Foreign-Trade Zone (FTZ) 38--Charleston, South Carolina; Notification of Proposed Production Activity; BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC (Hybrid Passenger Vehicles); Spartanburg, South Carolina

Topics:  BMW

Andrew McGilvray
Department of Commerce
8 March 2018

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 46 (Thursday, March 8, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9828-9829]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-04656]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Foreign-Trade Zones Board

[B-15-2018]


Foreign-Trade Zone (FTZ) 38--Charleston, South Carolina; 
Notification of Proposed Production Activity; BMW Manufacturing Co., 
LLC (Hybrid Passenger Vehicles); Spartanburg, South Carolina

    BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC (BMW MC) submitted a notification of 
proposed production activity to the FTZ Board for its facility in 
Spartanburg, South Carolina. The notification conforming to the 
requirements of the regulations of the FTZ Board (15 CFR 400.22) was 
received on February 27, 2018.
    BMW MC already has authority to produce gasoline and diesel-powered

[[Page 9829]]

motor vehicles, motor vehicle bodies, stamped body parts, and lithium 
ion batteries within FTZ38A. The current request would add hybrid 
passenger vehicles and foreign-status materials/components to the scope 
of authority. Pursuant to 15 CFR 400.14(b), additional FTZ authority 
would be limited to the specific foreign-status materials/components 
and finished products described in the submitted notification (as 
described below) and subsequently authorized by the FTZ Board.
    Production under FTZ procedures could exempt BMW MC from customs 
duty payments on the foreign-status materials/components used in export 
production. On its domestic sales, for the foreign-status materials/
components noted below and in the existing scope of authority, BMW MC 
would be able to choose the duty rates during customs entry procedures 
that apply to previously authorized finished products and hybrid 
passenger vehicles (duty rate 2.5%). BMW MC would be able to avoid duty 
on foreign-status components which become scrap/waste. Customs duties 
also could possibly be deferred or reduced on foreign-status production 
equipment.
    The materials/components sourced from abroad include: Lubricating 
grease; touch-up paint; polyester band; rubber window guides; rubber 
seals; weather and damping strips of non-cellular rubber; tool bags of 
man-made fibers; acrylic coated cloth tape; warp knit fabric; seat 
protectors; mica seals; fiberglass heat shields; steel insertion 
brackets (similar to staples); aluminum alloy tube connectors; aluminum 
threaded fasteners (such as bolts, screws, nuts, washers); cylinder 
coils; gearbox oil coolers; cupholder warmers; parts of heat exchange 
units (multi-flow adaptors/connectors used to connect pipes or hoses to 
the battery cooler assembly); fire extinguishers; car jack cranks; card 
readers for common interface (CI) plus card to receive special 
television (TV) channels in the vehicle; housed ball bearings; 
inductors; actuators; Bluetooth antennas; speakers; audio frequency 
amplifiers; radar sensors; radios; acoustic warning signals; LED 
lighting; integrated lighting circuits; lens TV contour illumination; 
range-finding sensors; checking/locking fixtures; temperature sensors; 
weather sensors; oxygen sensors; voltage power testers; and, battery 
sensors (duty rate ranges from duty-free to 17.6%).
    The request indicates polyester band, acrylic coated cloth tape, 
warp knit fabric, and seat protectors will be admitted to the zone in 
privileged foreign status (19 CFR 146.41), thereby precluding inverted 
tariff benefits on such items.
    Public comment is invited from interested parties. Submissions 
shall be addressed to the Board's Executive Secretary at the address 
below. The closing period for their receipt is April 17, 2018.
    A copy of the notification will be available for public inspection 
at the Office of the Executive Secretary, Foreign-Trade Zones Board, 
Room 21013, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, 
Washington, DC 20230-0002, and in the ``Reading Room'' section of the 
Board's website, which is accessible via www.trade.gov/ftz.
    For further information, contact Juanita Chen at 
juanita.chen@trade.gov or 202-482-1378.

    Dated: March 1, 2018.
Andrew McGilvray,
Executive Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018-04656 Filed 3-7-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P