19 U.S.C. § 1671c: Termination or suspension of investigation

Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3), an investigation under this part may be terminated by either the administering authority or the Commission, after notice to all parties to the investigation, upon withdrawal of the petition by the petitioner or by the administering authority if the investigation was initiated under section 1671a(a) of this title . If, within 3 months after the withdrawal of a petition under subparagraph (A), a new petition is filed seeking the imposition of duties on both the subject merchandise of the withdrawn petition and the subject merchandise from another country, the administering authority and the Commission may use in the investigation initiated pursuant to the new petition any records compiled in an investigation conducted pursuant to the withdrawn petition. This subparagraph applies only with respect to the first withdrawal of a petition. Subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C), the administering authority may not terminate an investigation under paragraph (1) by accepting, with the government of the country in which the countervailable subsidy practice is alleged to occur, an understanding or other kind of agreement to limit the volume of imports into the United States of the subject merchandise unless the administering authority is satisfied that termination on the basis of that agreement is in the public interest. whether, based upon the relative impact on consumer prices and the availability of supplies of the merchandise, the agreement would have a greater adverse impact on United States consumers than the imposition of countervailing duties; the relative impact on the international economic interests of the United States; and the relative impact on the competitiveness of the domestic industry producing the like merchandise, including any such impact on employment and investment in that industry. potentially affected consuming industries; and potentially affected producers and workers in the domestic industry producing the like merchandise, including producers and workers not party to the investigation. The Commission may not terminate an investigation under paragraph (1) before a preliminary determination is made by the administering authority under section 1671b(b) of this title . to eliminate the countervailable subsidy completely or to offset completely the amount of the net countervailable subsidy, with respect to that merchandise exported directly or indirectly to the United States, within 6 months after the date on which the investigation is suspended, or to cease exports of that merchandise to the United States within 6 months after the date on which the investigation is suspended. If the administering authority determines that extraordinary circumstances are present in a case, it may suspend an investigation upon the acceptance of an agreement from a government described in subsection (b), or from exporters described in subsection (b), if the agreement will eliminate completely the injurious effect of exports to the United States of the subject merchandise. the suppression or undercutting of price levels of domestic products by imports of that merchandise will be prevented, and at least 85 percent of the net countervailable subsidy will be offset. The administering authority may accept an agreement with a foreign government under this subsection to restrict the volume of imports of subject merchandise into the United States, but it may not accept such an agreement with exporters. suspension of an investigation will be more beneficial to the domestic industry than continuation of the investigation, and the investigation is complex. there are a large number of alleged countervailable subsidy practices and the practices are complicated, the issues raised are novel, or the number of exporters involved is large. it is satisfied that suspension of the investigation is in the public interest, and effective monitoring of the agreement by the United States is practicable. The administering authority may not accept any agreement under subsection (b) unless that agreement provides a means of ensuring that the quantity of the merchandise covered by that agreement exported to the United States during the period provided for elimination or offset of the countervailable subsidy or cessation of exports does not exceed the quantity of such merchandise exported to the United States during the most recent representative period determined by the administering authority. In order to carry out an agreement concluded under subsection (b) or (c), the administering authority is authorized to prescribe regulations governing the entry, or withdrawal from warehouse, for consumption of subject merchandise. notify the petitioner of, and consult with the petitioner concerning, its intention to suspend the investigation, and notify other parties to the investigation and the Commission not less than 30 days before the date on which it suspends the investigation, provide a copy of the proposed agreement to the petitioner at the time of the notification, together with an explanation of how the agreement will be carried out and enforced (including any action required of foreign governments), and of how the agreement will meet the requirements of subsections (b) and (d) or (c) and (d), and permit all interested parties described in section 1677(9) of this title to submit comments and information for the record before the date on which notice of suspension of the investigation is published under subsection (f)(1)(A). it shall suspend the investigation, publish notice of suspension of the investigation, and issue an affirmative preliminary determination under section 1671b(b) of this title with respect to the subject merchandise, unless it has previously issued such a determination in the same investigation, the Commission shall suspend any investigation it is conducting with respect to that merchandise, and the suspension of investigation shall take effect on the day on which such notice is published. notwithstanding the affirmative preliminary determination required under paragraph (1)(A), the liquidation of entries of subject merchandise shall not be suspended under section 1671b(d)(2) of this title , if the liquidation of entries of such merchandise was suspended pursuant to a previous affirmative preliminary determination in the same case with respect to such merchandise, that suspension of liquidation shall terminate, and the administering authority shall refund any cash deposit and release any bond or other security deposited under section 1671b(d)(1)(B) of this title . If the agreement accepted by the administering authority is an agreement described in subsection (c), then the liquidation of entries of the subject merchandise shall be suspended under section 1671b(d)(2) of this title , or, if the liquidation of entries of such merchandise was suspended pursuant to a previous affirmative preliminary determination in the same case, that suspension of liquidation shall continue in effect, subject to subsection (h)(3), but the security required under section 1671b(d)(1)(B) of this title may be adjusted to reflect the effect of the agreement. if the final determination by the administering authority or the Commission under section 1671d of this title is negative, the agreement shall have no force or effect and the investigation shall be terminated, or the agreement remains in force, the agreement continues to meet the requirements of subsections (b) and (d) or (c) and (d), and the parties to the agreement carry out their obligations under the agreement in accordance with its terms. the government of the country in which the countervailable subsidy practice is alleged to occur, or an interested party described in subparagraph (C), (D), (E), (F), or (G) of section 1677(9) of this title which is a party to the investigation, Within 20 days after the suspension of an investigation under subsection (c), an interested party which is a party to the investigation and which is described in subparagraph (C), (D), (E), (F), or (G) of section 1677(9) of this title may, by petition filed with the Commission and with notice to the administering authority, ask for a review of the suspension. Upon receipt of a review petition under paragraph (1), the Commission shall, within 75 days after the date on which the petition is filed with it, determine whether the injurious effect of imports of the subject merchandise is eliminated completely by the agreement. If the Commission’s determination under this subsection is negative, the investigation shall be resumed on the date of publication of notice of such determination as if the affirmative preliminary determination under section 1671b(b) of this title had been made on that date. terminate the suspension of liquidation under section 1671b(d)(2) of this title , and release any bond or other security, and refund any cash deposit, required under section 1671b(d)(1)(B) of this title . the date which is 90 days before the date of publication of the notice of suspension of liquidation, or the date on which the merchandise, the sale or export to the United States of which was in violation of the agreement, or under an agreement which no longer meets the requirements of subsections (b) and (d) or (c) and (d), was first entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption, if the investigation was not completed, resume the investigation as if its affirmative preliminary determination under section 1671b(b) of this title were made on the date of its determination under this paragraph, if the investigation was completed under subsection (g), issue a countervailing duty order under section 1671e(a) of this title effective with respect to entries of merchandise the liquidation of which was suspended, if it considers the violation to be intentional, notify the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection who shall take appropriate action under paragraph (2), and notify the petitioner, interested parties who are or were parties to the investigation, and the Commission of its action under this paragraph. Any person who intentionally violates an agreement accepted by the administering authority under subsection (b) or (c) shall be subject to a civil penalty assessed in the same amount, in the same manner, and under the same procedure, as the penalty imposed for a fraudulent violation of section 1592(a) of this title . In making a final determination under section 1671d of this title , or in conducting a review under section 1675 of this title , in a case in which the administering authority has terminated a suspension of investigation under subsection (i)(1), or continued an investigation under subsection (g), the Commission and the administering authority shall consider all of the subject merchandise, without regard to the effect of any agreement under subsection (b) or (c). The administering authority may terminate any investigation initiated by the administering authority under section 1671a(a) of this title after providing notice of such termination to all parties to the investigation. If the Commission makes a regional industry determination under section 1677(4)(C) of this title , the administering authority shall offer exporters of the subject merchandise who account for substantially all exports of that merchandise for sale in the region concerned the opportunity to enter into an agreement described in subsection (b) or (c). Any agreement described in paragraph (1) shall be subject to all the requirements imposed under this section for other agreements under subsection (b) or (c), except that if the Commission makes a regional industry determination described in paragraph (1) in the final affirmative determination under section 1671d(b) of this title but not in the preliminary affirmative determination under section 1671b(a) of this title , any agreement described in paragraph (1) may be accepted within 60 days after the countervailing duty order is published under section 1671e of this title . If an agreement described in paragraph (1) is accepted after the countervailing duty order is published, the administering authority shall rescind the order, refund any cash deposit and release any bond or other security deposited under section 1671b(d)(1)(B) of this title , and instruct the Customs Service that entries of the subject merchandise that were made during the period that the order was in effect shall be liquidated without regard to countervailing duties.