The Energy Department seeks input on DOE regulations that should be modified or repealed because they are outdated or unduly burdensome, it said (here). Comments will inform the agency’s implementation of President Donald Trump’s series of deregulatory executive orders, including the two-for-one requirement that agencies repeal two regulations for every new significant regulation issued. Comments are due July 14.
The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA) is seeking comments on a request by the government of Bahrain to revise U.S.-Bahrain Free Trade Agreement rules of origin for certain knit and woven apparel, the committee said (here). Bahrain submitted a petition on March 23 to add five knit fabrics in Harmonized Tariff Schedule chapter 61, eight woven fabrics in HTS chapter 62, and 22 fabrics classified in HTS headings 6203 and 6204 to the FTA’s short supply list. CITA will accept comments through July 21 on whether the U.S. domestic industry can supply the fabrics in commercial quantities in a timely manner.
The International Trade Commission is reopening its online miscellaneous tariff bill (MTB) portal for 10 days next month to allow additional public comments on petitions the ITC isn’t recommending for inclusion in congressional MTBs, the ITC announced (here). The commission will send a preliminary report to the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance committees on June 9 regarding its recommendations for MTB tariff preferences. The portal reopens June 12. The ITC can move petitions for goods it designates as "not recommended" in its preliminary report to being "recommended" for tariff benefits in its final report to the congressional committees, as provided for in the American Manufacturing Competitiveness Act, an ITC spokeswoman said in an email. The ITC said it will also issue a Federal Register notice formally announcing the opening of the comment period and providing further instructions.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is listing six species of fish as endangered, in a final rule that takes effect June 8 (here). The listing places new import and export restrictions on the daggernose shark (Isogomphodon oxyrhynchus), Brazilian guitarfish (Rhinobatos horkelii), striped smoothhound shark (Mustelus fasciatus), narrownose smoothhound shark (Mustelus schmitti), spiny angelshark (Squatina guggenheim), and Argentine angelshark (Squatina argentina).
The Fish and Wildlife Service recently updated its frequently asked questions document (here) on changes to the protected status of rosewood agreed to by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. The agency added information about CITES documents used to export rosewood from India. The listing of most rosewood species in CITES Appendix II took effect Jan. 2, creating new import and export requirements for rosewood products (see 1612280021).
The Drug Enforcement Administration is temporarily adding the synthetic opioid 4-fluoroisobutyryl fentanyl to Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, in a final order (here). The final order takes effect May 3, and will be in effect for up to three years.
The International Trade Commission is asking for comments by June 30 in connection with its annual investigation of the Dominican Republic “Two-for-One” Earned Import Allowance Program for apparel (here). The ITC has reported a steep decline in usage of the program over the past several years, and has recommended loosening program requirements to increase participation (see 1607290011).
The World Customs Organization issued the following release on commercial trade and related matters:
The 11 U.S. agency offices and bureaus responsible for monitoring and enforcing trade agreements don’t have information allowing for a definitive count of staff resources and related funding dedicated for their trade obligations, according to a Government Accountability Office report (here). None of the agencies track staff time at this level of detail because trade actions are performed as part of a broader portfolio of activities, the GAO said. Yet, responding to GAO’s request for information, these agencies conservatively estimated that they devoted more than 700 full-time equivalents at a cost of more than $100 million to monitor and enforce trade agreements in fiscal year 2016, the report says. Further, U.S. agencies in FY 2016 oversaw 80 trade capacity-building projects intended to help U.S. trade partners meet free trade agreement obligations, the GAO said. “These projects, many of which spanned multiple years, amounted to about $256 million in obligated and planned funding,” the report said. “About 80 percent of project funding was related to helping partner countries comply with labor or environmental commitments.”
Rather than further restrict trade with China, the U.S. should negotiate a bilateral trade agreement with the country on as many issues as possible, Cato Institute trade policy analyst Simon Lester wrote in a blog post (here). Even so, there probably won’t be any “big announcement” about such a deal during President Donald Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the president's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida April 6-7, Lester said. “As the U.S. government develops its trade policy over the coming months, it may begin to realize the limitations of the alternative approaches to addressing concerns about China,” Lester wrote. “Trump administration officials have emphasized that the trade deals it negotiates will be bilateral, rather than multilateral. Why not try to negotiate a bilateral agreement with China, one of our biggest trading partners, and the one that is the source of so many trade concerns?”