Blueberries will escape Section 201 safeguards, after the International Trade Commission on Feb. 11 voted that the domestic blueberry industry isn’t injured by a flood of imports. As a result of the ITC’s negative injury finding, the commission’s investigation will end, and it will not recommend any import restrictions to the president.
Section 201 Safeguards
Section 201 or “safeguard” actions are steps the President can take to provide temporary relief for an industry through the imposition of tariffs or quotas to create a more competitive environment for said industry. Section 201 actions are considered consistent with U.S. international obligations if they conform to the World Trade Organization’s Agreement on Safeguards. To enact Section 201 Safeguards, a U.S. company must first file a complaint with the International Trade Commission, which then makes a determination if the industry is injured by the importation of the goods in question. If the investigation is affirmative, the President may enact the safeguards.
The International Trade Commission recently posted Revision 3 to the preliminary edition of the 2021 Harmonized Tariff Schedule. Changes include implementation of extended and revised Section 201 safeguards on large residential washers, as announced in a proclamation issued by former President Donald Trump in mid-January (see 2101150049). Minor changes are also made to an exclusion from Section 301 China tariffs for supported catalysts with zinc oxide as the active substance.
Former U.S. trade representatives and think tank scholars at the Center for Strategic and International Studies say that a revised antidumping and countervailing duty law, which would allow the mere threat of harm, rather than evidence of harm, before the imposition of defensive tariffs, is needed to restore political support for globalization. In addition, they think the U.S. should revive a China-specific safeguard, and encourage other market economies to create their own versions.
At her confirmation hearing in the Senate, Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo, President Joe Biden's nominee for commerce secretary, was asked about rolling back Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum, and ending Section 201 tariffs on solar panels, which will increase to 18% on Feb. 7 if no action is taken (see 2010130028) and if a court doesn't stop it (see 2012300045).
International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from Jan. 11-15 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
Safeguard duties on large residential washers entered under a tariff-rate quota will fall to 15% on Feb. 8, 2021, and then 14% on Feb. 8, 2022, before the newly extended safeguards expire after Feb. 7, 2023, according to annexes to a presidential proclamation released Jan. 19 for publication in the Jan. 21 Federal Register.
President Donald Trump extended and adjusted the Section 201 safeguards on washing machines, he said in a Jan. 14 proclamation. The tariff-rate quotas on washers and washer parts will continue for another two years with some changes, he said. The safeguards were put in place in January 2018 and were originally to last three years (see 1801230052).
A hotly contested exemption from safeguard duties on solar cells has now been terminated -- at least for the time being -- after the Court of International Trade on Nov. 19 declined to expand an injunction to include the administration’s latest bid to withdraw the exclusion, and lifted a temporary restraining order against the withdrawal (see 2010260025 and 2011090033). The elimination of the exemption takes immediate effect, according to a CBP spokesperson.
CBP updated its guidance related to a recent proclamation amending safeguard duties on crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells to reflect a court order blocking the elimination of an exemption for bifacial panels (see 2010130028). “Until further notice, CBP will not enforce the revocation of the exclusion of bifacial solar panels from the Section 201 safeguard measure,” it said in the Oct. 28 CSMS message. The International Trade Commission on Oct. 26 updated the tariff schedule to restore the exemption (see 2010270053).
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters: