Another Big Win for the Industry!

The news of our win in the CCM solar mount case was well earned, indeed.  Having lost a solar mount case a few years ago, our ability to prevail this time was enabled by our victory in court in a matter involving kitchen appliance handles.  We worked to get that win in the Meridian/appliance handle case because of the precedent it would set.  That precedent speaks to the core of our scope: fabricated aluminum extrusions that are kitted are subject merchandise, as long as that kit is NOT a final and finished product once assembled.  The last administration took the opinion that subassemblies should be considered a final completed product.  As a result, we lost four key decisions, one of which was solar mounting systems.  The Fair Trade Committee decided that, should we win the Meridian case on the grounds we sought, then we should re-fight these applications as they become available for us to do so.  That is what we did here, and we won!  

We do have a few other updates this month concerning our case and other issues.  With the COVID-19 crisis shutting down Washington D.C. we have seen the Department of Commerce (DOC) pivot into the same ‘work from home’ environment many of us have had to do.  Consequently, some matters are moving quite slowly.

A case in point is the 9^th Annual Administrative Review.  While this has become a bit routine for us having been through it every year since 2012, it is still a very important process.  It will adjust and determine the tariffs for the current calendar year and the next.  Over the last few years we have seen duties hold steady at 86% Anti-Dumping (AD) , and 20% Countervailing Duties (CVD).  So, we were happy to see the Anti-Dumping rate stay the same in the 8^th administrative review.  The DOC has said they will have their final determination in the CVD case.  However, we expect last year’s duties to hold as well.  Concerning the kickoff of the 9^th administrative review, that appears to be delayed by about 50 days.

The Aluminum Association has been working with the administration on a new Aluminum Monitoring System for all imported aluminum products covered by the 232.  This program, somewhat modeled on the steel program, will track the country of origin of the imported product and the primary metal source.  We are providing comments to expand that to billet as well.   Documentation will need to be presented by the importer that reveals this information.  For us, it becomes an additional tool to help find transshipped material.  Additionally, the import data will become public information and updated on a weekly basis.  This will empower us to get closer to ‘real time’ information on incoming shipments.  The DOC and Customs Department are working together on this program, which we hope to see completed and implemented very soon.

Other scope issues were in play last month as well.  On April 27, 2020, we received a new scope ruling request from Centsunergy, a California-based solar panel contractor and importer of aluminum extrusions. The request is for exclusion of two products, both under the finished goods kit exclusion: a “solar gazebo system” and a “solar ground mounted system.” The products are both very vaguely described but include solar panels that are fitted into aluminum frames. Given the recent decision on solar mounts, I expect a strong likelihood of winning, should it get that far.  Elsewhere, we submitted comments on Reflection Window’s resubmitted scope request for window wall system kits under the “finished goods kits” exclusion on March 31, 2020. The Department issued another supplemental questionnaire to Reflection on April 28, 2020.

Circumvention and transshipments are also being monitored.   We are very close to being able to announce some great news concerning illegal shipments into our country.  I am hopeful, and eager, that we can announce that in the coming weeks.

Thank you for your dedication to this case and your understanding of how important it is to our industry.  Great news, like we’ve shared this month, is only possible because of your support!  If you have any questions, concerns, or reports of suspicious activity, please do not hesitate to call.