H322161

HQ H322161 March 14, 2023 OT:RR:CTF:VS H322161 AP CATEGORY: Origin Center Director U.S. Customs and Border Protection Consumer Products & Mass Merchandising CEE 157 Tradeport Dr., Suite B Atlanta, Georgia 30354 Attn.: Heather Scott, CBP Supervisory Import Specialist RE: AFR of Protests Nos. 2301-20-100059 and 2301-20-100060; Actuator Cable Assembly; Origin; Section 301; Post Summary Corrections; Reliquidations; 19 U.S.C. § 1501 Dear Center Director: The following is our decision regarding the Applications for Further Review (“AFRs”) of Protests Numbers 2301-20-100059 (190 entries) and 2301-20-100060 (12 entries), timely filed on February 11, 2020, on behalf of Kongsberg Automotive, Inc. (“importer”). The protests concern the origin of an actuator cable assembly made of various components from China, Mexico, Taiwan, and the United States, and assembled in Mexico, for purposes of Section 301 measures. The importer also seeks a refund of Section 301 duties on the 12 entries covered by Protest No. 2301-20-100060, which your office reliquidated. On November 30, 2022, a meeting was held with counsel for the importer and representatives from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) Consumer Products and Mass Merchandising Center of Excellence and Expertise (“CPMM CEE”) and Kongsberg Automotive, Inc. FACTS: The subject actuator cable assembly of subheading 8501.10.60, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”) is a remotely powered electromechanical system featured in the second row seating of sports utility vehicles. The actuator assembly operates by having customers push a remote push-button, which sends an electric signal to a printed circuit board assembly (“PCBA”) to power up and instruct a motor to pull a cable with a specific amount of force to activate certain functions in the vehicle. The functions performed by the actuator assembly consist of changing the seating arrangement in a vehicle by folding a seat, tumbling a seat, and retracting the headrest of a seat. The actuator cable assembly is an electrical motor from China equipped with the following additional components: a PCBA assembled in Mexico; a cable subassembly and housing subassemblies manufactured in Mexico; gear components including face gear and composite gear, shaft, pinion gear, pulley gear, return spring and label from the United States; and enclosure screws, motor attachment screws and mounting fasteners from Taiwan. The PCBA communicates with the motor, directs which mechanism to activate, and manages the motor speed, run-time, and current. The motor generates power to rotate the gears and pull the cable. The face gear, composite gear, pulley gear, and pinion gear transfer the power generated from the motor into a pull force that pulls and moves the cable. The cable subassembly manufacturing process includes cutting cable and conduit materials to length, and assembling these components with plastic fittings molded in Mexico. The housing subassemblies are manufactured by injection molding with use of resin and colorant materials. The assembly operation in Mexico involves installing all the individual components together into a final actuator cable assembly. The final assembly consists of 11 assembly stages and at least 106 individual steps. You requested confidential treatment on the specific steps during the assembly process but this information is essential for the understanding of the assembly operation. The individual steps include installing the shaft and mounting fasteners into the housing; assembling the spring into the pulley gear and installing the pulley gear into the housing; installing the cable subassembly into the pulley gear; placing the motor into a fixture nest and installing the pinion gear into the motor; rotating the pinion gear for proper orientation on the motor, and verifying proper installation with various sensors; installing the motor and pinion into the plastic housing, and automated verification that the assembly was done correctly; installing the composite gear and face gear into the housing; placing the cover into a fixture and inserting the brass inserts into the cover; configuring the PCBA to the motor within the housing and installing the cover onto the housing; placing the components on a fixture sensor; installing the cover to the housing with screws, and automated verification that the assembly was done correctly; placing the completely assembled actuator into the end-of-line tester (“EOLT”), and removing the actuator from the EOLT; labeling; and, packaging the actuator. Protest No. 2301-20-100059 covers 190 entries of actuator cable assemblies entered as originating from China on dates ranging between September 3, 2018 to March 23, 2019. Between May 23, 2019 to June 20, 2019, the importer filed post summary corrections (“PSCs”) to correct the country of origin from China to Mexico with regard to the 190 entries. Some of the entries liquidated as originating from Mexico on August 30, 2019, and September 6, 2019. On November 22, 2019, CBP