Requirements to Submit Comments on a Pending Textile and Apparel Safeguard Action

Requirements to Submit Comments on a Pending Textile and Apparel Safeguard Action

Consideration of Requests, Comments:

Consistent with Section 321(b) of the Act, if CITA determines that the request for a safeguard action provides the information necessary for it to be considered, CITA will cause to be published in the Federal Register a notice seeking public comments regarding the request, which will include a summary of the request and the date by which comments must be received. The Federal Register notice and the request, with the exception of information marked “business confidential,” will be posted by the Department of Commerce’s Office of Textiles and Apparel (“OTEXA”) on the Internet (http://otexa.ita.doc.gov). The comment period shall be 30 calendar days. To the extent business confidential information is provided, a non-confidential version must also be provided, in which business confidential information is summarized or, if necessary, deleted. At the conclusion of its submission of such public comments, an interested party must attest that “all information contained in the request is complete and accurate and no false claims, statements, or representations have been made.” Comments received, with the exception of information marked “business confidential,” will be available in the Department of Commerce’s Trade Information Center for review by the public. If a comment alleges that there is no serious damage or actual threat thereof, or that the subject imports are not the cause of the serious damage or actual threat thereof, CITA will closely review any supporting information and documentation, such as information about domestic production or prices of like or directly competitive articles. In the case of requests submitted by entities that are not the actual producers of a like or directly competitive article, particular consideration will be given to comments representing the views of actual producers in the United States of a like or directly competitive article.

Any interested party may submit information to rebut, clarify, or correct public comments submitted by any other interested party at any time prior to the deadline provided in this section for submission of such public comments. If public comments are submitted less than 10 days before, or on, the applicable deadline for submission of such public comments, an interested party may submit information to rebut, clarify, or correct the public comments no later than 10 days after the applicable deadline for submission of public comments.

Entities submitting requests, responses or rebuttals to CITA may submit both a public and confidential version of their submissions. If the request is accepted, the public version will be posted on the dedicated Peru Trade Promotion Agreement textile safeguards section of the Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA) website. The confidential version of the request, responses or rebuttals will not be shared with the public as it may contain business confidential information. Entities submitting responses or rebuttals may use the public version of the request as a basis for responses.