(a) Any official decision or action relating to the allocation of duty-exemptions or to the issuance or use of production incentive certificates may be appealed to the Secretaries by any interested party. Such appeals must be received within 30 days of the date on which the decision was made or the action taken in accordance with the procedures set forth in paragraph (b) of this section. Interested parties may petition for the issuance of a rule, or amendment or repeal of a rule issued by the Secretaries. Interested parties may also petition for relief from the application of any rule on the basis of hardship or extraordinary circumstances resulting in the inability of the petitioner to comply with the rule.

(b) Petitions shall bear the name and address of the petitioner and the name and address of the principal attorney or authorized representative (if any) for the party concerned. They shall be addressed to the Secretaries and filed in one original and two copies with the U.S. Department of Commerce, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, Washington, D.C. 20230, Attention: Statutory Import Programs Staff. Petitions shall contain the following:

(1) A reference to the decision, action or rule which is the subject of the petition;

(2) A short statement of the interest of the petitioner;

(3) A statement of the facts as seen by the petitioner;

(4) The petitioner's argument as to the points of law, policy of fact. In cases where policy error is contended, the alleged error together with the policy the submitting party advocates as the correct one should be described in full;

(5) A conclusion specifying the action that the petitioner believes the Secretaries should take.

(c) The Secretaries may at their discretion schedule a hearing and invite the participation of other interested parties.

(d) The Secretaries shall communicate their decision which shall be final, to the petitioner by registered mail.

(e) If the outcome of any petition materially affects the amount of the petitioner's allocation and if the Secretaries' consideration of the petition continues during the calculation of the annual allocations, the Secretaries shall set aside a portion of the affected territorial share in an amount which, in their judgment, protects the petitioner's interest and shall allocate the remainder among the other producers.