governments of the United States and El

Salvador and under the terms of the Special Access Program, as set

forth in 51 FR 21208 (June 11, 1986), 52 FR 26057 (July 10, 1987)

and 54 FR 50425 (December 6, 1989), effective on January 1, 1996,

you are directed to establish guaranteed access levels for properly

certified cotton and man-made fiber textile products in the

following categories which are assembled in El Salvador from fabric

formed and cut in the United States and re-exported to the United

States from El Salvador during the period beginning on January 1,

1996 and extending through December 31, 1996:

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Category Guaranteed access level

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340/640................................... 1,000,000 dozen.

351/651................................... 500,000 dozen.

352/652................................... 30,000,000 dozen.

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Any shipment for entry under the Special Access Program which is

not accompanied by a valid and correct certification and Export

Declaration in accordance with the provisions of the certification

requirements established in the directive of January 6, 1995, shall

be denied entry unless the Government of El Salvador authorizes the

entry and any charges to the appropriate specific limit. Any

shipment which is declared for entry under the Special Access

Program but found not to qualify shall be denied entry into the

United States.

In carrying out the above directions, the Commissioner of

Customs should construe entry into the United States for consumption

to include entry for consumption into the Commonwealth of Puerto

Rico.

The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements has

determined that these actions fall within the foreign affairs

exception of the rulemaking provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1).

Sincerely,

Troy H. Cribb,

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.

[FR Doc. 95-30809 Filed 12-18-95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-DR-F