CLA-2 CO:R:C:F 955343 ALS
Mr. Phil Busch
President
Value Vinyls
645 St. Charles Court
Arlington, TX 76013
RE: Vinyl Coated Textile Fabrics (Tarpaulin Materials), from
Korea
Dear Mr. Busch:
This is in reference to your letter of November 4, 1993, the
exchange of correspondence and telephonic discussions between you,
this Office and the Customs New York Seaport Area Office.
FACTS:
The products in question are a woven textile fabric, of a
single polyester man-made fiber, that have been completely encased
or covered on both sides with compact polyvinyl chloride (PVC)
plastic. The two styles under consideration vary only slightly in
their respective fabric's construction and their overall weight,
18 ounces and 22 ounces per square yard, respectively. These
materials, subsequent to importation, are made up into tarpaulins
for truck covers and the like.
ISSUE:
What is the classification of the subject materials?
- 2 -
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Classification of merchandise under the Harmonized Tariff
Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA) is governed by
the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's) taken in order.
GRI 1 provides that the classification is determined first in
accordance with the terms of the headings and any relative section
and chapter notes. If GRI 1 fails to classify the goods and if the
heading and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining
GRI's are applied, taken in order.
Classification of these types of products has historically
been dependent on the percentage of the total weight of the
combined polyvinyl chloride coated (PVC) plastic man-made material
that is plastics. Subheading 3921.90.1100, HTSUSA, provides for
plastics combined with man-made textile fibers where the plastics
form over 70 percent of the total weight of the product.
Subheading 3921.90.1500, HTSUSA, provides for plastic combined with
man-made textile fibers where the plastics form 70 percent or less
of the total weight of the product. Thus the question to be
resolved in each instance was whether or not the product was
composed of over 70 per cent by weight of plastics.
Information and documents submitted during the consideration
of this matter by our New York Seaport Area Office as well as
laboratory analyses during such consideration failed to confirm
that the plastic component exceeded 70 percent of the total weight
of the product. Thus New York Ruling Letter (NYRL) 889588, dated
September 16, 1993, held that the subject merchandise was
classifiable in subheading 3921.90.1500, Harmonized Tariff Schedule
of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA).
Further information and documents submitted to this Office
subsequent thereto in connection with the importer's request for
reconsideration of NYRL 889588 as well as further laboratory
analyses confirmed that such decision was correct.
However, the Court of International Trade, in Semperit
Industrial Products, Inc. v. United States, Slip Op. 94-100 (Order
June 14, 1994, amended order June 30, 1994), considered the
language of subheading 4010.19.15, HTSUSA, which reads: "With
textile components in which man-made fibers predominate by weight
over any other single textile fiber...." The Court concluded that
a product must contain more than one textile fiber and that man-
made fibers must be superior in weight for a product to be - 3 -
classifiable under such provision. Thus, the interpretation of
the aforementioned subheading and other subheadings containing the
same language, including subheading 3921.90, HTSUSA, is, by
operation of law, changed.
In light of such change, we have considered your request as
a new request for a binding ruling. In our consideration we noted
that the subject products you import are composed of a woven
textile fabric, of a single polyester man-made fiber, that has been
completely encased or covered on both sides with compact polyvinyl
chloride (PVC) plastic. We have concluded that the above court
case is applicable to the subject products. Accordingly, we have
also concluded that neither subheading 3921.90.11, HTSUSA, which
you claimed to be the proper classification for your products, nor
subheading 3921.90.15, HTSUSA, under which your products were
previously classified, is, by operation of law, applicable thereto.
HOLDING:
Woven textile fabric composed of a single polyester man-made
fiber encased or covered on both sides with compact PVC plastic is
classifiable in subheading 3921.90.1950, HTSUSA, and is subject to
a general rate of duty of 5.3 percent ad valorem.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division