House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said July 8 that he hopes to have a "significant package of China-related legislation" signed into law this year, including a provision that moved out of the House Ways and Means Committee that would make goods subject to Section 301 tariffs ineligible for de minimis treatment. All goods from China would have to enter with a 10-digit Harmonized Tariff Schedule classification code upon entry so that CBP could enforce the law. That bill also included new penalties for de minimis violations beyond forfeiture of the package (see 2404180068). Johnson said these changes would "rein in the de minimis privilege" that China is exploiting.
Harmonized Tariff Schedule
The Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) is a reference manual that provides duty rates for almost every item that exists. It is a system of classifying and taxing all goods imported into the United States. The HTS is based on the international Harmonized System, which is a global standard for naming and describing trade products, and consists of a hierarchical structure that assigns a specific code and rate to each type of merchandise for duty, quota, and statistical purposes. The HTS was made effective on January 1, 1989, replacing the former Tariff Schedules of the United States. It is maintained by the U.S. International Trade Commission, but the Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security is responsible for interpreting and enforcing the HTS.
The International Trade Commission posted Revision 4 to the 2024 Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The semiannual update to the HTS adds new 10-digit tariff numbers for a variety of products, including integrated circuits and plantation-harvested teak.
Certain steel freight rail yokes imported by Amsted Rail Company are not included in an antidumping duty order on freight rail couplers from Mexico, the Commerce Department said in a July 3 scope ruling.
In the July 3 Customs Bulletin (Vol. 58, No. 26), CBP published a proposal to revoke or modify eight ruling letters, all of which concern the tariff classification of composite goods with the essential character of permanent magnets under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States.
The Commerce Department issued notices in the Federal Register on its recently initiated antidumping and countervailing duty investigations on vanillin from China (A-570-172/C-570-173). The CVD investigation covers entries Jan. 1 - Dec. 31, 2023. The AD investigation covers entries Oct. 1, 2023 - March 31, 2024.
The International Trade Commission posted Revision 4 to the 2024 Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The semiannual update to the HTS adds new 10-digit tariff numbers for a variety of products, including integrated circuits and plantation-harvested teak. All changes take effect July 1, unless otherwise specified.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the weeks of June 10-16, 17-23 and 24-30:
A coalition of U.S. manufacturers seeks the imposition of new antidumping and countervailing duties on imports of low-speed personal transportation vehicles from China, it said in petitions recently filed with the Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission. Commerce will now decide whether to begin AD/CVD investigations, which could result in the imposition of permanent AD/CVD orders on low-speed personal transportation vehicles, commonly known as golf carts, and the assessment of AD/CVD on importers.
A number of prominent trade groups, along with Winnebago, the motor home and powerboat maker with 6,000 employees, questioned the wisdom of a tariff hike from 7.5% to 25% on lithium-ion batteries outside the electric vehicle sector (Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading 8507.60.0020).
CBP created Harmonized System Update (HSU) 2407 on June 20, containing 17 ABI records and 4 Harmonized Tariff Schedule records. "This update contained Section 301 exclusion updates that included extending HTS numbers 9903.88.67 and 9903.88.68 from May 31, 2024, to June 14, 2024, and adding new HTS number 9903.88.69 effective June 15, 2024, through May 25, 2025," CBP said in a June 27 CSMS message.