NY E86915 and NY E86936 Revoked; Carbon Steel Lug Base

HQ 963307 JULY 10, 2000 CLA-2 RR:CR:GC 963307 JAS CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 7215.50.00 Stephen P. Deem Control Devices, Inc. 228 Northeast Road Standish, Maine 04084-6149 RE: NY E86915 and NY E86936 Revoked; Carbon Steel Lug Base Dear Mr. Deem: In NY E86915 and NY E86936, which the Director of Customs National Commodity Specialist Division, New York, issued to you on September 30, 1999, two models of a carbon steel lug base were held to be classifiable in subheading 7211.23.20, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), as flat-rolled products of iron or nonalloy steel. Pursuant to section 625(c), Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1625(c)), as amended by section 623 of Title VI (Customs Modernization) of the North American Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act, Pub. L. 103-182, 107 Stat. 2057, 2186 (1993), notice of the proposed revocation of these rulings was published on June 7, 2000, in the Customs Bulletin, Volume 34, Number 23. No comments were received in response to that notice. FACTS: The articles at issue are lug bases of cold rolled grade 1018 carbon steel. Both are cut from 12-foot long flat bar stock and measure 0.75 inch wide and 3/16 inch thick. The lug base in NY E86915 is 0.91 inch long and is designated item # 880105-313, while the lug base in NY E86936 is 0.812 inch long and is designated item # 880105-310 for car testing. These articles will be used, after importation, as components of a safety dummy. - 2 - The HTSUS provisions under consideration are as follows: 7211 Flat-rolled products of iron or nonalloy steel, of a width of less than 600mm, not clad, plated or coated: Not further worked than cold-rolled (cold-reduced): 7211.23 Containing by weight less than 0.25 percent of carbon: Of a width of less than 300 mm: .20 Of a thickness exceeding 1.25 mm, other * * * * Other bars and rods of iron or nonalloy steel: 7215.50.00 Other, not further worked than cold-formed or cold-finished ISSUE: Whether the steel lug bases are flat-rolled products for tariff purposes. LAW AND ANALYSIS: Under General Rule of Interpretation (GRI) 1, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), goods are to be classified according to the terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes, and provided the headings or notes do not require otherwise, according to GRIs 2 through 6. Chapter 72, Note 1(k), HTSUS, defines the term flat-rolled products in part to include rolled products of solid rectangular (other than square) cross section, which do not conform to the definition of semifinished products in the form of straight lengths, which if of a thickness less than 4.75 mm are of a width measuring at least 10 times the thickness or if of a thickness of 4.75 mm or more are of a width which exceeds 150 mm and measures at least twice the thickness. Chapter 72, Note 1(m), HTSUS, defines the term Other bars and rods in part to include products which do not conform to the definition in Note 1(k) or to the definition of wire, which have a uniform solid cross section along their whole length in the shape of rectangles (including squares). - 3 - Because of their width and thickness, neither item # 880105-310 nor item # 880105-313 meet the dimensional requirements of Chapter 72, Note 1(k), HTSUS. Both, however, conform to the requirements of Note 1(m), HTSUS. HOLDING: Under the authority of GRI 1, the steel lug bases designated items 880105-310 and 880105-313 are provided for in heading 7215. They are classifiable in subheading 7215.50.00, HTSUS. EFFECT ON OTHER RULINGS: NY E86915 and NY E86936, both dated September 30, 1999, are revoked. In accordance with 19 U.S.C. 1625(c), this ruling will become effective 60 days after its publication in the Customs Bulletin. Sincerely, John Durant, Director Commercial Rulings Division