19 U.S.C. § 1516 — Petitions by domestic interested parties
submitted 96 years ago by ch. 497 to r/title-19-CUSTOMS-DUTIES · 996 words · no verdicts yet
Interested domestic parties may ask the Secretary for an import’s classification and duty rate and may petition if they believe those are wrong. The section sets procedures for decisions, challenges, court decisions, liquidation, and implementing regulations.
(a)(1) On a written request from an interested party, the Secretary must provide the classification and duty rate for identified imported merchandise of a class or kind the party manufactures, produces, or wholesales. If the party believes the appraised value, classification, or duty rate is wrong, it may petition the Secretary and state (A) what the merchandise is, (B) the value, classification, or rate it believes is correct, and (C) why. (2) “interested party” means (A) a United States manufacturer, producer, or wholesaler; (B) a certified or recognized union, or worker group representing an industry that manufactures, produces, or wholesales in the United States; or (C) a trade or business association whose members are mostly United States manufacturers, producers, or wholesalers of goods of the same class or kind. It also includes an association whose members are mostly persons in (A), (B), or (C). (3) A raw agricultural-product producer treated under section 1677(4)(E) as part of the industry producing a similar processed agricultural product is treated here as an interested party producing that processed product. (b) If, after considering the petition, the Secretary decides the value, classification, or rate is wrong, the Secretary must decide the correct one and notify the petitioner. Merchandise entered for consumption, or withdrawn from a warehouse for consumption, more than 30 days after the notice is published in the weekly Customs Bulletin must be appraised, classified, or assessed using that decision. (c) If the Secretary decides the challenged value, classification, or rate is correct, the Secretary must notify the petitioner. The petitioner may notify the Secretary within 30 days that it wants to contest the decision. The Secretary must publish the decision and the contest request, then give the petitioner information about entries and consignees entered after publication at the ports named in the request, enough to contest one entry’s value, classification, or rate during liquidation. The Secretary must direct the customs officer at those ports to mail notice when the first such entry is liquidated. (d) Even if an action is filed under chapter 169 of title 28, merchandise covered by the Secretary’s published decision and entered or withdrawn for consumption on or before publication of a nonconforming decision by the Court of International Trade or Federal Circuit must be appraised or classified, and its entries liquidated, under the Secretary’s decision. Unless this chapter says otherwise, those final liquidations bind all parties. (e) The consignee or the consignee’s agent may appear and be heard as an interested party before the Court of International Trade. (f) If the Court of International Trade or Federal Circuit upholds the claim in whole or part, merchandise covered by the Secretary’s published decision and entered or withdrawn after the Secretary or administering authority publishes the court decision in the Federal Register must be appraised, classified, and assessed under the final court decision. Liquidation of entries for that merchandise must be suspended until the action finally ends, and the entries must then be liquidated or, if needed, reliquidated under the final decision. The notice must be published within 10 days after the court decision. (g) The Secretary must prescribe regulations implementing these procedures.
The Secretary shall, upon written request by an interested party furnish the classification and the rate of duty imposed upon designated imported merchandise of a class or kind manufactured, produced, or sold at wholesale by such interested party. If the interested party believes that the appraised value, the classification, or rate of duty is not correct, it may file a petition with the Secretary setting forth—
a description of the merchandise,
the appraised value, the classification, or the rate of duty that it believes proper, and
the reasons for its belief.
As used in this section, the term “interested party” means a person who is—
a manufacturer, producer, or wholesaler in the United States;
a certified union or recognized union or group of workers which is representative of an industry engaged in the manufacture, production, or wholesale in the United States; or
a trade or business association a majority of whose members are manufacturers, producers, or wholesalers in the United States,
of goods of the same class or kind as the designated imported merchandise. Such term includes an association, a majority of whose members is composed of persons described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C).
Any producer of a raw agricultural product who is considered under section 1677(4)(E) of this title to be part of the industry producing a processed agricultural product of the same class or kind as the designated imported merchandise shall, for purposes of this section, be treated as an interested party producing such processed agricultural product.
If, after receipt and consideration of a petition filed by such an interested party, the Secretary determines that the appraised value, the classification, or rate of duty is not correct, he shall determine the proper appraised value, classification, or rate of duty and shall notify the petitioner of his determination. All such merchandise entered for consumption or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption more than thirty days after the date such notice to the petitioner is published in the weekly Customs Bulletin shall be appraised, classified, or assessed as to the rate of duty in accordance with the Secretary’s determination.
