Notices. Notice

933 words·~4 min read·/register/2004/04/05/04-7636·

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BILLING CODE 4191-02-P OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE Determinations Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The United States Trade Representative

(USTR)has determined that Sierra Leone has adopted an effective visa system and related procedures to prevent unlawful transshipment and the use of counterfeit documents in connection with shipments of textile and apparel articles and has implemented and follows, or is making substantial progress toward implementing and following, the customs procedures required by the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Therefore, imports of eligible products from Sierra Leone qualify for the textile and apparel benefits provided under the AGOA. DATES: Effective April 5, 2004. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William Jackson, Director for African Affairs, Office of the United States Trade Representative,

(202)395-9514. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The AGOA (Title I of the Trade and Development Act of 2000, Pub. L. No. 106-200) provides preferential tariff treatment for imports of certain textile and apparel products of beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries. The textile and apparel trade benefits under the AGOA are available to imports of eligible products from countries that the President designates as “beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries,” provided that these countries:

(1)Have adopted an effective visa system and related procedures to prevent unlawful transshipment and the use of counterfeit documents; and

(2)have implemented and follow, or are making substantial progress toward implementing and following, certain customs procedures that assist U.S. Customs and Border Protection in verifying the origin of the products. In Proclamation 7350 (Oct. 2, 2000), the President designated Sierra Leone as a “beneficiary sub-Saharan African country.” Proclamation 7350 delegated to the USTR the authority to determine whether designated countries have met the two requirements described above. The President directed the USTR to announce any such determinations in the **Federal Register** and to implement them through modifications of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS). Based on actions that Sierra Leone has taken, I have determined that Sierra Leone has satisfied these two requirements. Accordingly, pursuant to the authority vested in the USTR by Proclamation 7350, U.S. note 7(a) to subchapter II of chapter 98 of the HTS and U.S. note 1 to subchapter XIX of chapter 98 of the HTS are each modified by inserting “Sierra Leone” in alphabetical sequence in the list of countries. The foregoing modifications to the HTS are effective with respect to articles entered, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after the date of publication of this notice. Importers claiming preferential tariff treatment under the AGOA for entries of textile and apparel articles should ensure that those entries meet the applicable visa requirements. *See Visa Requirements Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act,* 66 FR 7837 (2001). Robert B. Zoellick, United States Trade Representative. [FR Doc. 04-7636 Filed 4-2-04; 8:45 am BILLING CODE 3190-W3-P OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE Andean Trade Preference Act (ATPA), as Amended: Notice Regarding the 2003 Annual Review AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The Office of the United States Trade Representative

(USTR)received petitions in September 2003 to review certain practices in certain beneficiary developing countries to determine whether such countries are in compliance with the ATPA eligibility criteria. This notice specifies the date of announcement of the results of the preliminary review of those petitions. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bennett M. Harman, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Latin America, Office of the Americas, Office of the United States Trade Representative, 600 17th St., NW., Washington, DC 20508. The telephone number is

(202)395-9446, and the facsimile is

(202)395-9675. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The ATPA (19 U.S.C. 3201 *et seq.* ), as renewed and amended by the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act of 2002 (ATPDEA) in the Trade Act of 2002 (Pub. L. 107-210), provides trade benefits for eligible Andean countries. Pursuant to section 3103(d) of the ATPDEA, USTR promulgated regulations (15 CFR part 2016) (68 FR 43922) regarding the review of eligibility of countries for the benefits of the ATPA, as amended. In a **Federal Register** notice dated August 14, 2003, USTR initiated the 2003 ATPA Annual Review and announced a deadline of September 15, 2003 for the filing of petitions (68 FR 48657). Several of these petitions requested the review of certain practices in certain beneficiary developing countries regarding compliance with the eligibility criteria set forth in sections 203(c) and

(d)and section 204(b)(6)(B) of the ATPA, as amended (19 U.S.C. 3203

(c)and (d); 19 U.S.C. 3203(b)(6)(B)). In a **Federal Register** notice dated November 13, 2003, USTR published a list of the responsive petitions filed pursuant to the announcement of the annual review. The Trade Policy Staff Committee

(TPSC)is conducting a preliminary review of these petitions. 15 CFR 2016.2(b) provides for announcement of the results of the preliminary review on or about December 1. 15 CFR 2016.2(b) also provides for modification of the schedule if specified by **Federal Register** notice. In a **Federal Register** notice dated December 30, 2003, USTR modified the schedule for this review, specifying that the results would be announced on or about March 31, 2004. In light of progress being made with respect to the matters addressed by the petitions, this notice further modifies the date for the announcement of the results of the preliminary review to May 15, 2004. The results of the preliminary review will be published in the **Federal Register** on or about that date. Bennett M. Harman, Deputy Assistant United States Trade Representative for Latin America. [FR Doc. 04-7639 Filed 4-2-04; 8:45 am]

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