[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 48 (Tuesday, March 12, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15802-15803]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-05657]
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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
United States-Israel Free Trade Area Implementation Act; Re-
Designation of Qualifying Industrial Zones
AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: Under the United States-Israel Free Trade Area Implementation
Act (IFTA Act), articles of qualifying industrial zones (QIZs)
encompassing portions of Israel and Jordan or Israel and Egypt are
eligible to receive duty-free treatment. Effective upon publication of
this notice, the United States Trade Representative, pursuant to
authority delegated by the President, is modifying the designation of
the previously-designated Al Minya, Alexandria, Beni Suief, Central
Delta, Greater Cairo, and Suez Canal zones in Egypt under the IFTA Act
to provide that all present and future facilities in these zones are
potentially able to export goods duty-free to the United States. This
modification would also clarify and, in some cases, adjust the
geographic boundaries of the QIZs.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sonia Franceski, Director for Middle
East Affairs, (202) 395-4987, Office of the United States Trade
Representative, 600 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20508.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to authority granted under section
9 of the United States-Israel Free Trade Area Implementation Act of
1985 (IFTA Act), as amended (19 U.S.C. 2112 note), Presidential
Proclamation 6955 of November 13, 1996 (61 FR 58761) proclaimed certain
tariff treatment for articles of the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and
qualifying industrial zones. In particular, the Presidential
Proclamation modified general notes 3 and 8 of the Harmonized Tariff
Schedule of the United States: (a) To provide duty-free treatment to
qualifying articles that are the product of the West Bank, the Gaza
Strip, or a qualifying industrial zone and are entered in accordance
with the provisions of section 9 of the IFTA Act; (b) to provide that
articles of Israel may be treated as though they were articles directly
shipped from Israel for purposes of the United States-Israel Free Trade
Area Agreement (``the Agreement'') even if shipped to the United States
from the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, or a qualifying industrial zone, if
the articles otherwise meet the requirements of the Agreement; and (c)
to provide that the cost or value of materials produced in the West
Bank, the Gaza Strip, or a qualifying industrial zone may be included
in the cost or value of materials produced in Israel under section
1(c)(i) of Annex 3 of the Agreement and that the direct costs of
processing operations performed in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, or a
qualifying industrial zone may be included in the direct costs of
processing operations performed in Israel under section 1(c)(ii) of
Annex 3 of the Agreement.
Section 9(e) of the IFTA Act defines a ``qualifying industrial
zone'' as an area that ``(1) encompasses portions of the territory of
Israel and Jordan or Israel and Egypt; (2) has been designated by local
authorities as an enclave where merchandise may enter without payment
of duty or excise taxes; and (3) has been specified by the President as
a qualifying industrial zone.'' Presidential Proclamation 6955
delegated to the United States Trade Representative the authority to
designate qualifying industrial zones.
The United States Trade Representative has previously designated
six qualifying industrial zones in Egypt under Section 9 of the IFTA
Act, on March 13, 1998 (63 FR 12572), March 19, 1999 (64 FR 13623),
October 15, 1999 (64 FR 56015), October 24, 2000 (65 FR 64472), and
December 12, 2000 (65 FR 77688), June 15, 2001 (66 FR 32660) January
28, 2004 (69 FR 4199), December 29, 2004 (69 FR 78094), November 16,
2005 (70 FR 69622) and January 28, 2009 (74 FR 4482). In each of those
designations, the USTR designated as qualifying industrial zones the
areas occupied by
[[Page 15803]]
currently producing factories, as specified on maps and materials
submitted by Egypt and Israel.
The governments of Israel and Egypt submitted a request for
designation of additional factories in two zones, the Beni Suief and Al
Minya zones, on December 5, 2012. Following this request, during
consultations in Washington on January 7, 2013, USTR discussed with
representatives of Egypt and Israel a proposal to modify the
designation of the existing QIZs to provide that all present and future
facilities in these zones are potentially able to export goods duty-
free to the United States. This modification would also clarify and, in
some cases, adjust the geographic boundaries of each of the six
existing zones. The geographic boundaries of each the six zones being
designated are specified on maps and materials on file with the Office
of the U.S. Trade Representative. Israel and Egypt have each confirmed
that merchandise may enter, without payment of duty or excise taxes,
areas under their respective customs control that comprise the Greater
Cairo zone, the Alexandria zone, the Suez Canal zone, the Central Delta
zone, the Beni Suief zone and the Al Minya zone, as described in this
notice. Further, the operation and administration of these zones are
provided for in the previously agreed ``Protocol between the Government
of the State of Israel and the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt
On Qualifying Industrial Zones.'' Accordingly, each of the six zones
meet the criteria under sections 9(e)(1) and (2) of the IFTA Act.
Therefore, pursuant to the authority delegated to me by
Presidential Proclamation 6955, I hereby re-designate the areas that
comprise the Al Minya zone, the Alexandria zone, the Beni Suief zone,
the Central Delta zone, the Greater Cairo zone, and the Suez Canal
zone, as specified on maps and materials on file at the office of the
United States Trade Representative, as qualifying industrial zones
under section 9 of the IFTA Act, effective upon the date of publication
of this notice, applicable to articles shipped from these qualifying
industrial zones after such date. This re-designation supersedes any
previous designation of these zones.
Ron Kirk,
Ambassador, United States Trade Representative.
[FR Doc. 2013-05657 Filed 3-11-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3190-W13-P