If the Secretary determines that the appraised value, classification, or rate of duty with respect to which a petition was filed pursuant to subsection (a) of this section is correct, he shall notify the petitioner. If dissatisfied with the determination of the Secretary, the petitioner may file with the Secretary, not later than thirty days after the date of the notification, notice that it desires to contest the appraised value, classification, or rate of duty. Upon receipt of notice from the petitioner, the Secretary shall cause publication to be made of his determination as to the proper appraised value, classification, or rate of duty and of the petitioner’s desire to contest, and shall thereafter furnish the petitioner with such information as to the entries and consignees of such merchandise, entered after the publication of the determination of the Secretary, at such ports of entry designated by the petitioner in his notice of desire to contest, as will enable the petitioner to contest the appraised value, classification, or rate of duty imposed upon such merchandise in the liquidation of one such entry at such port. The Secretary shall direct the appropriate customs officer at such ports to immediately notify the petitioner by mail when the first of such entries is liquidated.
Notwithstanding the filing of an action pursuant to chapter 169 of title 28, merchandise of the character covered by the published decision of the Secretary (when entered for consumption or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption on or before the date of publication of a decision of the United States Court of International Trade or of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, not in harmony with the published decision of the Secretary) shall be appraised or classified, or both, and the entries liquidated, in accordance with the decision of the Secretary and, except as otherwise provided in this chapter, the final liquidations of these entries shall be conclusive upon all parties.
The consignee or his agent shall have the right to appear and to be heard as a party in interest before the United States Court of International Trade.
If the cause of action is sustained in whole or in part by a decision of the United States Court of International Trade or of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, merchandise of the character covered by the published decision of the Secretary, which is entered for consumption or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption after the date of publication in the Federal Register by the Secretary or the administering authority of a notice of the court decision, shall be subject to appraisement, classification, and assessment of duty in accordance with the final judicial decision in the action, and the liquidation of entries covering the merchandise so entered or withdrawn shall be suspended until final disposition is made of the action, whereupon the entries shall be liquidated, or if necessary, reliquidated in accordance with the final decision. Such notice of the court decision shall be published within ten days from the date of the issuance of the court decision.
Regulations shall be prescribed by the Secretary to implement the procedures required under this section.
Source credit: (June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 516, 46 Stat. 735; June 25, 1938, ch. 679, § 17(a), 52 Stat. 1084; June 25, 1948, ch. 646, § 39, 62 Stat. 992; Pub. L. 91–271, title II, § 209, June 2, 1970, 84 Stat. 286; Pub. L. 93–618, title III, §§ 321(f)(1), 331(b), Jan. 3, 1975, 88 Stat. 2048, 2052; Pub. L. 96–39, title X, § 1001(b)(1), July 26, 1979, 93 Stat. 303; Pub. L. 96–417, title VI, §§ 601(6), 607, Oct. 10, 1980, 94 Stat. 1744, 1745; Pub. L. 97–164, title I, § 163(a)(1), Apr. 2, 1982, 96 Stat. 49; Pub. L. 99–514, title XVIII, § 1888(5), Oct. 22, 1986, 100 Stat. 2925; Pub. L. 100–418, title I, § 1326(d)(3), Aug. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 1204.)
- 1930Enacted · Act of June 17, 1930, ch. 497 · 46 Stat. 735
- 1938Amended · Act of June 25, 1938, ch. 679 · 52 Stat. 1084
- 1948Amended · Act of June 25, 1948, ch. 646 · 62 Stat. 992
- 1970Amended · Pub. L. 91-271 · 84 Stat. 286
- 1975Amended · Pub. L. 93-618 · 88 Stat. 2048, 2052
- 1979Amended · Pub. L. 96-39 · 93 Stat. 303
- 1980Amended · Pub. L. 96-417 · 94 Stat. 1744, 1745
- 1982Amended · Pub. L. 97-164 · 96 Stat. 49
- 1986Amended · Pub. L. 99-514 · 100 Stat. 2925
- 1988Amended · Pub. L. 100-418 · 102 Stat. 1204
A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by ch. 497 on 1930-06-17.
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