Export Trade Certificate of Review

ACTION:

Notice of Application to Amend an Export Trade Certificate of Review.

SUMMARY:

Export Trading Company Affairs (“ETCA”) of the International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce, has received an application to amend an Export Trade Certificate of Review (“Certificate”). This notice summarizes the proposed amendment and requests comments relevant to whether the Certificate should be issued.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jeffrey Anspacher, Director, Export Trading Company Affairs, International Trade Administration, (202) 482-5131 (this is not a toll-free number) or e-mail at oetca@ita.doc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title III of the Export Trading Company Act of 1982 (15 U.S.C. 4001-21) authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to issue Export Trade Certificates of Review. An Export Trade Certificate of Review protects the holder and the members identified in the Certificate from state and federal government antitrust actions and from private treble damage antitrust actions for the export conduct specified in the Certificate and carried out in compliance with its terms and conditions. Section 302(b)(1) of the Export Trading Company Act of 1982 and 15 CFR 325.6(a) require the Secretary to publish a notice in the Federal Register identifying the applicant and summarizing its proposed export conduct.

Request for Public Comments

Interested parties may submit written comments relevant to the determination whether an amended Certificate should be issued. If the comments include any privileged or confidential business information, it must be clearly marked and a nonconfidential version of the comments (identified as such) should be included. Any comments not marked privileged or confidential business information will be deemed to be nonconfidential. An original and five (5) copies, plus two (2) copies of the nonconfidential version, should be submitted no later than 20 days after the date of this notice to: Export Trading Company Affairs, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, Room 7021B, Washington, DC 20230. Information submitted by any person is exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552). However, nonconfidential versions of the comments will be made available to the applicant if necessary for determining whether or not to issue the Certificate. Comments should refer to this application as “Export Trade Certificate of Review, application number 84-16A12.”

Northwest Fruit Exporters' (“NFE”) original Certificate was issued on June 11, 1984 (49 FR 24581, June 14, 1984) and previously amended on May 2, 1988 (53 FR 16306, May 6, 1988); September 21, 1988 (53 FR 37628, September 27, 1988); September 20, 1989 (54 FR 39454, September 26, 1989); November 19, 1992 (57 FR 55510, November 25, 1992); August 16, 1994 (59 FR 43093, August 22, 1994); November 4, 1996 (61 FR 57850, November 8, 1996); October 22, 1997 (62 FR 55783, October 28, 1997); November 2, 1998 (63 FR 60304, November 9, 1998); October 20, 1999 (64 FR 57438, October 25, 1999); October 16, 2000 (65 FR 63567, October 24, 2000); October 5, 2001 (66 FR 52111, October 12, 2001); October 3, 2002 (67 FR 62957, October 9, 2002); September 16, 2003 (68 FR 54893, September 19, 2003); and October 14, 2004 (69 FR 61802, October 21, 2004). A summary of the application for an amendment follows.

Summary of the Application

Applicant: Northwest Fruit Exporters, 105 South 18th Street, Suite 227, Yakima, Washington 98901-2149.

Contact: James R. Archer, Manager, Telephone: (509) 576-8004.

Application No.: 84-16A12.

Date Deemed Submitted: September 6, 2005.

Proposed Amendment: Northwest Fruit Exporters seeks to amend its Certificate to:

1. Add each of the following companies as a new “Member” of the Certificate within the meaning of section 325.2(1) of the Regulations (15 CFR 325.2(1)): Bolinger & Sons, Wenatchee, WA; C&M Fruit Packers, Wenatchee, WA; Cascade Fresh Fruits, LLC, Manson, WA; AltaFresh L.L.C. dba Chelan Fresh Marketing, Chelan, WA; Nuchief Sales Inc., Wenatchee, WA; Orchard View Farms, The Dalles, OR; SST Growers and Packers LLC, Granger, WA; Voelker Fruit and Cold Storage, Yakima, WA; and Yakima-Roche Fruit Sales L.L.C., Yakima, WA; and

2. Delete the following companies as “Members” of the Certificate: Fox Orchards, Mattawa, WA; Magi, Inc., Brewster, WA (as a result of a merger with Chelan Fruit Cooperative, a Member of NFE); Monson Fruit Co., Selah, WA (for its cherry operation, only); Rawland F. Taplett dba R.F. Taplett Fruit & Cold Storage Co., Wenatchee, WA; Sund-Roy L.L.C., Yakima, WA; and Washington Export, LLC, Yakima, WA.