International Trade Law News

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) today announced that the United States and Israel have agreed to launch the U.S.-Israel High Technology Forum (HTF). The HTF is an Under Secretary-level bilateral dialogue to address and facilitate high technology trade, investment and related security issues between the two countries.

The HTF was proposed by Mario Mancuso, Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security, to senior officials of the Israeli Ministries of Defense, Foreign Affairs and Industry, Trade and Labor during his recent trip to Israel. In addition to the meetings with government officials, Secretary Mancuso met with Israeli business leaders during his trip.

The HTF is the first step in BIS's new effort to accelerate engagement with countries having the most dynamic and strategic technology markets.

Labels: BIS, Israel

The controversial bill (SB 974) that would have imposed a $30 per twenty foot equivalent unit (TEU) user fee on container cargo imported and exported through the ports of Long Beach, Los Angeles and Oakland has been withdrawn by its sponsor in the California Assembly after Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger threatened to veto the measure. The author of the bill, California State Senator Alan Lowenthal (D-Long Beach), has vowed to reintroduce the bill next year.

In a joint statement, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Senator Alan Lowenthal (D-Long Beach) said:

“Our ports are an integral component of goods movement in and out of California. I support the concept of SB 974 and want to work together with Senator Lowenthal on the bill so it addresses the future of goods movement while also reducing environmental impacts. I look forward to working during the fall recess with the Senator, his fellow legislators and all interested parties to craft a solution that will protect California’s air quality and also facilitate the goods movement through California,” said Governor Schwarzenegger.

“I am pleased that the Governor understands the need to fund air quality improvements and rail infrastructure, especially grade separations. I accept the Governor’s offer to work together and make SB 974 a reality,” stated Lowenthal.

SB 974, which was approved by California Senate's Appropriation Committee in July, would have imposed a "user fee" on all container cargo going in and out of the ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach and Oakland. It is estimated that more than $500 million would be collected annually from the fee and would fund projects intended to alleviate pollution of containerized cargo moved to and from these ports and improve the movement of cargo in California.

The California Legislature passed a similar bill last year (SB 927) to that would impose user fees on containers moving through he ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles. However, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed the bill. In his veto statement, the Governor said that the bill was "flawed in its construction" and was drafted "to include only two ports and applies only to goods shipped in containers, ignoring all other forms of shipping and ports of entry." Governor Schwarzenegger also stated that the bill would have a negative impact on the "the sale and delivery of goods grown and manufactured in California." SB 974 addressed one of the Governor's concern by expanding the scope of the user fee to include the port of Oakland.

The container fee has been strongly opposed by many trade groups on grounds that the user fee will hurt California's ports, is anti-consumer and is likely to be unconstitutional.

Labels: Miscellaneous, Ports

The Bureau of Industry and Security published a notice in today's Federal Register announcing that it will extend the public comment period on changes to the Commerce Control List from September 17 to November 1, 2007.

On July 17, 2007, BIS published a notice in the Federal Register announcing that it is conducting a "systematic review" of the Commerce Control List (CCL) and is seeking comments from the public on the following topics:

1. The overall structure of the CCL, including suggestions for how the structure of the CCL may be changed to better advance U.S. national security, foreign policy, and economic interests;
2. Types of items that should be listed on the CCL and the appropriate levels of controls to be placed on those items, taking into account technology levels, markets, and foreign availability;
3. Any updates to the CCL item descriptions that would enable the descriptions to better reflect the intent of the multinational controls and to eliminate any overly broad descriptions that inadvertently capture non-critical items that are not controlled by other countries; and
4. Coordination and harmonization of controls on items covered by the multilateral regimes, such as the Wassenaar Arrangement.

Labels: BIS, Export Controls

Export controls were on the agenda of yesterday's ComDef 2007 Conference held at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. The panelists at the conference included Beth McCormick, Acting Director of the Defense Technology Security Administration (DTSA); Pierre Chao, Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies; Jeremiah Gertler, Vice President of the Aerospace Industries Association; Andrew Radcliffe, Counselor at the British Embassy; and Brigadier General Mirco Zuliani, Defense Cooperation Attache of the Embassy of Italy.

Reuters reports that Ms. McCormick told the audience that Israel has greatly improved its export controls laws on technology. The article states that that Ms. McCormick also said that Israel's export controls system would "meet any international standards" and that she has "a very high level of confidence" in the effectiveness of the export-control process now in place among Israel's ministries of defense, foreign affairs and industry. She also welcomed new laws that impose substantial penalties for violations of regulations. Israel recently passed a new export control law that is intended to strengthen Israel's existing export control regime.

With respect to prospects for export control reform in the U.S., Defense News reports that the panelists indicated "that the atmosphere for changing U.S. regulations governing arms exports has never been better . . . but the time to accomplish reforms may be short." The article quotes Mr. Gertler as saying that “the administration has welcomed suggestions for change” and there is “there is openness to reform” at various levels of the U.S. Government. He also said that Congress is “now is more willing than at any time in my memory” to consider export control reforms. However, Mr. Chao warned that export control reform in Washington, DC "may have a limited lifespan" due to the upcoming elections.

Labels: Export Controls, Israel

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published the following two notices in today's Federal Register:

Request for Comments on Foreign Policy-based Export Controls

Updated Statements of Legal Authority for the Export Administration Regulations

Labels: BIS

President Bush today nominated Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Administration Christopher A. Padilla to be Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade.

