U.S.-Japan Presidential Proclamation

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Federal Register
Vol. 84, No. 249
Monday, December 30, 2019

Title 3—

Proclamation 9974 of December 26, 2019

The President

To Take Certain Actions Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act and for Other Purposes
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
1. In Proclamation 7350 of October 2, 2000, the President designated the
Republic of Cameroon (Cameroon) as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country for purposes of section 506A(a)(1) of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended
(the ‘‘Trade Act’’), as added by section 111(a) of the African Growth and
Opportunity Act (the ‘‘AGOA’’) (title I of Public Law 106–200, 114 Stat.
251, 257–58 (19 U.S.C. 2466a(a)(1)).
2. Section 506A(a)(3) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2466a(a)(3)) provides
that the President shall terminate the designation of a country as a beneficiary
sub-Saharan African country for purposes of section 506A if he determines
that the country is not making continual progress in meeting the requirements
described in section 506A(a)(1) of the Trade Act.
3. Pursuant to section 506A(a)(3) of the Trade Act, I have determined that
Cameroon is not making continual progress in meeting the requirements
described in section 506A(a)(1) of the Trade Act. Accordingly, I have decided
to terminate the designation of Cameroon as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country for purposes of section 506A of the Trade Act, effective January
1, 2020.
4. I have determined that the Republic of Niger (Niger), the Central African
Republic, and the Republic of The Gambia (The Gambia) have not established
effective visa systems and related customs procedures meeting the requirements of section 113 of the AGOA (19 U.S.C. 3722), which are required
in order for a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country to receive the preferential treatment provided for under section 112(a) of the AGOA (19 U.S.C.
3721(a)). Therefore, Niger, the Central African Republic, and The Gambia
are not eligible for the treatment provided for under section 112(a).
5. Section 112(c) of the AGOA, as amended in section 6002 of the Africa
Investment Incentive Act of 2006 (division D, title VI, Public Law 109–
432, 120 Stat. 2922, 3190–93 (19 U.S.C. 3721(c)), provides special rules
for certain apparel articles imported from ‘‘lesser developed beneficiary subSaharan African countries.’’

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6. I have determined that Guinea-Bissau and Niger satisfy the criterion
for treatment as ‘‘lesser developed beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries’’
under section 112(c) of the AGOA.
7. On April 22, 1985, the United States and Israel entered into the Agreement
on the Establishment of a Free Trade Area between the Government of
the United States of America and the Government of Israel (the ‘‘USIFTA’’),
which the Congress approved in section 3 of the United States-Israel Free
Trade Area Implementation Act of 1985 (the ‘‘USIFTA Act’’) (Public Law
99–47, 99 Stat. 82 (19 U.S.C. 2112 note)).
8. Section 4(b) of the USIFTA Act provides that, whenever the President
determines that it is necessary to maintain the general level of reciprocal
and mutually advantageous concessions with respect to Israel provided for
by the USIFTA, the President may proclaim such withdrawal, suspension,

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modification, or continuance of any duty, or such continuance of existing
duty-free or excise treatment, or such additional duties, as the President
determines to be required or appropriate to carry out the USIFTA.
9. In order to maintain the general level of reciprocal and mutually advantageous concessions with respect to agricultural trade with Israel, on July
27, 2004, the United States entered into an agreement with Israel concerning
certain aspects of trade in agricultural products during the period January
1, 2004, through December 31, 2008 (the ‘‘2004 Agreement’’).
10. In Proclamation 7826 of October 4, 2004, consistent with the 2004
Agreement, the President determined, pursuant to section 4(b) of the USIFTA
Act, that, in order to maintain the general level of reciprocal and mutually
advantageous concessions with respect to Israel provided for by the USIFTA,
it was necessary to provide duty-free access into the United States through
December 31, 2008, for specified quantities of certain agricultural products
of Israel.
11. Each year from 2008 through 2018, the United States and Israel entered
into agreements to extend the period that the 2004 Agreement was in force
for 1-year periods to allow additional time for the two governments to
conclude an agreement to replace the 2004 Agreement.
12. To carry out the extension agreements, the President in Proclamation
8334 of December 31, 2008; Proclamation 8467 of December 23, 2009; Proclamation 8618 of December 21, 2010; Proclamation 8770 of December 29,
2011; Proclamation 8921 of December 20, 2012; Proclamation 9072 of December 23, 2013; Proclamation 9223 of December 23, 2014; Proclamation 9383
of December 21, 2015; Proclamation 9555 of December 15, 2016; Proclamation
9687 of December 22, 2017; and Proclamation 9834 of December 21, 2018,
modified the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (the ‘‘HTS’’)
to provide duty-free access into the United States for specified quantities
of certain agricultural products of Israel, each time for an additional 1year period.
13. On December 4, 2019, the United States entered into an agreement
with Israel to extend the period that the 2004 Agreement is in force through
December 31, 2020, and to allow for further negotiations on an agreement
to replace the 2004 Agreement.
14. Pursuant to section 4(b) of the USIFTA Act, I have determined that
it is necessary, in order to maintain the general level of reciprocal and
mutually advantageous concessions with respect to Israel provided for by
the USIFTA, to provide duty-free access into the United States through
the close of December 31, 2020, for specified quantities of certain agricultural
products of Israel, as provided in Annex I of this proclamation.

