The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) issued a final rule, decreasing the fee paid by importers of cotton and cotton-containing products under the Cotton Research and Promotion Order. This change takes effect on October 4, 2016.
The assessment rate was reduced from $0.012013 per kilogram to $0.011012 per kilogram, a decrease of $0.001001 per kilogram. This decrease is due to a reduction of the average weighted price of Upland cotton received by U.S. farmers during the period January through December 2015, assuring both importers and domestic parties are assessed at the same rate.
AMS also amended the Import Assessment Table, which identifies the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) classification numbers subject to this assessment, the corresponding conversion factor and the assessment rate for that HTS.
Revenue generated by these assessments is used to finance research and promotion programs designed to increase consumer demand for upland cotton in the U.S. and international markets.
Please also see the related U.S. Regulatory Trade News article
‘Importer Cotton Fee Assessment, AMS Removes $2 per Line De Miminis’.
If you have any questions regarding the decrease in importers cotton assessment fee, Livingston can help! Please contact either your Livingston account manager or our regulatory affairs department at usregaffairs@livingstonintl.com.