Padilla was nominated to replace Franklin Lavin, who recently resigned and is now serving as Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of Cushman & Wakefield Investors Asia.

If confirmed, Mr. Padilla would serve as the head of the Commerce Department's International Trade Administration, which includes four units: the Commercial Service, Import Administration, Manufacturing and Services and Market Access and Compliance.

Labels: BIS

The North Texas District Export Council is presenting an export compliance conference in Irving, Texas on September 27, 2007 entitled "Exporters and Third Parties: How to Effectively Manage Export Compliance Risks".

This program will feature presentations on how exporters, freight forwarders, carriers and other third parties involved in export transactions can manage and mitigate their export compliance risks.

Speakers will include attorneys, corporate counsel, corporate compliance officers and representatives from other third parties who deal daily with these issues. Some of the issues covered during the conference will be:

• Who are the third parties in export transactions?
• What role do these third parties play in export compliance?
• How can exporters use third parties to reduce their compliance risks?
• What is the third party perspective on export compliance?
• What are some practical strategies to minimize compliance risks?

Labels: Export Controls

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has announced that the next meeting of the Transportation and Related Equipment Technical Advisory Committee will occur on September 12, 2007 in Washington, DC.

As a reminder, the next public meeting of BIS's Regulations and Procedures Technical Advisory Committee (RPTAC) will take place on September 11, 2007 in Washington, DC and the next meeting of the Deemed Export Advisory Committee (DEAC) will be held in Washington, DC on September 10, 2007.

Labels: BIS

The State Department has announced in the Federal Register that the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs' Defense Trade Advisory Group (DTAG) is now accepting membership applications for two-year terms. Applications must be received by September 24, 2007 in order to be considered.

DTAG members are appointed by the Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs on the basis of individual substantive and technical expertise and qualifications. DTAG members are drawn from a cross-section of U.S. defense industry, association, academic personnel, including appropriate technical and military experts.

Labels: DDTC

The U.S. Trade Representative's (USTR) Trade Policy Staff Committee is requesting public comments for inclusion in the 2008 version of the National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers.

Information submitted should relate to one or more of the following categories of foreign trade barriers:

1. Import policies (e.g., tariffs and other import charges,quantitative restrictions, import licensing, and customs barriers);
2. Standards, testing, labeling, and certification;
3. Government procurement (e.g., "buy national'' policies and closed bidding);
4. Export subsidies (e.g., export financing on preferential terms and agricultural export subsidies that displace U.S. exports in third country markets);
5. Lack of intellectual property protection (e.g., inadequate patent, copyright, and trademark regimes);
6. Services barriers;
7. Investment barriers;
8. Anticompetitive practices with trade effects tolerated by foreign governments;
9. Trade restrictions affecting electronic commerce; and
10. Other barriers (including bribery and corruption).
    

Labels: USTR

The Automotive Trade Policy Council (ATPC), whose members include Chrysler, Ford and General Motors, recently endorsed H.R. 1127, the "American Manufacturing Competitiveness Act".

H.R. 1127, which was introduced in Congress by Representative Joe Knollenberg (R-MI), would allow U.S. manufacturers to participate in antidumping and countervailing duty cases.

Under current U.S. law, industrial users do not have standing in antidumping and countervailing duty cases even though a decision to place antidumping or countervailing duties on raw materials and other production inputs can impact their production costs. H.R. 1127 would give industrial users legal standing in trade remedy cases involving the products that they import. H.R. 1127 also requires the U.S. International Trade Commission to weigh the harm to industrial users in making material injury determinations in antidumping and countervailing duty determinations.

The Automotive Trade Policy Council joins the Consuming Industries Trade Action Coalition (CITAC) in supporting H.R. 1127. CITAC voice its support for H.R. 1127 in testimony before the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee on August 2, 2007.

Labels: Antidumping, Countervailing Duties, ITC

Electrolytic Manganese Dioxide

On August 22, 2007, Tronox LLC filed antidumping petitions with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) and Department of Commerce on (DOC) Electrolytic Manganese Dioxide from Australia and China. Electrolytic Manganese Dioxide is commonly used in the manufacture of dry-cell alkaline batteries.

These antidumping petitions are a partial repeat of previous antidumping cases filed four years ago. Tronox LLC, which was formerly known as Kerr-McGee Chemical LLC, filed antidumping petitions on Electrolytic Manganese Dioxide from Australia, China, Greece, Ireland, Japan and South Africa in mid-2003. In the preliminary injury investigation, the ITC found no material injury existed by reason of imports of Electrolytic Manganese Dioxide from China. In March 2004, Kerr-McGee notified the ITC and DOC that it was withdrawing its antidumping petition on the remaining countries. As a result, the antidumping duty investigations were terminated.

Off-the-Road Tires From China

Separately, on August 20, 2007, the ITC determined that there is a reasonable indication that an industry in the U.S. is materially injured or threatened with material injury by reason of imports of certain off-the-road tires from China that are allegedly subsidized and sold in the United States at less than fair value. All six Commissioners voted in the affirmative.

As a result of the ITC's affirmative injury determinations, the U.S. Department of Commerce will continue to conduct its antidumping and countervailing investigations of imports of certain off-the-road tires from China.

The antidumping and countervailing petitions in this case were filed Titan International Inc. and the United Steelworkers union.

Labels: Antidumping