subsequently corrected those entries and reliquidated those entries as originating from China, which was within 90 days of liquidation. With regard to the remaining entries, between September 20, 2019, and November 22, 2019, CBP corrected the entry summaries and liquidated the entries as merchandise originating from China. Those entries were not reliquidated. Protest No. 2301-20-100060 covers 12 entries of actuator cable assemblies that were entered between August 23 and August 30, 2018, as originating from China. On May 21 and 22, 2019, the importer filed PSCs on those 12 entries to correct the origin from China to Mexico. On August 16, 2019, two of the 12 entries liquidated as originating from Mexico. On November 13, 2019, CBP corrected the two entry summaries to reflect a country of origin of China instead of Mexico. The remaining ten entries liquidated as originating from Mexico on August 23, 2019, and between October 30 and November 13, 2019, CBP corrected the entries summaries to reflect a country of origin of China. All 12 entries were reliquidated on November 22, 2019, more than 90 days from the dates of the original liquidations. CBP’s CPMM CEE determined that the electric motor from China, which was a key component of the actuator cable assembly, had a predetermined end-use and was not substantially transformed as a result of the assembly in Mexico and remained a product of China. ISSUES: What is the origin for the subject actuator cable assembly for purposes of Section 301 measures under both protests? Whether CBP failed to reliquidate the 12 entries covered by Protest No. 2301-20-100060 within the 90-day statutory deadline for reliquidation. LAW AND ANALYSIS: Country of Origin of the Actuator Assembly for Purposes of Section 301 We first note that the matter protested is protestable under 19 U.S.C. § 1514(a)(1) as a decision on the value of merchandise. Both protests were timely filed, within 180 days of liquidation for the entries. See Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2004, Pub. L. 108-429, § 2103(2)(B)(ii)-(iii) (codified as amended at 19 U.S.C. § 1514(c)(3) (2006)). Further review of the two protests is properly accorded to the importer pursuant to 19 C.F.R. § 174.24(b) because the issues protested involve questions of law or fact, which have not been ruled upon. The United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) has determined that an additional ad valorem duty of 25 percent will be imposed on certain Chinese imports pursuant to its authority under Section 301(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 (“Section 301 measures”). The Section 301 measures apply to products of China enumerated in Section XXII, Chapter 99, Subchapter III, U.S. Note 20(d), HTSUS. Among the subheadings listed in U.S. Note 20(d) of Subchapter III, Chapter 99, HTSUS, is 8501.10.60, HTSUS. When determining the country of origin for purposes of applying current trade remedies under Section 301, the 

Country of Origin of the Actuator Assembly for Purposes of Section 301We first note that the matter protested is protestable under 19 U.S.C. § 1514(a)(1) as a decision on the value of merchandise. Both protests were timely filed, within 180 days of liquidation for the entries. See Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2004, Pub. L. 108-429, § 2103(2)(B)(ii)-(iii) (codified as amended at 19 U.S.C. § 1514(c)(3) (2006)). Further review of the two protests is properly accorded to the importer pursuant to 19 C.F.R. § 174.24(b) because the issues protested involve questions of law or fact, which have not been ruled upon.The United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) has determined that an additional ad valorem duty of 25 percent will be imposed on certain Chinese imports pursuant to its authority under Section 301(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 (“Section 301 measures”). The Section 301 measures apply to products of China enumerated in Section XXII, Chapter 99, Subchapter III, U.S. Note 20(d), HTSUS. Among the subheadings listed in U.S. Note 20(d) of Subchapter III, Chapter 99, HTSUS, is 8501.10.60, HTSUS. When determining the country of origin for purposes of applying current trade remedies under Section 301, the substantial transformation analysis is applicable. The test for determining whether a substantial transformation will occur is whether an article emerges from a process with a new name, character, or use, different from that possessed by the article prior to processing. See Texas Instruments, Inc. v. United States, 69 C.C.P.A. 151 (1982). The substantial transformation determination is based on the totality of the evidence. See Nat’l Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 CIT 308 (1992), aff’d, 989 F.2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993). CBP considers factors such as the nature of the operation (including the number of components assembled) and the number of different operations involved. See C.S.D. 80-111, C.S.D. 85-25, C.S.D. 89-110, C.S.D. 89-118, C.S.D. 90-51