CBP to Withhold FY 2006 and Later Byrd Amendment Distributions on Canadian & Mexican Goods Pending Court Appeal
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued a notice, effective September 28, 2006, to notify the public that, consistent with April and July 2006 Court of International Trade (CIT) decisions, it will be withholding certain distributions under the Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act of 2000 (CDSOA, also known as the Byrd Amendment) that derive from antidumping (AD) and countervailing (CV) duties assessed on goods from Canada or Mexico.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Timely, relevant coverage of court proceedings and agency rulings involving tariffs, classification, valuation, origin and antidumping and countervailing duties. Each day, Trade Law Daily subscribers receive a daily headline email, in-depth PDF edition and access to all relevant documents via our trade law source document library and website.
(Although the Byrd Amendment has been repealed by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, the effect of the repeal was delayed for several years. Duties collected on an entry filed before October 1, 2007 shall be distributed as if the Byrd Amendment had not been repealed. CBP has previously explained that the distribution process will continue until all entries made before October 1, 2007 are liquidated and the duties are collected.)
CIT Rules Byrd Amendment Does Not Apply to Canada, Mexico
In Canadian Lumber Trade Alliance et al. v. U.S. (Slip Ops. 06-48 and 06-104, CLTA I and CLTA II), the CIT held that pursuant to section 408 of the North American Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (NAFTA Implementation Act), the Byrd Amendment does not apply to AD and CV duties assessed on imports of goods from Canada or Mexico.
According to CBP, pending the outcome of any appeal, it will withhold FY 2006 and subsequent years' Byrd Amendment distributions to the extent they derive from duties assessed pursuant to CV duty orders, AD duty orders, or findings under the Antidumping Act of 1921, on imports of goods from Canada or Mexico.
CBP further states that any funds inadvertently distributed under these cases for FY 2006 or subsequent years will be subject to immediate recovery under applicable statutes and regulations, including 19 CFR 159.64.
CBP notes that Byrd Amendment distributions that derive from AD or CV duties on other than Canadian or Mexican goods are not affected.
(See ITT's Online Archives or 06/12/06 news, 06061240, for BP summary of CBP's notice announcing its intention to distribute FY 2006 AD/CV revenues as well as its explanation of the effect of the repeal of Byrd Amendment.)
See ITT's Online Archives or 02/10/06 news, 06021005, for BP summary of the signing into law of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, which repealed the Byrd Amendment.)
CBP Contact - Leigh Redelman (317) 614-4462
CBP Notice (FR Pub 09/28/06) available athttp://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/pdf/E6-15886.pdf
CIT Slip Op. 06-48 (decided 04/07/06) available at http://www.cit.uscourts.gov/slip_op/Slip_op06/06-48.pdf
CIT Slip Op. 06-104 (decided 07/14/06) available at http://www.cit.uscourts.gov/slip_op/Slip_op06/06-104.pdf