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HALE AND DORR
LLP
November 13, 1998 Honorable Robert S. LaRussa Assistant Secretary for Import Administration Dockets Center, Room 1870 Pennsylvania Avenue & 14th Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20230 ATTN: Laurie Parkhill, Comment on Automatic Liquidation Dear Mr. LaRussa: I am writing on behalf of Micron Technology, Inc. Micron Technology has been a petitioner in a number of antidumping cases related to the semiconductor industry. We have reviewed the proposed policy on assessment of antidumping duties with respect to resellers. We believe that this policy may create a loophole, which would negatively impact the enforcement of the antidumping duty law. We believe that the application of the "all other" rate to resellers who have not been individually reviewed is, in many cases, appropriate. However, the uniform application of the "all other" rate to an independent reseller, as proposed by the Department, creates an asymmetry between the position of the foreign producers and exporters and the domestic industry. When the "all other" rate is higher than the producer's rate, the reseller may request a review to receive a separate rate. On the other hand, in those cases where a reviewed producer/exporter is also the producer of goods which are brought in by an independent reseller, and the exporter/producer's rate is higher than the "all other" rate, the reseller will not request a review. In addition, the proposed policy would provide an incentive to resellers not to make themselves known to petitioners, so petitioners are not able to request a review of the resellers. As the Department is aware, there is already a problem in the implementation of the antidumping law with respect to resellers who hide their identities, and a problem created by exporters who ship goods through a variety of resellers in order to avoid detection. In order that resellers are not incentivized to "hide in the bushes," we suggest that the rate for resellers who are exporting goods that are manufactured by a producer who has an antidumping rate be the higher of: (1) the all other rate, or (2) the producer's rate. If resellers felt that they could get a lower rate than that which would result from this rule, they could come forward and request a review. This option, in many cases, does not exist for petitioners because petitioner will not know the identity of the reseller. We are continuing to study this issue, and may have further thoughts or comments for the rebuttal submission. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Sincerely, Gilbert B. Kaplan On Behalf of Micron Technology, Inc. GBK:lak |