The Commerce Department has released the final results of the antidumping duty administrative review on thermal paper from Germany (A-428-850). These final results will be used to set final assessments of AD on importers of subject merchandise entered between May 12, 2021, and Oct. 31, 2022.
The Commerce Department is amending its preliminary antidumping duty determination on aluminum lithographic printing plates from China (A-570-156) to correct a calculation error in the AD rate for Fujifilm China. As a result of the correction, the cash deposit rate in effect for Fujifilm China will increase substantially, from 38.57% to 164.3%. As a result of the increase, in order to keep the China-wide rate above Fujifilm's new rate, Commerce is also increasing the China-wide rate from 107.61% to 477.59%
The Commerce Department is setting new countervailing duty cash deposit requirements for imports of glass wine bottles from China (C-570-163), after finding illegal subsidization of Chinese producers in the preliminary determination of its CVD investigation. Suspension of liquidation and cash deposit requirements take retroactive effect for entries on or after March 5, 2024, as a result of Commerce's finding of critical circumstances for all Chinese exporters.
The Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission published the following Federal Register notices May 31 on AD/CVD proceedings:
The Commerce Department published notices in the Federal Register May 30 on the following AD/CV duty proceedings (any notices that announce changes to AD/CV duty rates, scope, affected firms or effective dates will be detailed in another ITT article):
The Agriculture Department’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS) disregarded its own ReConnect program regulations when it awarded nearly $70 million in federal grants in the fourth round of funding last year to two phone companies, Interior and Mukluk, to deploy broadband services for individuals and businesses in Alaska’s Nome census area, alleged two native villages in a preliminary injunction motion Friday (docket 3:24-cv-00100) in U.S. District Court for Alaska. Unalakleet and Elim are federally recognized tribes that contend that Interior and Mukluk didn’t obtain resolutions of tribal consent from them or any other tribes within the Nome census area, as RUS’ “clear and unambiguous” ReConnect program regulations require, said their complaint. ReConnect furnishes loans and grants to cover the costs of construction, improvement or acquisition of facilities and equipment needed to provide broadband service in eligible rural areas. In disregarding its own regulations, RUS “acted arbitrarily and capriciously in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act,” alleged the complaint. As a direct result of RUS’ violation of the APA, tribes such as Unalakleet and Elim have been irreparably harmed, it said. The issuance of awards in “contravention” of RUS regulations mandating tribal consent itself irreparably harms tribal “sovereignty,” because the right to approve or reject proposals over tribal lands can’t be restored by the payment of money, it said. Despite obtaining nearly $70 million in ReConnect funding, Interior and Mukluk haven’t begun construction and aren’t serving the Nome census area, it said. Because ReConnect regulations say that RUS won’t fund more than one project that serves any one given geographic area, the issuance of any award, even improper, has the effect of precluding tribal lands “from obtaining the benefit of any future awards from RUS,” it said. Tribes such as Unalakleet and Elim “have been forced to accept non-existent services from providers to which they did not consent and have been prevented from receiving services from providers to which they do consent,” said the complaint. RUS’ improper funding awards also compromise the rights of tribes “to benefit from alternative federal funding administered by agencies other than USDA,” such as NTIA’s broadband equity, access and deployment program, “causing additional irreparable harm,” it said. Unalakleet and Elim “have established that a preliminary injunction should issue,” it said They seek an order compelling RUS to “deobligate” Interior and Mukluk’s ReConnect program awards “until such time as they can be declared void and unenforceable through this action,” it said. They separately seek an order compelling RUS to designate the plaintiffs as unserved, “thus removing the cloud on eligibility for concurrent and future federal funding during the pendency of this action,” it said.
The Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission published the following Federal Register notices May 30 on AD/CVD proceedings:
U.S. District Judge Steven McAuliffe for New Hampshire designated U.S. Magistrate Judge Talesha Saint-Marc to consider the League of Women Voters’ request for a preliminary injunction to block three defendants from repeating their illegal AI-generated robocalls before the November election (see 2404290016), said McAuliffe’s text-only order Wednesday (docket 1:24-cv-00073). McAuliffe authorized Saint-Marc to conduct a hearing on the request, if necessary, and to file her proposed findings and recommendations with the court, said the order. The league alleges that defendants Steve Kramer, broadband provider Lingo Telecom and robocall broadcaster Life Corp. sent thousands of robocalls two days before the Jan. 23 New Hampshire primary to people they thought were likely Democratic voters, featuring deepfake simulations of President Joe Biden's voice (see 2403150034). The injunction would also bar the defendants from distributing spoofed phone calls, text messages or any other form of spoofed communication. It would also block them from distributing phone calls, text messages or other mass communications that don’t comply with all applicable state and federal laws “or that are made for an unlawful purpose.” Lingo and Life oppose the injunction and have attempted to pin the blame for January’s robocalls on Kramer, a political operative who hasn’t yet answered the original complaint or the motion for injunctive relief.
The Agriculture Department’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS) disregarded its own ReConnect program regulations when it awarded nearly $70 million in federal grants in the fourth round of funding last year to two phone companies, Interior and Mukluk, to deploy broadband services for individuals and businesses in Alaska’s Nome census area, alleged two native villages in a preliminary injunction motion Friday (docket 3:24-cv-00100) in U.S. District Court for Alaska. Unalakleet and Elim are federally recognized tribes that contend that Interior and Mukluk didn’t obtain resolutions of tribal consent from them or any other tribes within the Nome census area, as RUS’ “clear and unambiguous” ReConnect program regulations require, said their complaint. ReConnect furnishes loans and grants to cover the costs of construction, improvement or acquisition of facilities and equipment needed to provide broadband service in eligible rural areas. In disregarding its own regulations, RUS “acted arbitrarily and capriciously in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act,” alleged the complaint. As a direct result of RUS’ violation of the APA, tribes such as Unalakleet and Elim have been irreparably harmed, it said. The issuance of awards in “contravention” of RUS regulations mandating tribal consent itself irreparably harms tribal “sovereignty,” because the right to approve or reject proposals over tribal lands can’t be restored by the payment of money, it said. Despite obtaining nearly $70 million in ReConnect funding, Interior and Mukluk haven’t begun construction and aren’t serving the Nome census area, it said. Because ReConnect regulations say that RUS won’t fund more than one project that serves any one given geographic area, the issuance of any award, even improper, has the effect of precluding tribal lands “from obtaining the benefit of any future awards from RUS,” it said. Tribes such as Unalakleet and Elim “have been forced to accept non-existent services from providers to which they did not consent and have been prevented from receiving services from providers to which they do consent,” said the complaint. RUS’ improper funding awards also compromise the rights of tribes “to benefit from alternative federal funding administered by agencies other than USDA,” such as NTIA’s broadband equity, access and deployment program, “causing additional irreparable harm,” it said. Unalakleet and Elim “have established that a preliminary injunction should issue,” it said They seek an order compelling RUS to “deobligate” Interior and Mukluk’s ReConnect program awards “until such time as they can be declared void and unenforceable through this action,” it said. They separately seek an order compelling RUS to designate the plaintiffs as unserved, “thus removing the cloud on eligibility for concurrent and future federal funding during the pendency of this action,” it said.
Coastal TV is being forced to broadcast with a low-power transmitter that lacks sufficient power to cover its broadcast area due to a contract dispute with Mississippi TV, alleged a May 1 fraud complaint (docket 1:24-cv-00100), removed Tuesday from the Circuit Court of Lee County, Mississippi, to U.S. District Court for Northern Mississippi in Aberdeen.