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15. On September 16, 2019, in accordance with section 103(a)(2) of the
Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015
(the ‘‘Trade Priorities Act’’) (title I of Public Law 114–26, 129 Stat. 319,
333 (19 U.S.C. 4202(a)(2)), I notified the Congress that I intended to enter
into an agreement regarding tariff barriers with Japan under section 103(a)
of the Trade Priorities Act. On October 7, 2019, the United States and
Japan entered into the Trade Agreement between the United States and
Japan.
16. Section 103(a)(1) of the Trade Priorities Act authorizes the President
to proclaim such modification of any existing duty as the President determines to be required or appropriate to carry out a trade agreement entered
into under section 103(a). The President generally may proclaim such modification provided that the modification does not reduce the rate of duty
to a rate that is less than 50 percent of the date of such duty that applied
on June 29, 2015; does not reduce the rate of duty below that applicable
under the Uruguay Round Agreements or a successor agreement on any
import-sensitive agricultural product; and does not increase the rate of duty
above the rate of such duty that applied on June 29, 2015.

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17. Pursuant to section 103(a) of the Trade Priorities Act, I have determined
that it is required and appropriate to modify existing duties with respect
to certain goods to carry out the Trade Agreement between the United
States and Japan.
18. In Proclamation 6763 of December 23, 1994, the President established
a tariff-rate quota for beef. Section 404(d)(3) of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (title IV of Public Law 103–465, 108 Stat. 4809, 4960 (19 U.S.C.
3601(d)(3)) authorizes the President to allocate the in-quota quantity of a
tariff-rate quota for any agricultural product among supplying countries or
customs areas and to modify any allocation as the President determines
appropriate. Pursuant to section 404(d)(3) of the Uruguay Round Agreements
Act, I have determined that it is appropriate to modify the tariff-rate quota
allocation for beef by providing that the tariff-rate quota allocation for Japan
will become part of the total tariff-rate quota allocation for other countries
or areas.
19. Section 1206(a) of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988
(the ‘‘1988 Act’’) (title I of Public Law 100–418, 102 Stat. 1107, 1151 (19
U.S.C. 3006(a)) authorizes the President to proclaim modifications to the
HTS based on the recommendations of the United States International Trade
Commission (the ‘‘Commission’’) under section 1205 of the 1988 Act (19
U.S.C. 3005) if the President determines that the modifications are in conformity with United States obligations under the International Convention
on the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (the ‘‘Convention’’) and do not run counter to the national economic interest of
the United States.
20. In Proclamation 9549 of December 1, 2016, pursuant to section 1206(a)
of the 1988 Act, the President proclaimed modifications to the HTS to
conform it to the Convention, to promote the uniform application of the
Convention, to establish additional subordinate tariff categories, and to make
technical and conforming changes to existing provisions. These modifications
to the HTS were set out in Annex I of Publication 4653 of the Commission,
which was incorporated by reference into the proclamation.
21. Proclamation 7746 of December 30, 2003, implemented the United StatesChile Free Trade Agreement (the ‘‘USCFTA’’) with respect to the United
States and, pursuant to the United States-Chile Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (the ‘‘USCFTA Act’’) (Public Law 108–77, 117 Stat. 909
(19 U.S.C. 3805 note)), incorporated in the HTS the schedule of duty reductions and rules of origin necessary or appropriate to carry out the USCFTA.
22. In order to ensure the continuation of such staged reductions in rates
of duty for originating goods of Chile in tariff categories that were modified
to reflect amendments to the Convention, Proclamation 9549 made modifications to the HTS that the President determined were necessary or appropriate
to carry out the duty reductions proclaimed in Proclamation 7746. The
United States and Chile are parties to the Convention.

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23. Section 201 of the USCFTA Act authorizes the President to proclaim
such modifications or continuation of any duty, such continuation of dutyfree or excise treatment, or such additional duties, as the President determines
to be necessary or appropriate to carry out or apply Articles 3.3, 3.7, 3.9,
Article 3.20(8), (9), (10), and (11), and Annex 3.3 (including the schedule
of United States duty reductions with respect to originating goods) of the
USCFTA.
24. I have determined that, pursuant to section 201 of the USCFTA Act
and section 1206(a) of the 1988 Act, modifications to the HTS are necessary
or appropriate to ensure the continuation of tariff and certain other treatment
accorded to originating goods under tariff categories modified in Proclamation
9549 and to carry out the duty reductions proclaimed in Proclamation 7746.
25. Section 604 of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2483) authorizes the President
to embody in the HTS the substance of the relevant provisions of that
Act, and of other acts affecting import treatment, and actions thereunder,

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including removal, modification, continuance, or imposition of any rate
of duty or other import restriction.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States
of America, acting under the authority vested in me by the Constitution
and the laws of the United States of America, including sections 506A(a)(1)
and 506A(a)(3) of the Trade Act; sections 111(a) and 112(c) of the AGOA;
section 6002 of the Africa Investment Incentive Act of 2006; section 4(b)
of the USIFTA Act; section 103(a) of the Trade Priorities Act; section 404(d)(3)
of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act; section 1206(a) of the 1988 Act;
section 201 of the USCFTA Act; and section 604 of the Trade Act, do
proclaim that:
(1) The designation of Cameroon as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African
country for purposes of section 506A of the Trade Act is terminated, effective
January 1, 2020.
(2) In order to reflect in the HTS that beginning January 1, 2020, Cameroon
shall no longer be designated as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country,
general note 16(a) to the HTS is modified by deleting ‘‘Republic of Cameroon’’
from the list of beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries. Note 7(a) to
subchapter II and note 1 to subchapter XIX of chapter 98 of the HTS
are modified to delete ‘‘Cameroon’’ from the list of beneficiary countries.
Further, note 2(d) to subchapter XIX of chapter 98 of the HTS is modified
by deleting ‘‘Republic of Cameroon’’ from the list of lesser developed beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries.
(3) In order to provide the tariff treatment intended under sections 112(a)
and 113 of the AGOA, note 1 to subchapter XIX of Chapter 98 of the
HTS is modified by deleting ‘‘Niger’’, ‘‘Central African Republic’’, and ‘‘The
Gambia’’ from the list of beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries. Further,
note 7(a) to subchapter II of chapter 98 of the HTS is modified by deleting
‘‘Niger’’ from the list of beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries.
(4) For purposes of section 112(c) of the AGOA, Guinea-Bissau and Niger
are lesser developed beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries.
(5) In order to provide for Guinea-Bissau and Niger the tariff treatment
intended under section 112(c) of the AGOA, note 2(d) to subchapter XIX
of chapter 98 of the HTS is modified by inserting in alphabetical sequence
in the list of lesser developed beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries
‘‘Guinea-Bissau’’ and ‘‘Niger’’.
(6) The modifications to the HTS set forth in paragraphs (1) through
(5) of this proclamation shall be effective with respect to articles that are
entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption,
on or after January 1, 2020.
(7) In order to implement United States tariff commitments under the
2004 Agreement through December 31, 2020, the HTS is modified as provided
in Annex I of this proclamation.
(8) The modifications to the HTS set forth in Annex I of this proclamation
shall be effective with respect to eligible agricultural products of Israel
that are entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after January 1, 2020.

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(9) The provisions of subchapter VIII of chapter 99 of the HTS, as modified
by Annex I of this proclamation, shall continue in effect through December
31, 2020.
(10) In order to modify tariffs on certain goods to carry out the Trade
Agreement between the United States and Japan, the HTS is modified as
set forth in Annex II of this proclamation.
(11) The modifications to the HTS set forth in Annex II of this proclamation
shall be effective with respect to originating goods, as defined in the Trade
Agreement between the United States and Japan, effective on the dates
specified in Annex II and on any subsequent dates set forth for such duty
reductions in Annex II.

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(12) The Secretary of the Treasury shall use existing authority to issue
any regulations necessary to implement the modifications made pursuant
to paragraphs (10) and (11) of this proclamation.
(13) Additional U.S. note 3 to chapter 2 of the HTS is modified as
specified in Annex III of this proclamation. The modifications to the HTS
set forth in Annex III of this proclamation shall be effective with respect
to goods that are entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse
for consumption, on or after January 1, 2020.
(14) In order to reflect in the HTS the modifications to the rules of
origin under the USCFTA, general note 26 to the HTS is modified as provided
in Annex IV of this proclamation.
(15) The modifications to the HTS made by paragraph (14) of this proclamation shall enter into effect on April 1, 2020.
(16) Any provisions of previous proclamations and Executive Orders that
are inconsistent with the actions taken in this proclamation are superseded
to the extent of such inconsistency.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-sixth
day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand nineteen, and
of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred
and forty-fourth.

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[FR Doc. 2019–28285
Filed 12–27–19; 11:15 am]
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