CFR

400.32—Procedure for review of request for approval of manufacturing or processing.

(a) Request as part of application for grant of authority. A request for approval of proposed manufacturing or processing activity may be submitted as part of an application under §§ 400.24-400.26(a). The Board will review the request taking into account the criteria in § 400.31(b).

(b) Request for manufacturing/processing in approved zone or subzone. Prior to the commencement of manufacturing in a zone or subzone involving activity beyond the scope of that which has been previously authorized at the facility (i.e., new end products, significant expansions of plant production capacity), and of similar changes in processing activity that involves foreign articles subject to quotas or inverted tariffs, zone grantees or operators shall request the determination referred to in § 400.31(a) by submitting a request in writing to the Executive Secretary ( § 400.28(a)(2) ). Such requests shall include the information required by §§ 400.24(d)(4)(vii) and 400.25.

(1) The Commerce Department's Assistant Secretary for Import Administration may make determinations in these cases based upon a review by the FTZ staff and the recommendation of the Executive Secretary, when:

(i) The proposed activity is the same, in terms of products involved, to activity recently approved by the Board and similar in circumstances; or

(ii) The activity is for export only; or

(iii) The zone benefits sought do not involve the election of non-privileged foreign status ( 19 CFR 146.42) on items involving inverted tariffs; or

(iv) The Port Director determines that the activity could otherwise be conducted under Customs bonded procedures.

(2) When the informal procedure in paragraph (b)(1) of this section is not appropriate—

(i) The Executive Secretary will:

(A) Assign a case docket number and give notice in the Federal Register inviting public comment;

(B) Arrange a public hearing, if appropriate;

(C) Appoint an examiner, if appropriate, to conduct a review and prepare a report with recommendations for the Board; and

(D) Prepare and transmit a report with recommendations, or transmit the examiners report, to the Board for appropriate action; and

(ii) The Board will make a determination on the requests, and the Executive Secretary will notify the grantee in writing of the Board's determination, and will publish notice of the determination in the Federal Register.

(c) Scope determinations. Determinations shall be made by the Executive Secretary as to whether changes in activity are within the scope of related activity already approved for the facility involved under this part. When warranted, the procedures of paragraph (b)(2) of this section will be followed.

Code of Federal Regulations

[56 FR 50798, Oct. 8, 1991, as amended at 62 FR 53535, Oct. 15, 1997]

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