As part of its review of the future of the China 301 tariffs, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (“USTR”) is soliciting public comments as to the effectiveness of these tariffs (or other actions that could be taken) and the corresponding effects on the U.S. economy.  In a prior action, the USTR sought input from the domestic industry as to whether the 301 action should remain in effect.

In connection with this stage of its review, the USTR will be opening a public comment docket on November 15, 2022 to allow interested persons to comment on any aspect of the proceeding, including:

• The effectiveness of the 301 tariff actions in obtaining the elimination of (or in counteracting) China’s acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation.
• Other actions or modifications that would be more effective.
• The effects on:
  ○   the U.S. economy, including U.S. consumers.
  ○   domestic manufacturing (including in terms of capital investments, domestic capacity and production levels, industry concentrations, and profits).
  ○   U.S. technology (e.g., in terms of U.S. technological leadership and development).
  ○   U.S. workers, including with respect to employment and wages.
  ○   U.S. small businesses.
  ○   U.S. supply chain resilience.
  ○   U.S. critical supply chains.
• Whether the 301 actions have resulted in higher additional duties on inputs used for U.S. manufacturing as compared to the additional duties on downstream products incorporating those inputs.

In order to facilitate preparation of comments prior to the November 15^th opening of the web portal, the USTR has posted a preview copy of the questions for this docket here.  Questions solicit economy-wide comments; sector-specific comments; and comments on particular tariff provisions.

Please do not hesitate to contact any of our attorneys with questions you may have on the China 301 tariffs or if we can be of assistance in preparing comments on behalf of your company in connection with this review.