91 FR 41619 · published 2026-07-07
· Commerce Department, Industry and Security Bureau
Mirrored from the Federal Register (retrieved 2026-08-08) —
the official copy is at federalregister.gov
(their site may ask for human verification).
On June 29, 2026, the Secretary of Commerce initiated an investigation to determine the effects on the national security of imports of anthracite coal. This investigation has been initiated under section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, as amended (Section 232). Interested parties are invited to submit written comments, data, analyses, or other information pertinent to the investigation to the Department of Commerce's (Department) Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), Office of Strategic Industries and Economic Security. This notice identifies issues on which the Department is especially interested in obtaining the public's views.
[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 128 (Tuesday, July 7, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41619-41620]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2026-13663]
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Bureau of Industry and Security
[Docket No. 260701-0158]
XRIN 0694-XC165
Notice of Request for Public Comments on Section 232 National
Security Investigation of Anthracite Coal
AGENCY: Bureau of Industry and Security, Office of Strategic Industries
and Economic Security, U.S. Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of request for public comments.
SUMMARY: On June 29, 2026, the Secretary of Commerce initiated an
investigation to determine the effects on the national security of
imports of anthracite coal. This investigation has been initiated under
section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, as amended (Section
232). Interested parties are invited to submit written comments, data,
analyses, or other information pertinent to the investigation to the
Department of Commerce's (Department) Bureau of Industry and Security
(BIS), Office of Strategic Industries and Economic Security. This
notice identifies issues on which the Department is especially
interested in obtaining the public's views.
DATES: Comments may be submitted at any time but must be received by
July 21, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Comments on this notice may be submitted to the Federal
rulemaking portal at: www.regulations.gov. The regulations.gov ID for
this notice is BIS-2026-0298. Please refer to XRIN 0694-XC165 in all
comments.
All filers using the portal should use the name of the person or
entity submitting the comments as the name of their files, in
accordance with the instructions below. Anyone submitting business
confidential information should clearly identify the business
confidential portion at the time of submission, file a statement
justifying nondisclosure and referring to the specific legal authority
claimed, and provide a non-confidential version of the submission.
For comments submitted electronically containing business
confidential information, the file name of the business confidential
version should begin with the characters ``BC.'' Any page containing
business confidential information must be clearly marked ``BUSINESS
CONFIDENTIAL'' on the top of that page. The required corresponding non-
confidential version of those comments must be clearly marked
``PUBLIC.'' The file name of the non-confidential version should begin
with the character ``P.'' Any submissions with file names that do not
begin with either a ``BC'' or a ``P'' will be assumed to be public and
will be made publicly available at: https://www.regulations.gov.
Commenters submitting business confidential information are encouraged
to scan a hard copy of the non-confidential version to create an image
of the file, rather than submitting a digital copy with redactions
applied, to avoid inadvertent redaction errors which could enable the
public to read business confidential information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stephen Astle, Director, Defense
Industrial Base Division, Office of Strategic Industries and Economic
Security, Bureau of Industry and Security, U.S. Department of Commerce,
(202) 482-4506, [email protected]. For more information about
the Section 232 program, including the regulations and the text of
previous investigations, see www.bis.doc.gov/232.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On June 29, 2026, the Secretary of Commerce initiated an
investigation under Section 232 (19 U.S.C. 1862) to determine the
effects on national security of imports of anthracite coal. For the
purposes of this investigation, anthracite coal encompasses products
classified under HTSUS code 2701.11.0000 (Anthracite Coal) and
2701.12.0010 (Metallurgical Bituminous Coal). The scope of this
investigation is primarily focused on anthracite coal and metallurgical
bituminous coal products that are considered critical materials for
domestic steel production and industrial processes, including their
role as derivative articles of steel for potential coverage under
Section 232 tariffs.
For the purpose of this investigation, ``anthracite coal'' refers
to the highest rank of coal, characterized by its high carbon content
(86-97 percent), low volatile matter, and superior heating value.
Steelmakers use anthracite coal for electric arc furnace (EAF)
steelmaking due to its purity and role as a foaming agent and charge
ingredient, supporting mission-critical operations across industrial,
defense, and infrastructure sectors.
Request for Public Comments
This investigation is being undertaken in accordance with part 705
of the
National Security Industrial Base Regulations (15 CFR parts 700 to 709)
(NSIBR). Interested parties are invited to submit written comments,
data, analyses, or information pertinent to this investigation to BIS's
Office of Strategic Industries and Economic Security no later than July
21, 2026. The Department is particularly interested in comments and
information directed at the criteria listed in Sec. 705.4 of the
regulations as they affect national security, including the following:
(i) the current and projected demand for anthracite coal in the
United States;
(ii) the extent to which domestic production of anthracite coal can
meet domestic demand;
(iii) the role of foreign supply chains, particularly of major
exporters, in meeting United States demand for anthracite coal;
(iv) the concentration of U.S. imports of anthracite from a small
number of suppliers or foreign nations and the associated risks;
(v) the impact of foreign government subsidies and predatory trade
practices on the competitiveness of anthracite producers in the United
States;
(vi) the economic impact of artificially suppressed prices of
anthracite due to unfair foreign trade practices and state-sponsored
overproduction;
(vii) the potential for export restrictions by foreign nations,
including the ability of foreign nations to weaponize their control
over supplies of anthracite coal;
(viii) the feasibility of increasing domestic capacity for
anthracite coal production to reduce import reliance;
(ix) the impact of current trade policies on domestic production of
anthracite coal, and whether additional measures, including tariffs or
quotas, are necessary to protect national security;
(x) the impact of the use or lack of use of anthracite coal on U.S.
manufacturing employment;
(xi) the potential for foreign control or exploitation of the
anthracite coal supply chain;
(xii) the future role of anthracite coal production of items
essential to national security or in activities related to national
security; and
(xiii) any other relevant factors.
Material submitted by members of the public that is business
confidential information will be exempted from public disclosure as
provided for by Sec. 705.6 of the regulations (see the ADDRESSES
section of this notice). Communications from agencies of the United
States Government will not be made available for public inspection. BIS
does not maintain a separate public inspection facility. Requesters
should first view the Bureau's web page, which can be found at: https://efoia.bis.doc.gov/ (see ``Electronic FOIA'' heading). If requesters
cannot access the website, they may call (202) 482-0795 for assistance.
The records related to this assessment are made accessible in
accordance with the regulations published at 15 CFR 4.1, et seq.
Jessica Curyto,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Strategic Trade.
[FR Doc. 2026-13663 Filed 7-2-26; 11:15 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-33-P
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