The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service issued emails Oct. 9 announcing changes to Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) electronic manuals. While some changes are minor, other changes may affect the admissibility of the plant products, including fruits, vegetables, and flowers.
The Food Safety and Inspection Service plans a public meeting Oct. 23 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. in Washington, D.C., to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft U.S. positions that will be discussed at the 44th session of the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene (CCFH). The CCFH session will be in New Orleans Nov. 12-16. Those wishing to participate by conference call should call (888) 858-2144, participant code 6208658. FSIS said it will also accept public comments for discussion at the meeting.
The International Trade Administration is asking for applications by Dec. 10 to participate in the 2014 International Buyer Program (IBP). Through the IBP, the ITA selects domestic trade shows which will receive ITA assistance in the form of global promotion in foreign markets, providing export counseling to exhibitors, and providing export counseling and matchmaking services at the trade show.
The Bureau of Industry Security will hold a partially open meeting of the Sensors and Instrumentation Technical Advisory Committee (SITAC) Oct. 30 in Washington, D.C. In the public session, SITAC will hear remarks from BIS management, hear industry presentations, and discuss new business. The open session will be accessible via teleconference to 20 participants on a first come, first served basis. To join the conference, submit inquiries to Yvette Springer at Yvette.Springer@bis.doc.gov no later than Oct. 23.
The Census Bureau and Small Business Administration scheduled “Go Global” seminars on exporting for small and medium-sized businesses in Glen Ellyn, Ill., Oct. 16 and Clifton, Md., Nov. 1. Census said the seminars are designed to help businesses overcome the information barriers to exporting and remove the perception that exporting is reserved only for large enterprises. Topics include discovering new and existing markets; correctly classifying products; complying with the Foreign Trade Regulations; filing export transactions using the Automated Export System (AES); benefits of freight forwarders; and obtaining financing through national export programs.
Chief Judge Rader of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit appointed three new members to the court’s advisory council. The new members, appointed to three-year terms that began Oct. 1, are David Folsom (former Chief Judge of the Eastern District of Texas), Merit Systems Protection Board Chairman Susan Grundmann, and Martin Hockey from the Civil Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. In addition, Chief Judge Rader appointed Ed Reines and Jeanne Davidson, current members of the Advisory Council, to new three-year terms.
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of Sioux Honey Association v. Hartford Insurance Co., which was decided by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in February. Plaintiffs’ challenge cited both the failure of the U.S. trade agencies to collect, liquidate and distribute new shipper antidumping duties, and the failure of the sureties for Chinese food product shippers to require and fulfill sufficient bond guarantees. Both the Court of International Trade and CAFC dismissed the case. In light of the Supreme Court’s denial of certiorari, CAFC’s ruling will stand.
The Court of International Trade dismissed Celta Agencies’ challenge of liquidation instructions for its entries subject to the antidumping order on steel concrete reinforcing bars from Latvia (A-449-804). Celta said its entries of reinforcing bars should have been liquidated at the company-specific rate of the producer instead of the all others rate. CIT, however, said it had no subject matter jurisdiction under the 28 USC 1581(a) customs protest denial challenge provision, because Celta was in fact challenging International Trade Administration liquidation instructions, not an action by Customs. CIT said the challenge was correctly filed under the 28 USC 1581(i) residual jurisdiction provision, but the statute of limitations for its use, two years, had already expired.
A listing of recent antidumping and countervailing duty messages from the International Trade Administration posted to CBP's website Oct. 9, along with the case number(s) and CBP message number, is provided below. The messages are available by searching for the listed CBP message number at http://addcvd.cbp.gov. (CBP occasionally adds backdated messages without otherwise indicating which message was added. ITT will include a message date in parentheses in such cases.)
Mexico's Diario Oficial of Oct. 9, lists notices from the Secretary of the Economy as follows: