Andean Trade Preference Act (ATPA), as Amended: Notice Regarding the 2003 Annual Review

AGENCY:

Office of the United States Trade Representative.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) received petitions in September 2003 to review certain practices in certain beneficiary developing countries to determine whether such countries are in compliance with the ATPA eligibility criteria. This notice specifies the date of announcement of the results of the preliminary review of those petitions.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Bennett M. Harman, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Latin America, Office of the Americas, Office of the United States Trade Representative, 600 17th St., NW., Washington, DC 20508. The telephone number is (202) 395-9446, and the facsimile is (202) 395-9675.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The ATPA (19 U.S.C. 3201 et seq.), as renewed and amended by the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act of 2002 (ATPDEA) in the Trade Act of 2002 (Pub. L. 107-210), provides trade benefits for eligible Andean countries. Pursuant to section 3103(d) of the ATPDEA, USTR promulgated regulations (15 CFR part 2016) (68 FR 43922) regarding the review of eligibility of countries for the benefits of the ATPA, as amended.

In a Federal Register notice dated August 14, 2003, USTR initiated the 2003 ATPA Annual Review and announced a deadline of September 15, 2003 for the filing of petitions (68 FR 48657). Several of these petitions requested the review of certain practices in certain beneficiary developing countries regarding compliance with the eligibility criteria set forth in sections 203(c) and (d) and section 204(b)(6)(B) of the ATPA, as amended (19 U.S.C. 3203 (c) and (d); 19 U.S.C. 3203(b)(6)(B)).

In a Federal Register notice dated November 13, 2003, USTR published a list of the responsive petitions filed pursuant to the announcement of the annual review. The Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) is conducting a preliminary review of these petitions. 15 CFR 2016.2(b) provides for announcement of the results of the preliminary review on or about December 1. 15 CFR 2016.2(b) also provides for modification of the schedule if specified by Federal Register notice. In a Federal Register notice dated December 30, 2003, USTR modified the schedule for this review, specifying that the results would be announced on or about March 31, 2004. In light of progress being made with respect to the matters addressed by the petitions, this notice further modifies the date for the announcement of the results of the preliminary review to May 15, 2004. The results of the preliminary review will be published in the Federal Register on or about that date.