Request for Public Comments on Commercial Availability of Certain Shirting Fabrics

AGENCY:

The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA).

ACTION:

Request for public comments concerning the commercial availability of certain shirting fabrics in the United States or another of the proposed United States-Central American Free Trade Agreement countries.

SUMMARY:

On May 28, 2004, the Governments of the United States and five Central American countries signed the United States-Central American Free Trade Agreement (US-CAFTA). In a letter to the Government of Honduras in the context of the Agreement, the United States agreed to conduct an investigation to determine whether certain shirting fabrics are available in commercial quantities in a timely manner in the territory of any of the parties to the US-CAFTA. The United States agreed to make the results of the investigation available to Honduras before the entry into force of the US-CAFTA.

CITA hereby solicits public comments with regard to whether the 53 fabrics listed in the annex to this notice can be supplied by the industry in a US-CAFTA country in commercial quantities in a timely manner. A listing of the fabrics is also available online at http://otexa.ita.doc.gov. Comments must be submitted by August 16, 2004 to the Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements, room 3001, United States Department of Commerce, 14th and Constitution Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20230.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Richard Stetson, International Trade Specialist, Office of Textiles and Apparel, U.S. Department of Commerce, (202) 482-3400.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

BACKGROUND:

On May 28, 2004, the Governments of the United States and five Central American countries signed the US-CAFTA. In a letter to the Government of Honduras in the context of the Agreement, the United States agreed to conduct an investigation to determine whether certain shirting fabrics are available in commercial quantities in a timely manner in the territory of any of the parties to the US-CAFTA, namely: the United States, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. The United States agreed to make the results of the investigation available to Honduras before the entry into force of the Agreement. The list of 53 subject fabrics is attached in an annex to this notice. A listing of the fabrics is also available online at http://otexa.

CITA is soliciting public comments with respect to whether these fabrics can be supplied by industry in a US-CAFTA country in commercial quantities in a timely manner. Comments must be received no later than August 16, 2004. Interested persons are invited to submit such comments or information to the Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements, room 3001, United States Department of Commerce, 14th and Constitution Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20230.

CITA is particularly interested in detailed information regarding the ability to manufacture and supply the specific fabrics contained on the subject list, including the location of the manufacturing facility, the types of equipment available to manufacture the subject fabric, the quantity that can be supplied, the amount of the subject fabric that has been supplied in past years, the time necessary to fulfill an order for the subject fabric, and a square foot sample of the subject fabric that the manufacturer claims it can supply.

CITA will protect any business confidential information that is marked business confidential from disclosure to the full extent permitted by law.