CLA-2 CO:R:C:T 088292 KWM
Ms. Karen J. Hiatt
Regional Director of Customs
Commercial Operations Division, Pacific Region
United States Customs Service
One World Trade Center, Suite 534
Long Beach, California 90831-0700
RE: Protest Number 3004-90-000140, Seattle District; Edge-glued hemlock squares;
Builders' joinery and carpentry of wood; Other articles of wood.
Dear Ms. Hiatt:
This is in regard to the Application for Further Review of protest number 3004-
90-000140, received May 25, 1990 by U.S. Customs in Blaine, Washington. We hold
that the protest should be denied for the following reasons.
FACTS:
The merchandise at issue is referred to as hemlock turning squares or hemlock post
blanks. It consists of laminated wood surfaced on four sides, measuring 4 inches by 4
inches in cross section and between 48 and 60 inches in length. In this condition, the
merchandise is not dedicated to any specific use. It may be further worked into various
products such as stair parts, spindles, porch posts and furniture parts.
The merchandise was entered as articles classified in subheading 4418.90.2000,
HTSUSA, which provides for other articles of builders' joinery and carpentry. The port
of entry proposed to classify the goods as other articles of wood, in subheading
4418.90.9040, HTSUSA. This protest followed.
ISSUE:
Are the goods at issue classified as articles of builders' joinery and carpentry, or
as other articles of wood?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Classification under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated
(HTSUSA) is made in accordance with the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's). The
systematic detail of the harmonized system is such that virtually all goods are classified
by application of GRI 1, that is, according to the terms of the headings of the tariff
schedule and any relevant Section or Chapter Notes. In the event that the goods cannot
be classified solely on the basis of GRI 1, and if the headings and legal notes do not
otherwise require, the remaining GRI's may be applied, taken in order.
The importer correctly notes that heading terms and chapter and section notes are
the primary considerations when classifying goods under the Harmonized Schedule.
However, the importer implies that the Explanatory Notes are legally binding and must
be read in conjunction with the heading terms. In fact, the Explanatory Notes are
merely instructive; they are not legally binding. We do note that the Explanatory
Notes are the official interpretation of the nomenclature at the international level and
although Customs has indicated that we will consult the Explanatory Notes in almost all
cases, we are not bound by them.
Heading 4418, HTSUSA, provides for:
4418 Builders' joinery and carpentry of wood,
including cellular wood panels and assembled
parquet panels; shingles and shakes:
In conjunction with that heading, chapter note 3, states:
1. Headings 4414 to 4421 apply to articles of the respective descriptions of
particle board or similar board, fiber board, laminated wood or densified
wood as they apply to such articles of wood.
The provisions of chapter note 3, above, are legally binding on the Customs Service.
Therefore, if the merchandise at issue is found to be "laminated wood" within the scope
of the chapter note, and if the merchandise is considered to be "builders' joinery and
carpentry" for tariff purposes, then the goods may properly be classified in heading 4418,
HTSUSA. We hold that although the merchandise may be laminated wood, it is not an
article described as "builders' joinery and carpentry."
Laminated Wood
Customs has held that laminated wood is made from edge-glued lumber, and that
edge-glued lumber is lumber made of layers of wood that have been glued together (See,
Headquarters Ruling Letter (HRL) 087616, dated August 20, 1990). Laminated wood is
distinguishable from the "glue laminated timber (glulam)" described in the Explanatory
Notes. We have held that glulam is a particular type of structural timber product
obtained by gluing together a number of wood laminations in a certain way to provide
structural strength. Special construction, dimension and load bearing capacity are all
features of glulam which are not evident in the instant merchandise (See, HRL 085227).
The articles in question may be properly described as laminated wood; they are
constructed of hemlock pieces, edge-glued to form a blank from which finished parts
may be made. They are neither finished articles in and of themselves as imported, nor
are they glulam as anticipated by the Explanatory Notes.
Builders' Joinery and Carpentry
Having established that the material at issue is laminated wood, we must determine
if the merchandise, in the condition in which it is imported, is builders' joinery or
carpentry. The Explanatory Notes indicate that:
The term "joinery" applies more particularly to builders' fittings (such as
doors, windows, shutters, stairs, door or window frames), whereas the term
"carpentry" refers to woodwork (such as beams, rafters, and roof struts)
used for structural purposes . . .
Builders' carpentry also includes glue-laminated timber (glulam) , , ,
First, the goods cannot be classified as carpentry because they are not considered to be
glue-laminated timber (glulam), as detailed above. Second, the merchandise as imported
is not sufficiently finished to constitute either joinery or carpentry. The importer asserts
that carpentry refers to "woodwork used for structural purposes." We do not agree that
the term can be defined so simply. Both joinery and carpentry consist of articles which
have been subject to some form of millwork or other working associated with a specific
end product. The imported blanks may be suitable for any number of purposes,
including manufacture into builders' joinery. However, at the time of importation that
ultimate use is not evident from the condition of the goods. In our opinion they are not
sufficiently advanced to be considered articles of heading 4418. HTSUSA. (See also,
New York Ruling Letter (NYRL) 847226 and HRL 087616).
Subheading 4418.90.20, HTSUSA, "Edge-glued lumber"
The importer has suggested that subheading 4418.90.20, HTSUSA, which provides
for "edge-glued lumber", serves to classify the merchandise by application of GRI 1.
We appreciate that the subheading terms, read in isolation, may lead to that conclusion.
However, the terms of a subheading at the 8-digit level such as this can only be read
in light of the terms of the superior headings. In this case, the superior heading, 4418,
HTSUSA, provides for specific articles, namely builders' joinery and carpentry. If the
merchandise does not fit within the scope of the heading, the heading must be
discounted, and examination of its subheadings is precluded. Thus, although "edge-glued
lumber" may describe the goods, we are precluded by the superior heading from
classifying the goods under subheading 4418.90.20, HTSUSA.
Duty-free treatment under the United States-Canada Free Trade Agreement
Because no heading specifically provides for this merchandise, it is classified as
other articles of wood under subheading 4421.90.9040, HTSUSA. Subheading
9905.44.15, HTSUSA, provides that goods described as:
Laminated hemlock post blanks, finger jointed lumber, and edge-glued
lumber (provided for in subheading 4421.90.90)
may be entered free of duty, provided that they are goods originating in Canada as set
forth in the United States-Canada Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Subheading 9905.44.15,
HTSUSA, was announced in Presidential Proclamation 6142 (55 Fed. Reg. 21835, May
30, 1990). Section C of Proclamation 6142 states that the modifications to chapter 99,
including subheading 9905.44.15, HTSUSA, were "effective with respect to articles
entered, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption on or after April 1, 1990. . .."
The instant merchandise was entered on April 27, 1989. Therefore, the entry under
protest is not eligible for duty-free status under the FTA.
HOLDING:
The protest should be denied. The merchandise at issue, described as edge glued
hemlock squares or hemlock post blanks, consisting of rectangular block of laminated
hemlock, not worked or finished beyond simple cutting to size, are classified in
subheading 4421.90.9040, HTSUSA, as other wood products. The applicable rate of duty
is 5.1 percent ad valorem.
Because these goods were entered prior to the April 1, 1990 effective date of
subheading 9905.44.15, HTSUSA, these goods are not eligible for duty-free treatment.
Sincerely,
John A. Durant
Director
Commercial Rulings Division