Trade Cases

Commerce Inundated with Tariff Exclusion Requests

Written by Tim Triplett

May 10, 2018

Thousands of manufacturers, big and small, have filed paperwork with the Commerce Department requesting that their products be exempted from the 25 percent tariff on steel imports and 10 percent tariff on aluminum imports. Their argument is that their product must be imported because it is not produced in the United States in a sufficient and reasonably available amount or that it is essential for the nation’s security. Commerce is struggling to process the high volume of requests, leaving applicants to wonder when and how their fate will be determined.

One producer, which relies on raw materials from its parent company located outside the United States, filed its exemption request on in early April. Domestic competitors then had 30 days to comment. “The government now has 90 days to make a decision, but nobody knows what that process is about,” said a spokesperson for the filer. “The big question on the table at this point is, now what? If the U.S. industry says it can make the product, is that the end of it, or is there a verification process?”

A search of regulations.gov indicates that 2,527 requests for exclusions had been posted for public comment as of May 10.

A bipartisan group of 39 House members sent a letter to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross on May 7 urging him to streamline the review process and provide certainty and relief to the thousands of businesses impacted by the tariffs. Among their recommendations are for Commerce to allow trade associations to apply for exclusions for an industry, and to allow exclusions covering ranges of certain product dimensions with the same HTS code. They also urged the department to clear up misunderstandings over the forms, which contain confusing and contradictory requests.

“It is never going to work to have the U.S. government deciding who can import into this country. A lot of people feel this whole process is very difficult,” commented the spokesperson.

Tim Triplett

Read more from Tim Triplett

Latest in Trade Cases

Leibowitz: The consequences of a new barrage of trade cases on coated steel

Domestic steel producers and the United Steelworkers (USW) union filed a barrage of trade cases last week. This is hardly news. Ever since the Commerce Department ruled that Vietnam is still treated as a nonmarket economy (NME) for antidumping purposes, many in the business expected new cases on the product that Vietnam excels at—“corrosion-resistant steel.” Nor is it a surprise that these cases roped in nine countries in addition to Vietnam: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, the Netherlands, South Africa, Taiwan, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. All these countries rank in the top ten exporters of corrosion-resistant steel to the United States. These petitions are a broadside against coated flat-rolled steel imports.

US mills file sprawling trade case against coated imports from 10 nations

US mills have filed or soon will file a sprawling trade petition against imports of coated flat-rolled steel from 10 countries. The petition seeks anti-dumping margins against Canada, Mexico, Brazil, the Netherlands, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Vietnam, Taiwan, Australia, and South Africa. It also seeks countervailing duty margins against Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and Vietnam. That’s according documents dated Sept. 5 and addressed to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and International Trade Commission (ITC) Secretary Lisa Barton.

Steel Summit 2024: Trade issues abound ahead of election

Trade is always front and center in an election year. And 2024 is no different. There is no shortage of issues, with questions like the sale of U.S. Steel to Japan’s Nippon Steel, potential cracks in the USMCA, and Chinese overcapacity dominating the headlines. But how do you distinguish between issues that might just last until November, and what are the crucial questions that could affect your business for years to come?